A commitment to community and conversation

The blue carpet was rolled out to welcome more than 250 community members into the Foundation for the second-annual open house Thursday, Sept. 19. President and CEO Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace, and other members of Foundation leadership, greeted guests for a night to “spark” connection and engagement.

“‘Spark’ was really our inspiration as we thought about continuing to open the doors of the Foundation to spark conversation, to spark innovation, to spark connections, to spark big ideas, and continue to ignite the potential and drive progress in our communities,” Dr. Burns-Wallace said.

Dr. Burns-Wallace reflected on the first open house last year – she was only 52 days into her new role. Since then, the Foundation has launched a refreshed strategy and grantmaking philosophy. The grant portal opened earlier this month. The Foundation also welcomed three new senior leaders since the first of the year: Chief People Officer Brandy Johnson; Chief Impact and Strategy Officer Allison Greenwood Bajracharya; and Chief Research, Learning, & Evaluation Officer Dr. Yvonne Owens Ferguson.

“We’ve learned a lot. We’ve done a lot,” Dr. Burns-Wallace said when she addressed guests. “We’ve asked for your grace and your patience as we renewed our commitment to you, and now we are hoping and continuing to build on that trust and to carry out the impactful work that we know our community needs.”

“Part of that commitment is our effort to be clear about who and what we support and how we want to do this work going forward,” Dr. Burns-Wallace said. With the launch of our updated grant portal, numerous grantmaking webinars and office hours were offered to allow potential grantees to learn more from and ask questions directly to Kauffman leadership.

During the open house, Foundation associates were available to take questions. Dr. Burns-Wallace invited guests to engage with them to learn more about our strategy and grantmaking philosophy.

“We must be in support of the community. We must be in alignment, and we must listen as we support this work and ensure that the power is in the hands of the community,” Dr. Burns-Wallace said.

“We won’t always get it right,” she said. “We will continue to ask for your grace, but we hope that we are beginning to show that we heard you and that we’re in this. We are eager to continue to move this work forward.”

As we move into our grantmaking cycle, the invitation to engage with us is not limited to just our open house, but extends throughout the year. “We commit to being with you and in community and in conversation,” Dr. Burns-Wallace said. “Our job as the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is to walk in his [Mr. Kauffman’s] legacy and to walk in partnership with community.”