Spark Points

THE SPARK POINT BLOG

For 24 years, Mary has led the charge at Life Pieces To Masterpieces, an organization for African American boys in Wards 7 and 8 For many, career paths are linear — they follow a seemingly set course starting from college and moving into a career. That, though, wasn’t the case for Mary Brown. After graduating…

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She’s helping thousands find their voices, as a business leader and nonprofit board member Karen Alson never envisioned working in the nonprofit arena. A graduate of Howard University, Karen dove into the business world post-graduation, working at global enterprises such as JP Morgan, MBNA Bank and AOL. But, years into her corporate rise, Karen took…

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Through her church- and community-based work, Marilyn has helped countless women and girls impacted by sexual abuse  Trauma was a central theme to Marilyn Lacy’s early years. Sexually abused by her stepfather, Marilyn found herself in “a world of bad choices and wrong decisions,” including a long-term relationship with another abuser while in her teens. …

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This passionate educator took a leap of faith and created a truly unique learning environment for young women  For more than two decades, math teacher Karen Venable-Croft was focused on bringing big ideas and unique paths to learning to her students. Then, two years ago, she and her partner took the ultimate leap, founding Girls…

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AIDS United’s VP shares her personal journey from a decades-long career in public health Indiana native Valerie L. Rochester has always been committed to service. “I actually had a very circuitous route to get to where I am today,” she says. “I had no idea I’d wind up in the nonprofit world because that was…

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Battling double pandemics—COVID-19 and the resulting increase in domestic violence—has tested the mettle of this Executive Director and the organization she leads. Since taking the reins of District Alliance for Safe Housing (DASH) in 2017—10 years after the ground-breaking organization launched—35-year-old Executive Director Koube Ngaaje has doubled the organization’s capacity to shelter victims of domestic…

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This dynamic young executive has built an unparalleled fundraising program from the ground up  Trying to keep our families and friends safe and healthy while balancing our personal and professional lives—in 2020, this became an almost impossible task for many. Despite these obstacles, though, Joy Bentley Phillips, Chief Advancement Officer at the Academy of Hope…

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This year has pushed economic and social disparities experienced by communities of color to the center of the public square. Not only has the pandemic made painfully evident the intersections of race and class, but the brutal murder of Black people at the hands of the police has reminded us of the foundation of white…

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By democratizing budget and program information and allocations, Fair Budget Coalition gives constituents a voice in the most important conversations After college, Stephanie Sneed dove right into an accelerated teaching program, taking over her own classroom just months later. “I didn’t feel prepared at all,” she says. “These schools required a lot—and not a single…

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Since she was a child, Wanda Steptoe knew she wanted to help people.  “I grew up in a very large, very close-knit, loving family,” Wanda says. “One of my cousins had Down’s Syndrome — and life for people with developmental differences wasn’t like it is today. They recommended putting him in an institution — but…

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