Seeding Power Fellowship
Program Design Consultant
Due Date: May 6, 2022
(Click here to download a copy of this RFP)
Summary
Community Food Funders seeks a consultant to redesign and facilitate the Seeding Power Fellowship, a food justice fellowship program for experienced leaders working across sectors in New York to build equitable food systems. We anticipate a two to three-month part-time engagement to help redesign the existing program curriculum. Our hope is to then engage the same consultant to lead the implementation and facilitation of the newly redesigned fellowship over a longer period.
Background
Community Food Funders (CFF) is a philanthropic organizing project that provides information, resources, and networking opportunities for funders in the NY-NJ-CT region. CFF supports the transition to an equitable, ecologically sound, and economically robust regional food system that optimizes local growing, processing, and distribution within this region, and balances it with fair trade between regions and internationally. CFF is led by a steering committee comprised of grantmakers from 10 foundations, and is staffed by the CFF Director.
CFF operates out of North Star Fund. North Star Fund is a social justice fund that supports grassroots organizing led by communities of color building power in New York City and the Hudson Valley. North Star Fund organizes people across race and class to give in support of these movements.
In 2019, Community Food Funders launched the Seeding Power Fellowship, an innovative 18-month, cohort-based food justice fellowship program for experienced leaders working across sectors to build equitable food systems. In its inaugural year, Seeding Power accepted applications from leaders in New York City, the Hudson Valley and Long Island.
Seeding Power strived to be unique in both the region it served and the focus on movement building in food systems, as opposed to more traditional leadership programs that focus solely on individual skill-building. It sought to place racial equity and social justice at the core of a curriculum customized to the specific needs and assets of each cohort.
By providing peer learning space to develop a shared analysis of the issues plaguing our food system, Seeding Power was designed to graduate a cohort with strengthened cross-sector relationships and skills to advance individual, organizational and movement-related goals.
Project Scope
We seek a consultant with experience in leadership program design and facilitation to work with the CFF director and leadership team to redesign the Seeding Power Fellowship for a hybrid virtual and in-person scenario.
The aim of the program is to foster collaboration across sectors and regions by providing opportunities to interact and align with each other’s work, while also building organizational capacity and individual leadership skills. The fellowship will provide a space to have challenging conversations among organizations and sectors that are not always totally aligned, in order to find common ground and ideally build consensus on a path forward.
Working with the CFF Director, and with access to the inaugural program’s evaluation data, the consultant will reshape the program, adding or removing aspects. The ideal consultant will move us from design into facilitation of the new program. The consultant should also be interested in facilitating the program and so should have relevant experience, but that scope of work will be developed after the design and curriculum is complete.
Using completed research and information to inform their work, and possibly conducting limited additional research if necessary, the selected consultant or firm will provide a redesign for the Seeding Power Fellowship based on the goals stated below.
Program Goals
CFF’s collective goals for Seeding Power include:
- Elevate and support an emerging network of leaders, with an emphasis on Black and communities of color-led organizations, as well as other underrepresented communities in food-related sectors
- Develop the leadership network infrastructure necessary to strengthen collaboration and create a strong unified voice for advancing food policy systems reform in our region
- Build capacity among food system nonprofits, especially leaders from grassroots organizations.
Parameters
The inaugural Seeding Power Fellowship was an 18-month program for twelve fellows, and included five 2.5-day retreats and a demonstration project at the end. The Covid-19 pandemic cut the fellowship short so it was never concluded as designed. More information can be found online, and a detailed curriculum will be shared with the selected consultant.
Having run one cohort, we envision a fairly streamlined redesign process for this next iteration. The selected consultant will work primarily with the CFF Director, with input from CFF leadership and other stakeholders, to help refine and select design components from an initial list already generated. Of course, new ideas will also be encouraged and welcome.
We anticipate a shorter timeframe for this next cohort, perhaps 8-12 months, with many sessions happening online but ideally some in-person components if the situation allows for it.
The previous version of the Seeding Power Fellowship had a budget of roughly $200,000 for an 18-month program with one facilitator. This next iteration will have a comparable budget, responsive to the length of the program, number of facilitators, and program needs such as stipends, travel, and lodging.
Deliverables
At the end of the project, the consultant will deliver:
- A complete program design and description
- Recommendations for the size and geographic scope of the fellowship cohort, and advice on any specific issue areas or constituencies that should be prioritized
- Input and feedback on the existing application and selection process for choosing the cohort, given the new details of the redesigned program
Timeline & Budget
RFP Proposals due: May 6, 2022
Deadline for completion: We anticipate a two- or three-month part-time engagement that will include review of information from the first cohort, and limited research if necessary.
The expected compensation for the design phase of this project is $10,000 – $15,000.
Proposals Must Include
- Firm profile, including evidence of relevant work experience. Please include any examples that demonstrate familiarity and proficiency with anti-racist programming and restorative justice principles.
- Detailed outline of your process and timeline from exploration to completion
- Proposed fee and fee schedule, along with a project budget and details
- Credentials and qualifications of key personnel who will work directly on this project, including references
- Level of interest and ability to stay on as the primary consultant leading the implementation and facilitation of the next Seeding Power cohort.
Please send all proposals to CFF Director Adam Liebowitz at adam@northstarfund.org with the subject line: Seeding Power RFP. Deadline: May 6, 2022
North Star Fund is firmly committed to affirmative action and strongly encourages people of color, women, LGBTQ, veteran, older, and differently-abled candidates to submit. We appreciate all proposals, but please be advised that our capacity allows us to only respond to those best qualified for the position.