Press Release Details

Contact:
Anushka Fernandopulle
415.541.9000x308 anushkaf@compasspoint.org 

SAN FRANCISCO, December 27, 2002 -A new study of 49 women of color who lead nonprofit organizations found that they are better educated and have more management experience than executive directors in general, and a surprising one in four is an immigrant to the US. Women executive directors of color run organizations from 1 to 575 employees, and although their organizations span all populations and all fields, the most common is a human service organization (27%).

Breaking ground by studying this group, the report’s full title is “On the Rise: A Profile of Women of Color in Nonprofit Leadership,” and is available to download at http://www.compasspoint.org/research/. For permission to reprint sections of this report, please send a written request to CompassPoint or email the request to info@CompassPoint.org. A bound hardcopy can be ordered for $15.00 from CompassPoint Nonprofit Services at 706 Mission Street, 5th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103 or by fax at (415) 541-7708.

This study of women executive directors of color (WEDOCs), conducted by CompassPoint Nonprofit Services in the San Francisco Bay Area, reveals women leaders who are confident of their own skills and their organizations’ ability to connect directly with the minority communities they serve. At the same time, they feel isolated from the corridors of power, and struggle against stereotypes both in mainstream arenas as well as within their own minority communities.

The study by CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, a northern California consulting and training firm, was underwritten by the Levi Strauss Foundation, and builds on CompassPoint’s national research on nonprofit leaders. “We are pleased to have this study bring attention to an increasingly important group of leaders,” commented Merle Lawrence of Levi Strauss. “It’s most encouraging to see that CompassPoint so quickly identified 125 women executive directors of color in the Bay Area, and that this study of a smaller sample shows them to be truly ‘on the rise.’”

Based on this survey and meetings of interested women, a group is planning a spring conference for women executive directors of color. “Through this study,” said Jan Masaoka, CompassPoint’s Executive Director, and herself a woman of color, “We know that the first two priorities for nonprofit women leaders are to gain access to mainstream leaders, and to develop a political agenda for government and philanthropy.”

Other findings from the study:

• Respondents are well educated, with 78% having obtained graduate degrees.
• The median length of nonprofit service for the group is 14.5 years, and they are more likely to have experience in government (35%) and for-profit companies (52%) than the overall ED population (15% and 35% respectively).
• Seventy-seven percent (77%) of women executive directors of color are on their first jobs as executive directors, compared with a general sample where 65% were first-time EDs.
• Women of color are more likely to be hired from within the organizations than EDs overall, with 43% and 36% respectively hired from within.
• As rarities, WEDOCs stand out and are easily remembered by others in the mainstream.

WEDOCs work in organizations with high percentages of women of color on staff: the median percentage is a remarkable 62%; even in organizations with budgets of $5 million or higher, the median is 69%.

About CompassPoint Nonprofit Services

With offices in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, CompassPoint Nonprofit Services is a nonprofit consulting and training organization. Through a broad range of services including consulting, research, information dissemination, workshops, and conferences, CompassPoint strives to provide the best management tools and concepts to help nonprofits better serve their communities. For more information, visit http://www.compasspoint.org/ or call 415.541.9000 in San Francisco or 415.541.9505 in San Jose.

About Levi Strauss Foundation

For the past 50 years, the Levi Strauss Foundation has supported and led social change by having the courage to address tough social issues and by empowering people to solve their own problems and those of their communities. Consistent with the heritage and values of Levi Strauss and Company, the Levi Strauss Foundation focuses on the urgent needs of communities around the world in the areas of preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS, increasing economic development opportunities and ensuring access to an education. For more information, visit http://www.levistrauss.com/responsibility/foundation/index.htm.

Related Links:
http://www.compasspoint.org/research/