The Alliance for Health Equity has launched the Nonprofit Justice and Equity Institute, a series of learning sessions designed to support the nonprofit sector in its commitment to recognize and mitigate the deeply rooted inequities experienced by marginalized community members, including those experienced by the Black and Brown communities.

Designed as a learning cohort, the following eight organizations will spend six months advancing their understanding of systemic inequities and creating an accountable plan focused on helping them work to solve complex community issues with an equity lens that seeks to produce sustainable solutions:

• Brandywine Valley Active Aging
• ChesPenn Health Services
• Coatesville Youth Initiative
• Maternal and Child Health Consortium
• Open Hearth, Inc.
• Phoenixville Area Community Services
• The Public Library of Phoenixville
• Youth Mentoring Partnership

The Nonprofit Justice and Equity Institute, co-created and facilitated by the Tammy Dowley-Blackman Group, LLC (TBD Group), will assist these nonprofits in their commitment to further transform their organizational culture by assessing their institutional programming and practices to determine the changes and resources required.

The Nonprofit Justice and Equity Institute believes in the importance of responding to people and society justly and equitably through strategies that build communities for long-term success. The goal of the Nonprofit Justice and Equity Institute is to build the local nonprofit sector’s capacity to embed social justice and racial equity throughout its decision-making and operations.

Strategies include:

• Understanding the historical context of racial and social inequities and the impact on the community
• Participating in capacity-building coaching to advance justice and equity learning and action
• Creating an organization blueprint that centers justice and equity to sustain learning and accountability of the organization and the community

Over the next six months, eight nonprofits across Chester County will work together as the cohort of the Nonprofit Justice and Equity Institute begins. These organizations will attend six sessions, as well as participate in six hours of capacity-building coaching. To prepare for the Institute, each organization will complete a readiness assessment to determine the stage in equitable practices and programs currently implemented. The nonprofits will use learning sessions focused on justice and equity leadership; why race and justice matter; the intersectionality of social, health, and economic factors; and accountability to the community.

The final component of the learning sessions provides an opportunity for each nonprofit to draft a customized Justice and Equity Blueprint that will help each organization address internal and external systemic inequities.

Learn more about The Alliance for Health Equity and its Nonprofit Justice and Equity Institute.