The Eisner Foundation Convenes Emerging Nonprofit Leaders to Help Weather the Challenging Economy

A panel of development experts representing SCI-ARC, DonorsChoose.org and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center gives advice to nonprofit leaders on raising funds during the recession.

July 30, 2010

LOS ANGELES – The Eisner Foundation hosted a grantee convening at The Center for Healthy Communities in downtown Los Angeles bringing together nearly 50 leaders from emerging non-profit organizations that are part of the Foundation’s Seed Grant portfolio.The purpose of the one-day convening was to offer technical training by giving the participants a practical, problem solving framework to avoid a state of crisis during the current challenging economy.

Presenters included Karla Salazar, Director of Los Angeles Program of Nonprofit Finance Fund and a development expert panel from Southern California Institute of Architecture, DonorsChoose.org, and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center who shared effective financial management and fundraising techniques to sustain essential programs which the emerging organizations are offering throughout Southern California.

“This convening is our attempt to give our smaller grantees some of the tools they need to excel in L.A.'s challenging non-profit marketplace,” said Trent Stamp, the Foundation’s executive director.“With a relatively small investment on our part, we can help equip the leaders of our partner organizations to better do their already difficult jobs.”

During the convening, The Eisner Foundation also announced the transition of its Seed Grant Program to an ongoing Small Grant Program. In September 2008, the Foundation created the Seed Grants Program to encourage innovation and creativity and reward entrepreneurial organizations with visionary leadership, big imaginations and operating budgets under $500,000.These one-time grants ranged from $10,000 to $15,000 and the Foundation has approved approximately $360,000 to date.The decision to offer continuous access to funding and increase in grant size to small and developing organizations was made as part of the Foundation’s commitment to remain relevant and responsive to the current needs of non-profit organizations.The small grants will range from $10,000 to $25,000 and applications will be accepted year-around.

The Eisner Foundation has been funding innovative and effective non-profit organizations that improve and enrich the lives of underserved children in Southern California since 1996.For more information or questions regarding the foundation, please contact The Eisner Foundation at (310) 228-6808.