“People have disproportionate access to rest, and the ability to rest is an indicator of privilege. Working for justice requires refueling.”

Suma Karaman Rosen
InsideOut Literary Arts

2023
MILLER
FELLOWS

Allandra Bulger

Executive Director
Co.act Detroit

“We know what the solutions are. Define them. Say them out loud and let’s engage in action-oriented dialogue. The philanthropic community needs to understand the load nonprofit leaders are carrying as well as the power dynamics their practices are perpetuating.”

Angela Reyes

Executive Director
Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation

“Everyone deserves beautiful things, to rest, and to be healthy. When you’re in the middle of work, you don’t take the time to see the physical and mental toll it’s taking on you.”

Ashley Atkinson

Co-Director
Keep Growing Detroit

“The time and space my sabbatical afforded me made one thing crystal clear: the work we are doing together is crucial and timely. I’m certain there is no other work more significant or impactful for me to pursue than what I have the privilege of doing every single day.”

Allandra Bulger

Executive Director
Co.act Detroit

“We know what the solutions are. Define them. Say them out loud and let’s engage in action-oriented dialogue. The philanthropic community needs to understand the load nonprofit leaders are carrying as well as the power dynamics their practices are perpetuating.”

Angela Reyes

Executive Director
Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation

“Everyone deserves beautiful things, to rest, and to be healthy. When you’re in the middle of work, you don’t take the time to see the physical and mental toll it’s taking on you.”

Ashley Atkinson

Co-Director
Keep Growing Detroit

“The time and space my sabbatical afforded me made one thing crystal clear: the work we are doing together is crucial and timely. I’m certain there is no other work more significant or impactful for me to pursue than what I have the privilege of doing every single day.”

Christine Bell

Executive Director
Urban Neighborhood Initiatives

“For years, I had a second job to care for my family, while doing this work that I deeply love. I did not realize how tired I was and how much this impacted every decision that I made. To do this work in a sustainable way, rest is critical.”

Courtney Smith

President & CEO
Detroit Phoenix Center

“One of my biggest takeaways from this whole sabbatical process is that I am worthy to care for myself in this way. It has been transformational.”

Derek Aguirre

President and CEO
Racquet Up Detroit

“Until you are given permission to do it, you don’t actually really rest. Leaders in the sector are always in a scarcity mindset, with not enough time, people, or boundaries. If the sector were more resourced, organizational leadership would be better able to find balance.”

Christine Bell

Executive Director
Urban Neighborhood Initiatives

“For years, I had a second job to care for my family, while doing this work that I deeply love. I did not realize how tired I was and how much this impacted every decision that I made. To do this work in a sustainable way, rest is critical.”

Courtney Smith

President & CEO
Detroit Phoenix Center

“One of my biggest takeaways from this whole sabbatical process is that I am worthy to care for myself in this way. It has been transformational.”

Derek Aguirre

President and CEO
Racquet Up Detroit

“Until you are given permission to do it, you don’t actually really rest. Leaders in the sector are always in a scarcity mindset, with not enough time, people, or boundaries. If the sector were more resourced, organizational leadership would be better able to find balance.”

Kimberly Johnson

President & CEO
Developing K.I.D.S.

“Opportunities like the Miller Fellowship advance justice and will help keep people in the field. We already know what we need to rest. The Fund supported us with resources to do so, while trusting us to design our sabbatical plans ourselves. They should challenge other funders to do the same.”

Suma Karaman Rosen

Executive Director
InsideOut Literary Arts

“Foundations should say the answer is yes and invite a conversation — instead of making us answer lengthy questions, instead of making us worry. Remove unnecessary steps in the process. Make reporting easier. People on the ground doing the work are tired. Foundations have the power to make these changes — the whole process could be better for everyone involved.”

Yodit Mesfin Johnson

President and CEO
Nonprofit Enterprise at Work (NEW)

“Let’s be clear: those being denied rest, well-being, and the opportunity to thrive are Black and Brown women, and workers in our sector — the very people who held our communities together through the pandemic for nickels on the dollar. Our people and communities can only achieve better outcomes when rest and well-being are prioritized. We are exhausted — and that is an injustice.”

Kimberly Johnson

President & CEO
Developing K.I.D.S.

“Opportunities like the Miller Fellowship advance justice and will help keep people in the field. We already know what we need to rest. The Fund supported us with resources to do so, while trusting us to design our sabbatical plans ourselves. They should challenge other funders to do the same.”

Suma Karaman Rosen

Executive Director
InsideOut Literary Arts

“Foundations should say the answer is yes and invite a conversation — instead of making us answer lengthy questions, instead of making us worry. Remove unnecessary steps in the process. Make reporting easier. People on the ground doing the work are tired. Foundations have the power to make these changes — the whole process could be better for everyone involved.”

Yodit Mesfin Johnson

President and CEO
Nonprofit Enterprise at Work (NEW)

“Let’s be clear: those being denied rest, well-being, and the opportunity to thrive are Black and Brown women, and workers in our sector — the very people who held our communities together through the pandemic for nickels on the dollar. Our people and communities can only achieve better outcomes when rest and well-being are prioritized. We are exhausted — and that is an injustice.”

THE CALL

Why Prioritize Nonprofit Wellness and Thriving?

Philanthropy leans far too heavily on our nonprofit leaders. We count on their commitment, rely on their energy, and laud their ingenuity, while simultaneously demanding they prove their worth year after year. We expect so much from them, and we rarely honor and protect their individual humanity.

Nonprofit leaders and their teams form the infrastructure driving social change. Without ceasing, they simultaneously move their community’s visions forward and meet community needs, while swimming against constant currents of racism and oppression. They are relentless, and they are also exhausted. They deserve to experience the dignity of rest.
We at the McGregor Fund are listening closely and now understand our commitment to racial equity and justice must prioritize the well-being of the professionals we, and the rest of philanthropy, rely on to advance our missions. As we continue to learn from our partners and evolve, we call on our peers to do the same.

Philanthropy leans far too heavily on our nonprofit leaders. We count on their commitment, rely on their energy, and laud their ingenuity, while simultaneously demanding they prove their worth year after year. We expect so much from them, and we rarely honor and protect their individual humanity.

Nonprofit leaders and their teams form the infrastructure driving social change. Without ceasing, they simultaneously move their community’s visions forward and meet community needs, while swimming against constant currents of racism and oppression. They are relentless, and they are also exhausted. They deserve to experience the dignity of rest.

We at the McGregor Fund are listening closely and now understand our commitment to racial equity and justice must prioritize the well-being of the professionals we, and the rest of philanthropy, rely on to advance our missions. As we continue to learn from our partners and evolve, we call on our peers to do the same.

OUR RESPONSE

Kate Levin Markel

President, McGregor Fund

Before reflecting on the last two years, I’d like to share some recent experiences. A search firm helping recruit a new CEO for a local nonprofit asked for my perspective. I couldn’t get past the job description, which required such an exhaustive list of superpowers and experience that no one could possibly live up to the outsized expectations.

A nonprofit board wouldn’t sign off on their CEO’s sabbatical funding application out of fear the CEO would leave, even though he expressed that he was desperately exhausted.

At a retreat of foundation presidents, peers from across the country reported widespread burnout and departures among key leaders driving justice-oriented work.

A new college graduate, dreaming of a nonprofit social work career, shared her frustration looking for an entry-level job. There were plenty of openings, but salaries fell short of barebones living expenses.

I checked in with a grant partner to see how fundraising was going for an exciting expansion project with time-limited public funding. They were still waiting to hear back on a couple key foundation proposals, months after our last check-in.

When unthinkable fraud was discovered at a large, esteemed local nonprofit, some local foundations wondered aloud whether to require universal financial controls and oversight for all grantees, regardless of their size and despite scant evidence of fraud in the sector.

There’s nothing new in these stories. What’s striking is that these conditions and dynamics persist at a time when the nonprofit workforce has reached a well-documented crisis of burnout, uncompetitive compensation, and overall vulnerability to breakdown. Clearly, funders (and some nonprofit boards) need

to take a hard look at how our own actions create additional strain, and change.

In my last letter I acknowledged the burdens uniquely born by leaders of color, and the Fund’s commitment to support their leadership and well-being. I also shared our commitment to focus our learning and seek guidance from partners who are closest to the community and leading racial justice-oriented work.

In this report, you’ll hear directly from partners in our 2023 Miller Fellows cohort — about the experience of their sabbaticals and what they’re asking of us, from rest and wellness resources to lower funder burdens.

And we’ve responded — with reduced burdens in our application and reporting processes, and grants supporting community expertise and vision, thought and practice leaders pursuing multiple domains of racial and economic justice, and big-dream projects that center community thriving. We’re truly excited about the evolution of our work in response to partner feedback.

I’ll conclude by acknowledging our exceptionally talented team whose big hearts guide everything they do, and our clear-eyed, values-driven board who bring out the best in us. Special thanks to Joyce E. Jenereaux, who gives so much time, care, and insight in her role as Chairperson and in supporting me personally.

Joyce E. Jenereaux

Chairperson

In Spring 2020, the McGregor Fund announced our anti-racism commitment, a guiding statement centering our work around justice and equality. This led to significant self-examination, learning, reflection, and thankfully, some implementation. We’ve made progress, but not nearly enough. Not yet.

We were determined to shift the power imbalance inherent to foundation work and focus on board governance, inclusive conversations with grant partners, community-centered decision-making and endowment investing opportunities. We unanimously decided to apply a racial equity lens to everything we do as a fund. It was a major step forward.

We now fund more organizations that embrace equity and justice as part of their mission. A justice-centered investment policy is important to us and we’re looking at advocacy in new ways. We solicit grant partner feedback, particularly around future board governance. Our staff is developing a conceptual equity- and justice-centered grantmaking framework. We’re proud of our Miller Fellowship sabbatical participants who are helping shape the program’s future.

Since our last report, we’ve welcomed Phil Phillips, Donna Murray-Brown, Byna Elliott, and Kelly Major Green as trustees. Their passion and collective skills energize and guide us. We’re a small and intimate group with enormous respect for one another. Eight out of nine of us are persons of color, and our average age has decreased. I’m honored to have the privilege of working with them.

We said goodbye to four long-serving trustees in 2023: Cynthia N. Ford (24 years), Susan Schooley, MD (18 years), Gerry Anderson (14 years), and Leslie A. Murphy (9 years). We were sad to lose these selfless individuals and we will miss them tremendously. We thank them for their wisdom, support, contributions, and wonderful friendship.

Our President, Kate Levin Markel, is an inspiration. Her wisdom, knowledge, deep empathy and caring for the community fuels my own passion. Our staff exhibits similar qualities, thoughtfulness, intelligence and drive, and their input and knowledge allow us to make board decisions with confidence. I’m thankful for them and for their deliberate, empathetic approach to making our work more just.

Our grant partners deserve more thanks and recognition than words can express. Their tireless efforts to pursue equity and justice are unmatched. They are innovative, creative, and passionate, providing inspiration, leadership, and motivation to all.

I am humbled to be part of the McGregor Fund and by the hard work and dedication of our grant partners, staff, and board who strive to improve our community today and tomorrow. In 1925, Tracy and Katherine McGregor formalized their noble quest “to relieve the misfortunes and promote the well being of humankind” through the establishment of this fund. Our work will continue to honor their great legacy by engaging our community to work with us towards equity and justice.