Strangers in a Foreign Land

Posted by Lindsey Engh at Jul 24, 2012 03:35 AM | Permalink

Filed under: What's On Our Minds, Featured, Spring Meeting Speakers

In times of scarcity, it's not only nonprofits who lack resources. The city of Portland discovered that there is only one book per 300 children in poor neighborhoods, and even worse, 1 out of 3 children are unprepared for kindergarten. Mark Holloway, Executive Director of SVP Portland, shares how SVP and their partners lined up to tackle this problem of scarcity.

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"It is important for times of scarcity that we really line up."

In times of scarcity, everyone is affected. A couple of years ago, the city of Portland discovered that a great deal of children lack the resources they need to build a foundation for a successful life: 1 out of 3 children are unprepared for kindergarten. In addition, city administrators found that only one book existed for every 300 children in poor neighborhoods.

Determined to tackle this problem, SVP Portland decided to move away from funding isolated nonprofits to creating a community change effort, bringing partners together to align behind change for these children. Mark Holloway, Executive Director of SVP Portland, shares their journey into uncharted territory, where he often felt as a stranger in a foreign land.

Mark Holloway is the Executive Director of Social Ventures Partners Portland. The organization's focus is on helping at-risk families and children, most recently narrowing their focus to pre-kindergarten education to improve children's chances of having a successful career. Mark was one of our seven Ignite speakers at our Spring Meeting. Be sure to check out Julie Pham's story, too.