Power Station

Renata Soto is the dynamic executive director of Conexion Americas, an immigrant serving nonprofit in Nashville, Tennessee. She spoke to Power Station, at the 2018 UnidosUS Conference, about how she balances the provision of programs and services for Latino families with their engagement in policy advocacy. The Escalera Program, an Unidos US initiative, helps immigrant children succeed educationally and teaches their parents how to hold schools accountable. The Culinary Incubator is a resource for parents with entrepreneurial aspirations. Casa Azafran is a consortia of progressive and immigrant serving organizations that create a welcoming community in Nashville. Listen, learn and be inspired.

Rob Randhava is Senior Counsel to the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, which brings together our nation's leading progressive organizational voices on education, housing, labor and immigration and advocates for policies that create equity and opportunity in marginalized and communities of color. Rob brings his legal expertise and commitment to justice to LCCR's network of advocacy groups and to members of Congress. And he is legendary for his pursuit of fairness in our nation's financial services systems. He is a quiet force of Capitol Hill and somehow remains resilient, funny and a force to be reckoned with.

Rob Randhava is Senior Counsel to the Leadership Conference, the nation's leading civil and human rights organization, now led by CEO Vanita Gupta. LCCHR brings together our nation's leading organizational voices on education, housing, labor and immigration and advocates for public and private sector policies that create more equitable conditions in low-income and communities of color. LCCHR played a particularly important role in the development and passage of the Dodd-Frank law, which generated the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Now under assault by the Trump administration and Congress, CFPB has been a skilled and proactive enforcer of the financial industry. Rob brings his legal expertise on a broad range of civil rights issues to nonprofit coalition advocates and to staff and members of Congress. His policy engagement includes analysis and proposed action on Supreme Court nominees. Somehow, Rob remains resilient, funny and a force to be reckoned with. 

The New York Foundation is a singular resource for neighborhood based organizations in NYC, often start-ups, that prioritize organizing and community engagement. These groups may have modest resources but their voice, impact and influence is growing. They are identifying problems and solutions within failing systems, from housing to schools to immigration. As executive director Maria Mottola explains, NYF's theory of change making is rooted in its values and history. Whether funding Nepalese women in Jackson Heights, Queens, or tenant organizers in the Bronx, NYF is expanding on the legacy of believing in, and building the capacity of, community members to make the change they want to see. Maria and the New York Foundation are engaged where it matters most, supporting neighborhood leaders and developing community infrastructure.

The New York Foundation funds neighborhood organizations in NYC, often start-ups, that look within their own communities for solutions to   profound challenges. Grantees with often modest resource are an increasing voice at the local, state and national levels, addressing unlivable and unaffordable housing, exploitative conditions in the workplace, school reform and mistreatment of immigrants. As New York Foundation executive director Maria Mottola explains, this theory of change making is rooted in the Foundation's values and history. Whether funding Nepalese women to organize in Jackson Heights, Queens, or tenant organizers in the Bronx, Maria is expanding on the legacy of believing in, and building the capacity of, community members to make the change they want to see. In an era where immigrant communities in particular face daily pushback, Maria and the New York Foundation are engaged where it matters most, on supporting neighborhood leaders and developing community infrastructure. 

Maryland Legal Aid is a lifeline for low-income people facing eviction, living with substandard housing conditions, seeking veteran's benefits and overcoming domestic abuse. MLAB, under the leadership of bridge-builder and advocate Wilhelm Joseph, is a robust nonprofit organization with 12 offices across the state. The newest program innovation, The Community Lawyering Initiative, is a mobile resource that partners lawyers with libraries, offering people help in non-threatening and comfortable surroundings within their neighborhoods. Having decades old convictions expunged from their records is transformative in ways that are both pragmatic and psychological. They are now able to access employment, housing and benefits. Amy and Meaghan's make transformation possible in real time.

talk about their innovative approach to helping low-income residents of Baltimore County expunge old criminal charges from their records.

Maryland Legal Aid is a lifeline for low-income people facing eviction, living with substandard housing conditions, seeking veteran's benefits and overcoming domestic abuse. MLAB, under the leadership of bridge-builder and advocate Wilhelm Joseph, is a robust nonprofit organization with 12 offices across the state. The newest program innovation, The Community Lawyering Initiative, is a mobile resource that connects people in need with lawyers. The Initiative partners lawyers with libraries, offering people help in non-threatening and comfortable surroundings within their communities. The experience of having decades old convictions expunged from their records is transformative in ways that are both pragmatic and psychological. They are now able to get employment and have access to housing and benefits. And they are freed from the weight of a record they have moved beyond. Amy and Meaghan's insights are instructive and enlightening. Learn about this model for serving and building power in disenfranchised communities.

talk about their innovative approach to helping low-income residents of Baltimore County expunge old criminal charges from their records. 

Alejandra Castillo has been a Special Advisor in the Clinton administration and National Director of the Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency under President Obama. Even so, she says that being CEO of the YWCA National is the hardest job she's ever had. Now celebrating its 160th year, the YWCA, this nation's first fully integrated institution has an explicit mission to eliminate racism and empower women. In addition to providing day to day programs and services for women and children impacted by domestic violence and trauma, the YWCA advocates for progressive policies in state houses and on Capital Hill. And, as Alexandra points out, there is the ongoing challenge of raising foundation dollars and seeking new forms of revenue that allow for innovation. Whether meeting with members of Congress or engaging with separated families in McAllen, Texas, Alejandra is a change maker. Stay tuned for more information abut the YWCA's Exchange Traded Fund!

Alejandra Castillo has been a Special Advisor in the Clinton administration and National Director of the Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency under President Obama. Even so, she says that being CEO of the YWCA National is the hardest job she's ever had. Now celebrating its 160th year, the YWCA, this nation's first fully integrated institution, has an explicit mission to eliminate racism and empower women. In addition to providing day to day programs and services for women and children impacted by domestic violence and trauma, the YWCA advocates for progressive policies in state houses and on Capital Hill. And, as Alexandra points out, there is the ongoing challenge of raising foundation dollars and seeking new forms of revenue that allow for innovation. Whether meeting with members of Congress or engaging with separated families in McAllen, Texas, Alejandra is a change maker. Stay tuned for more information abut the YWCA's Exchange Traded Fund!

Washington, DC is not only our nation's capital, it is a city of neighborhoods, rich in African American arts and culture. In this episode of Power Station, Fair Budget co-director Monica Kamen, explains how shifting demographics and significant public and private investment in affluent communities, have made citizen engagement in policy and budgetary decisions all the more critical. Monica and co-director Stephanie Sneed, train local nonprofits and their grassroots constituencies in how to engage with the City Council budget process, testify at public hearings and advocate for their own policy and budget positions. The Fair Budget Coalition has developed a network of 60 nonprofit members who collaborate to demand a Fair Budget process that prioritizes racial justice. They are creating capacity and shaping better, and more, transparent, policy decisions.