NCGives - Leading To Change

Leading To Change & NCGives:

Combine innovative and fast-paced, professional training and facilitation techniques with an unprecedented knowledge of youth culture and a cutting edge, grass-roots approach to social change. The result? A statewide network of youth in North Carolina who are creating change through their own approaches to philanthropy.

And it's working! Since the Fall of 2005, over 150 young people have given 3000+ hours in researching and granting over $100,000 of their and community funds to support youth-initiated ideas throughout North Carolina (see article, "No Longer Waiting").

Previously, Leading To Change collaborated with the Youth Leadership Institute in partnership with NCGives. Beginning in the Fall of 2007, Leading To Change will work directly with the NCGives Initiative to provide support, tools, and infrastructures to develop and sustain North Carolina's youth engagement and visibility in the philanthropic process.

Through LTC's partnership with NCGives and community programs and foundations throughout North Carolina, young people are becoming involved as givers and donors by utilizing their decision-making skills and authority in awarding grant funds and implementing social change projects that can have profound impacts upon communities.

Youth Giving In 2007-2008

As of Fall 2007, 10 different NC communities will be implementing youth philanthropy programs with the support of Leading To Change, including:

Davidson County (Communities In School of Davidson County)
Davie County (Community Foundation of Davie County)
Forsyth County (The Winston-Salem Foundation)
Gaston County (Gaston County Community Foundation, Alliance for Children and Youth, With Friends Youth Shelter)
Guilford County (Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro)
Mecklenburg County (Foundation For The Carolinas, Partners in Out-of-School Time)
Mecklenburg County (Communities in School of Mecklenburg County)
Vance County (Vance County Community Foundation/NCCF, Henderson YMCA)
Wilkes County (Wilkes County Community Foundation/NCCF, Wilkes County Superintendent of Schools)
STATEWIDE: North Carolina Native American Youth Organization (NCNAYO)

Youth Giving Deliverables & Outcomes

Through it's partnership with NCGives, Leading To Change provides:

Training and support for youth grantmaking initiatives in Forsyth County (Winston-Salem), Gaston County (Gastonia) Guilford County (Greensboro), Davie County (Mocksville), Davidson County (Lexington), Mecklenburg County (Charlotte), Wilkes County (Wilkesboro), and Vance County (Henderson).
Development of youth philanthropy tools for immediate implementation by community foundation and youth philanthropy staff.
Engagement of youth and communities traditionally left out of the grant making and traditional philanthropic process.
Facilitation of youth-philanthropy best practices network.
As of August 2007, YLI/LTC has provided over 120 days of on-site training, and an additional 2000+ hours of additional consultation and technical assistance.
Development of youth grants board application and membership contract, mission and operating code of ethics, community research methodologies, action planning tools, youth friendly RFP and supporting tools, site visit preparation, grant selection facilitation, grantee support tools, and evaluation methodologies.

Young people participating in these youth philanthropy efforts gain a number of benefits: new partnerships with adults and other youth; increased understanding of their communities and community needs; a greater sense of their role in promoting community development and influencing policy through social justice; increased understanding of the philanthropic process and the role of donors and givers; and opportunities to develop and enhance a myriad of social and critical thinking skills.

About Leading To Change

Leading To Change is a customized consulting and facilitation practice that works with for-profit and non-profit organizations to achieve both progressive and dynamic change.

With over 15 years of training, consulting, and facilitation experience, we've had the opportunity to grow and learn from over 40,000 professionals, administrators, practitioners, educators, and youth and adult allies and advocates. It's these many years of "grass roots" education and on-the ground learning that guide our work with for-profit and non-profit agencies.

Leading To Change is the dream of (Founder and President) Eric Rowles and approximately 15-20 like minded trainers, community organizers, advocates, business owners, educators, and change makers from throughout the country.

Specifically, we wanted to create a one-of-a-kind training and consulting agency that was poised to provide unprecedented levels of innovation, energy, flexibility, and personal attention to organizations, programs, institutions, and communities big and small.

And we wanted to create a training agency that helped our clients identify and achieve the dynamic transformations they are looking for. Thus, the name of our organization and logo - the delta symbol for "change".

For more information, please visit us online at www.leadingtochange.com or email at info@leadingtochange.com. To view the 2007-2008 Youth Philanthropy Training Schedule, please click here.