The beneficiaries of these two investments are 1) Excellence and Justice in Education (EJE), designed to help students coming from non-English speaking families attain higher academic goals, and 2) Parent’s PLACE, a one-of-a-kind Human Development Foundation program designed to help non English-speaking or ESL parents of San Diego’s most gifted students (Open Gate program recruits) facilitate their child’s academic success.
“We elected to have our first investment cycle focus specifically on parenting skills and parent education. We were particularly interested in programs that address fundamental parental abilities as they relate to children’s educational issues like literacy; academic advocacy and achievement; life skills and core communications skills, including the use of technology,” said SDSVP partner Jerry Hoffmeister.
“Priority was given to programs that treat the family as a whole, strengthening both parents and children in the process. Ensuring a bright academic outlook for promising youth means more future adults will be in a position to contribute to the community in a meaningful way – academically, socially and financially,” he added.
EJE and Parent’s PLACE were selected from among dozens of local non-profits vying for SDSVP investment dollars. The checks were awarded at a private ceremony at the UCSD Preuss School on May 14, 2002.
According to SDSVP co-founder Darcy Bingham, SDSVP is comprised of successful San Diegans who give back to the community in meaningful ways. “We’re committed to doing more than just throwing cash at an organization and walking away. We want to share our business expertise in a way that allows our investees to enhance their efforts and, ultimately, better serve the San Diego community. We like to think of ourselves as the new guard of giving: San Diego’s philanthropreneurs.”
SDSVP co-founder Carrie Stone, a venture capitalist with mentor capital consulting business cstone2, says many SDSVP partners are socially responsible entrepreneurs, who leverage their financial resources and talents to have a greater impact than they might have on their own. It is an especially rewarding way of giving.
All San Diego Social Venture Partners are required to invest a minimum of $15,000 cash to join the organization – $5,000 per year over three years’ time. Once investments are made, partners evaluate what business insights can improve the non-profits’ operations and may provide business consultation to investees for up to 36-months.
SDSVP was established as a donor advised fund with The San Diego Foundation about a year ago. The organization’s concept is an adaptation of the venture capital model in working with non-profits. The focus of volunteer work with investees is on capacity-building and sustainability of the non-profit, and not on shifting or impacting the non-profit's mission. As with most VC arrangements, measurable results are identified, and an exit strategy defined.
SDSVP’s first two investees, EJE and HDF/Parent’s PLACE, will together receive more than $100,000 over the course of the next three years. Studies from a variety of sources demonstrate that academic success can often be significantly enhanced when parents are engaged in a child’s educational curriculum.
“Non-profits often need much more help than typical businesses do with organizational issues. We take our process of giving seriously, and evaluate potential investees as we would evaluate a business,” said Stone. “This model of giving acknowledges similarities between non-profits and the for-profit world in terms of fund-raising, revenue, and taking care of your customers. The ideas is to invest in organizations where there is potential for great long-term returns for the San Diego community,” she added.
San Diego Social Venture Partners is a non-profit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to providing financial support and business expertise to help non-profit investees develop more efficient, sustainable organizations. For more information, please visit the SDSVP Web site at www.sdsvp.org.