Reflecting on how things have gone is something we like to do about this time of year as the days grow shorter and nights grow longer. As 2022 winds down, and we reflect on our equity journey at the Foundation, it is hard not to notice all of the grief that we are carrying and … Continued
The Tower Foundation is shocked and saddened by the senseless mass shooting that took place in Buffalo, New York. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims’ families as they grieve the tragic loss of their loved ones. We are also deeply concerned about our community. Our staff members live in Buffalo and are still … Continued
Last week, I attended Mental Health Advocates of Western New York annual fundraising event. It was a milestone occasion in many ways. It was MHA’s 60th anniversary; and for many in the room, it was the first event they had been to in two years. Ironically, this event was also the last event many of … Continued
Last week, I shared our new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) goals. This week, I’ve asked three of our Trustees, Cindy Doyle, Jim Weiss, and Dave Welbourn, to join me in sharing reflections on this milestone. Each of these Trustees have championed the effort to bring an equity perspective to our work and were instrumental … Continued
For the last year and a half, the Tower Foundation has focused on bringing an equity perspective to our work. Today I am excited to share new goals we have adopted. At the Tower Foundation, we believe that young people with intellectual disabilities, learning disabilities, mental illness, and substance use disorders should have the chance … Continued
For a little less than a year, the staff at the Tower Foundation has been exploring diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as it relates to our work. This post is the first of several in which we will share about our path and process, some of the challenges we have experienced, and the opportunities that … Continued
Just about every website you visit these days has a popover window, a banner, or some other techie web-gizmo to make sure you know about the host organization’s COVID-19 response. Time to add our response to the mix. With a number of currently running grants and an upcoming grant deadline, we’ve tried to slow down … Continued
Back in 2014, the Foundation’s Trustees and staff went through a strategic planning process. Nothing new, right? What made this strategic plan (which we later decided to call a strategic direction) different is that we built the entire thing around a process called Results-Based Accountability (RBA). Without getting too wonky, RBA takes a page out … Continued
Authored by: Tracy Sawicki, Executive Director at the Peter & Elizabeth Tower Foundation and Jane Feinberg, Founder and Principal, Full Frame Communications In 2013, a group of philanthropists gathered together in Beverly, MA for an education roundtable. One of the guest speakers was Jeff Riley, currently the Education Commissioner for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, who … Continued
