More than 140 nonprofit and government leaders, community members, and philanthropists gathered on October 17 for the Community Foundation’s annual Philanthropy Summit.  This year’s summit, “The Equity Continuum,” explored equity and racial justice in the areas of the social determinants of health, systems, advanced education, and criminal justice:

  • Moderated by Stacey Metcalfe, Director of Western Region Government and Community Relations at Inova Health System, and joined by Patricia Mathews, President and CEO of Northern Virginia Health Foundation, Valmarie Turner, Assistant County Administrator of Loudoun County Government, and Karen Schaufeld, philanthropist and author, the first panel “Equity and the Social Determinants of Health,” explored equity in the context of health outcomes, the Loudoun County Human Services Strategic Plan, workforce and educational opportunities, and affordable housing.
  • Moderated by Lorna Campbell Clarke, Chair of Loudoun Commission for Women and Girls, joined by Karla Bruce, Chief Equity Officer for Fairfax County Government, Andrea Eck, Vice President of Programs of Northern Virginia Family Service, and Hanh Le, Executive Director of Weissberg Foundation, the second panel “Disrupting Inequity in Systems” explored how to disrupt inequity in the context of large government and community systems, individual organizations, and philanthropic grant making.
  • Presented by Jack Kent Cooke Foundation’s Dr. Jennifer Glynn and Loudoun County Public Schools’ Dr. Ryan Tyler, Odette Scovel, and Patricia Herr, the presentation “Equity in Advance Education” explored racial and income disparities in the education system in the context of advanced and gifted education, and highlighted the success of LCPS’ PROPEL/Level Up program, supported by Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.  Presentation slides can be found here.
  • Key note speaker Tamara Lucas Copeland, author of Daughters of the Dream, gave a moving address about her lived experience and how systemic racism impacts every aspect of our society.
  • Moderated by Dr. Amaarah DeCuir, joined by Cherice Hopkins, Staff Attorney for Rights4Girls, and Amy Woolard, Attorney and Policy Coordinator for Legal Aid Justice Center, the panel “Equity in Criminal Justice” explored  the “abuse to prison pipeline,” and the racial disparities impacting justice-involved youth.
  • Theater company Living Fiction provided a thought-provoking performance about how we can all make change when it comes to creating a more equitable world.
  • Whitney Parnell, founder and CEO of Service Never Sleeps, provided honest and inspirational closing remarks that encouraged the audience to recognize the “iceberg” of racism that exists in our world, and provided practical steps for how each person can begin to make change in their everyday lives towards disrupting and dismantling racism.

Find the full agenda, as well as speaker bios and contact information, here.

Want to continue learning?  Review our Philanthropy Summit book recommendation list:

Media Coverage

Community Foundation summit focuses on racial equity in health, education, and the justice system – Loudoun Times-Mirror

Event Photos