Public Allies Growth Strategy

A Leadership Platform Positioned for Growth

Since 1992, Public Allies has grown to 15 communities and graduated more than 2,200 diverse young leaders committed to a lifetime of nonprofit and community service. Our mission and programs have inspired more than $25 million in private donations, $25 million in public support, and $25 million from community partners. We are now in the midst of another exciting time of growth and change. 

During the next five years, we plan to expand to more than 30 communities, with over 1,000 Allies annually participating in our signature program. We will grow our active network of alumni to more than 5,000 leaders by 2012 and invest in those positioned to have the greatest impacts in their communities.   At the same time, we’ll continue to refine and enhance our leadership development programs while disseminating our practices and lessons to influence thousands of leaders and organizations. Finally, we are building the organizational capacity to support and sustain our growth and continue our commitment to the highest professional and ethical standards.

This growth is possible because Public Allies is:

Right for the times

Recent research has shown that more than 640,000 new nonprofit leaders will be needed over the next decade, but only 9% of college seniors know how to pursue a career in the nonprofit sector. Public Allies is the premier pipeline for developing diverse young nonprofit and community leaders. Our Ally program provides a pathway for new leaders to emerge, and more than 80% of our Alumni continue careers in public service.

A 2007 study by Robert Putnam also found that diverse communities tend to engage less in civic life and that “the central challenge for modern, diversifying societies is to create a new, broader sense of ‘we.' To develop this sense of “we”, Public Allies believes individuals need the ability to connect across cultures, facilitate collaborative action, recognize community assets, commit to self-development, and be accountable to the people they work with and the community they serve. Our unique approach helps leaders and organizations develop these skills and advance new ways of leading that are right for the times.

Sustainable and replicable

Our unique public-private-partner funding structure allows us to leverage private donations with funding from AmeriCorps and nonprofit partners to generate a huge social return on investment. Additionally, our operating structure helps us effectively and efficiently introduce our program to more communities. Each local Pubic Allies site operates in partnership with a university or other well-established organization. Combined with our asset-based, community-driven approach, these partnerships provide administrative and operating support while enabling Public Allies to work with new leaders at the grassroots.

Diversified and integrated

We develop new leaders and new ways of leading through our signature program, Alumni Network, and The Leadership Practice. This integrated platform allows us to create greater, more sustainable impact at the community and national levels. We provide resources and connections for Allies to pursue a lifetime of leadership, and we share our proven approach across sectors through training and consulting. 

Profitable and visible

Public Allies generates real returns for donors and communities. Every dollar invested in our growth generates over $8 in service delivered to communities—in addition to the long-term impact Allies continue to generate as leaders in their home communities. Additionally, Public Allies’ replicable approach is a profitable one – The Leadership Practice, our training and consulting group, has earned more than $1.5 million in contracts and fees. 

As an ever widening circle of pundits, candidates and elected officials on both sides of the aisle continue to call for growth in national service, Public Allies is positioned well as a growing and successful model in the AmeriCorps network. Our role as a trainer and technical assistance provider to AmeriCorps programs, a founding member of Voices for National Service, a coalition that promotes national service, and a co-founder of the Nonprofit Sector Workforce Coalition, a coalition that seeks to help nonprofits better recruit and retain diverse talent, have each led to new partnerships that have resulted in new Public Allies sites, consultant projects,  and program enhancements.

To learn how you can invest in Public Allies' growth plan, contact Dawn Hutchison-Weiss at dawnh@publicallies.org

To learn how to bring Public Allies to your community, contact Naomi Tannenbaum at Naomit@publicallies.org.