New Fellowship Program Launches in Support of Emerging Social Change Leaders Across America

The Fund for New Leadership (FNL) partners with promising early-stage organizations to help them develop solutions that tackle the most pressing issues facing our nation. The first 14 FNL Fellows champion racial equity, economic opportunity, workers’ rights, environmental sustainability and other priorities.

NATIONWIDE (June 29, 2021) — Today a new philanthropic initiative that supports America’s emerging social changemakers announced its inaugural class of 14 Fellows, inspiring leaders who are working to advance social, racial, and economic equity in their local communities.

The fellowship announcement marks the launch of the Fund for New Leadership (FNL), a multi-year program that partners with early-stage organizations to help them build on their promising ideas and expand their impact on the crucial issues they are tackling. 

All across the country, local organizers, advocates, and social entrepreneurs are making a difference in their neighborhoods. But few gain the early recognition and support to break through on a large scale, and success often comes only after years of arduous work.

FNL’s fellowship program gives up-and-coming agents of social change early resources and support to advance their work more quickly and more effectively.

“We’re thrilled to partner with such outstanding leaders and organizations,” said Simon Greer, managing director of the Fund for New Leadership. “The 14 Fellows are doing phenomenal work in their communities every day, in every region of the nation and through FNL, we will be in their corners and on their teams as they carry out their crucial work.” 

FNL fellowships combine financial support with a unique blend of peer coaching, leadership training and mentoring opportunities. The unrestricted funds — $75,000 per year for three years — will in many cases allow fellows’ organizations to expand their infrastructure and their teams. The intensive cohort experience aims to propel fellows’ work to the next level.

To select the first class of fellows, FNL teamed up with a group of established social change leaders who work on a variety of issues all across the United States. With these advisors, FNL recruited almost 100 talent scouts from nearly all 50 states to nominate candidates who had not previously secured major philanthropic support. 

“As our country continues to reckon with racial injustice, the inequities of the COVID-19 pandemic, and assaults on inclusive democracy we need more experiments in philanthropy that are willing to find talent that hasn’t already accessed foundation dollars, take risks on new ideas, and invest in diverse up-and-coming folks who are working on the front lines. I was honored to play a role in helping launch FNL to do exactly that,” said Eric K. Ward, executive director of Western States Center and an advisor to FNL.

After carrying out a rigorous review process, FNL advisors, staff and founders chose 13 start-up organizations (including one team of 2) to join the inaugural class of fellows.

“FNL’s vision of supporting emerging leaders across the nation has come to reality with this first amazing group of Fellows,” said Alan and Kim Hartman, founders of the Fund for New Leadership. “Their bold ideas are a profound inspiration to us. We thank Simon and FNL’s staff and advisors for helping to select such a tremendous inaugural class.”

The first 14 fellows hail from every corner of the U.S., including large cities such as Washington, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and rural areas such as Washington State’s timber country and the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.

They are:

The Fund for New Leadership is a new philanthropic effort that supports America’s emerging social changemakers, through a three-year program that offers a unique blend of financial support, peer coaching, leadership training and mentoring opportunities.