THE LONG ISLAND LEAP INITIATIVE

Five of Long Island’s biggest institutional and private funders have partnered with the Community Training and Assistance Center (CTAC) to support an innovative capacity building initiative for small to mid-size nonprofits seeking to become more effective change agents in some of the most distressed communities in Nassau and Suffolk Counties in New York State.

In an unprecedented collaboration for the region, the Long Island Community Foundation, Horace Hagedorn Foundation, Rauch Foundation, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, and Unitarian Universalist Veatch Program at Shelter Rock have joined with two individual donors to provide assistance to strengthen selected community-based organizations that are generating positive changes in their communities.

LEAP, which stands for Leadership, Effectiveness, Action and Partnership, was launched in June, 2007 at a pivotal point in the evolution of communities that have not shared Long Island’s overall prosperity. The situation is equally pivotal for the numerous small and mid-size nonprofits trying to make those communities better.

“At a time when the impact of nonprofits is being scrutinized by local government, media, and Congress, this initiative is designed to help these groups--particularly under-resourced organizations based in communities of color -- achieve greater levels of operational effectiveness, program results, and community leadership,” says Suzy Sonenberg, executive director of the Long Island Community Foundation (LICF), which is coordinating the initiative.

The collaboration among funders and grassroots organizations has already attracted the attention of Nassau and Suffolk County officials interested in supporting innovative community improvement efforts. It is expected that LEAP will serve as a national model of how funders can partner with grassroots groups to bring positive change to their communities and region.

CTAC has a national reputation for employing systemic, integrated strategies that equip organizations to develop, implement, and sustain meaningful community improvement efforts over the long term. CTAC is working with the LEAP nonprofits to:

  1. build their capacity to incorporate policy considerations into their work;
  2. develop and sustain effective collaborations with other groups to achieve real community impact;
  3. incorporate best regional and national practices into their local strategies and actions; and
  4. develop more sophisticated means of assessing community impact and demonstrating results to key stakeholders, including funders, public officials, and the broader public.

A key premise of this initiative is that while strong individual nonprofits acting alone can make some difference in the lives of the people they serve, LEAP partners believe that well-designed collaborations among institutions can produce more significant, long-term improvements.

Following is the current list of participating organizations:

Through the LEAP initiative, organizations are taking advantage of an array of capacity-building activities, including: