Equity in the Center is thrilled to be one of the 286 organizations that received a part of the almost 3 billion dollars that MacKenzie Scott committed to addressing social inequities in our society. We are very proud to be amongst our race equity peers in receiving this funding, all of whom work collaboratively with us to push our sector to live into their anti-racism values. 

Four years ago, we emerged as a collaboration of Annie E. Casey Foundation grantees who convened to grapple with this essential question: Why are there so few leaders of color in the social sector? From there we began our research to push beyond diversity and inclusion to building a Race Equity Culture within organizations and the broader social sector. With the minds and experience of many race equity leaders across the country, we learned what organizations could do to be more racially equitable in policies, practices, and programs. In these short four years, this research and our framework, The Race Equity Cycle, has helped organizations chart their own paths to dismantling white supremacy. Our recently launched Pulse Check is an extension of this research and we look forward to continuing to deepen our capacity to transform the social sector in collaboration with colleagues and co-conspirators.

Thanks to MacKenzie Scott’s generous gift to our organization, people and organizations will have continued access to the skills, knowledge and mentoring needed to proactively dismantle white supremacy in the social sector. More organizations will be able to receive the tools and learning that they need to start, sustain and be successful in creating organizational cultures that center race equity. This internal work, in turn, will have a deep impact on their programs and services, and will allow them to better advocate for the broader adoption of race equity in the sector and society. 

We deeply appreciate MacKenzie Scott’s deep investment in our field to continue doing this powerful and necessary work. We hope that her vision for giving unrestricted funding will influence the philanthropic sector to also consider directly investing in the work of our fellow BIPOC-led organizations that are committed to racial justice.

As Equity in the Center continues this period of rapid growth, we are now seeking applications for an Operations Associate. This new position is currently a part-time role (approx. 20 hours per week), however, the potential for full-time employment is possible within 6-12 months for a highly successful candidate. 

Reporting to Executive Director, Kerrien Suarez, the new Operations Associate will be a key leader on the team who supports the Executive Director, maintains current internal systems and processes, manages relationships with organizational vendors, oversees event logistics, and partners with organizational leadership on the long-term growth and expansion of the operations team.

Applications must be submitted via this form. Please do not email resumes, cover letters or inquiries to EiC staff or board members. The selection process is being managed by an external consultant to ensure equitable access and consideration for applicants. 

Equity in the Center is inviting applications for the Director/Sr. Director, Content and Stakeholder Engagement, a new role that will be critical to the organization’s growth and sustainability. The person in this position will lead service delivery of EiC initiatives; oversee project management of EiC trainings, convenings, and cohort learning programs; and implement organizational strategic communications, team management, marketing, and partner engagement. The ideal candidate will be a radical advocate for justice and liberation who brings both enthusiasm and experience in promoting and institutionalizing race equity in the social sector through facilitation and practice. Success in this role requires that the new Director be a willing disrupter who is enthusiastic about the work of dismantling white dominance at the personal, interpersonal, cultural, and institutional levels of nonprofit organizations and grant-making institutions.

Applications must be submitted via this form. Please do not email resumes, cover letters or inquiries to EiC staff or board members. The selection process is being managed by an external consultant to ensure equitable access and consideration for applicants.

In Partnership and Solidarity

Broader reach and sector-level focus will guide the next chapter as Equity in the Center becomes an independent organization

Today marks a new chapter in Equity in the Center’s story — one we are writing in partnership with stakeholders and in pursuit of our shared vision for race equity in society. Going forward, Equity in the Center (EiC) will operate as an independent 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. We are developing a strategic partnership with Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO), the details of which will be shared in the coming weeks. Though the operating model is changing, our commitment to dismantling racism and building a Race Equity Culture within institutions— conceived in 2015, guided by our Advisory Committee, and practiced in our work supporting leaders and organizations — remains firm. We are deepening our capacity to transform the social sector in collaboration with colleagues and co-conspirators. We are excited to move towards a sustainable, scalable structure that operationalizes our theory of change.

Equity in the Center emerged in 2015 as a collaborative of Annie E. Casey Foundation grantees who convened to grapple with this essential question: Why are there so few leaders of color in the social sector? The answer — and call to action — was to widen the focus beyond diversity at the individual level and address racism at every level on which it operates within nonprofit, philanthropic, and other social sector institutions. 

A collaborative spirit has informed and inspired EiC’s approach throughout our existence. We launched from a shared planning effort among leaders from Annie E. Casey Foundation, ProInspire, Public Allies and AmeriCorps Alums. We hosted collaborative Design and Dialogue sessions, attended by over 120 nonprofit and philanthropic leaders and race equity practitioners from across the country who lent perspective and expertise to development of the Race Equity Cycle. Most recently, and with the support of the ProInspire board, EiC’s advisors and stakeholders voted that it should separate from ProInspire and chart an independent course.

We value the deep and trusting relationships we have built among advisors and stakeholders, the guidance and expertise they have shared with EiC, and the contributions each has made to our ability to impact the field. These relationships are critical to our continued impact, as much of the moral and technical support required to persist as leaders in race equity is found within our ecosystem of expert collaborators and co-conspirators. Our goal is to deepen and broaden these relationships in support of a growing network of race equity practitioners committed to the values of deep equity and liberation. We believe deep equity to be the foundation of a Race Equity Culture in organizations and broader society. As our model evolves, we will continue to nurture not only these relationships, but the joy, energy, and purpose they have manifested in EiC’s work.

As we move into this new chapter, we have great appreciation not only for our Advisory Committee, but for individuals whose support has been essential to our work so far. ProInspire’s Founder and CEO, Monisha Kapila, had a vision for Equity in the Center’s successful launch, and ensured funding and operational conditions were in place for the project and its leadership to flourish. Ashley Stewart, formerly of Annie E. Casey Foundation, is the visionary who provided start-up funding for the project and influenced peers to invest in it. Ericka Hines, Managing Director of EiC and Principal of Every Level Leadership, was lead researcher for the Awake to Woke to Work: Building a Race Equity Culture publication, and her brilliance is reflected in the Race Equity Cycle framework. To CHANGE Philanthropy National Director/Coalition Catalyst Carly Hare and Building Movement Project Co-Director Sean Thomas- Breitfeld, who were the first colleagues to accept a formal organizing role with EiC, we offer deep gratitude for their early support, constant encouragement and sustaining friendship. To Marcus Walton, President and CEO of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, who invested in EiC as a strategic co-conspirator and appreciated the potential impact of the Race Equity Cycle research early on, we remain grateful for your inspiring vision and transformational partnership. And, to Andrew Plumley, former Associate Director of EiC and newly minted board member, we remain indebted for the excellence and integrity he brought to co-leading a body of work that evolved to reflect the passion and purpose he poured into it.

In its next iteration as an independent 501(c)3 organization, Equity in the Center will operate under the leadership of Executive Director Kerrien Suarez and a seven-member (and growing) Board of Directors representing nonprofits, philanthropy, and independent race equity practitioners: Amanda Andere, CEO, Funders Together to End Homelessness; Jara Dean-Coffey, Director and Founder, Equitable Evaluation Initiative and Founder, Luminare Group; Holly Delany Cole, Director, Flexible Leadership Awards, The Haas Leadership Initiatives, Evelyn & Walter Haas Jr. Fund; Carly Hare, National Director/Coalition Catalyst, CHANGE Philanthropy; Maggie Potapchuk, President, MP Associates; Andrew Plumley, Director of Inclusion, American Alliance of Museums; Sean Thomas-Breitfeld, Co-Director, Building Movement Project. We are deeply grateful to each of these colleagues and co-conspirators for their early and unflagging support of EiC’s vision and values, personal and professional investment in its potential, and commitment to continued growth and impact. 

While our business model and identity is evolving, our vision of race equity in society and our commitment to building a Race Equity Culture in the social sector remain unchanged.