From the President

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Photo of an interfaith vigil in Los Angeles Letter from the President

Freedom, Courage and Caring

| by Cathy Cha in Fund News

Finding Inspiration in Our Grantee Partners

We are inspired by the courage and care we’re seeing as people in California and nationwide exercise their constitutional right to organize and peacefully protest.

The economic, cultural, and community fabric of California depends on immigrants—their safety and well-being are essential to all of us. We are inspired by the courage and care we’re seeing as people in California a…

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Young athletes huddling on the basketball court with their coach Letter from the President

Lessons From A Successful Nonprofit Merger

| by Cathy Cha in College Success

Connecting with the Leaders of Positive Coaching Alliance

Mergers can be a strategic way for nonprofits to grow even stronger and have greater community impact.

Our President Cathy Cha currently serves on the board of the Positive Coaching Alliance.Compared to the for-profit sector, the nonprofit world tends to view organizational mergers through a more skeptical lens. A no…

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Portrait of the Haas, Jr. family Letter from the President

Reflecting on 70 Years of Impact

| by Cathy Cha

Marking our 70th Anniversary by Celebrating the Power of People

Since our founding in 1953, the Haas, Jr. Fund’s grantmaking has revolved around the people and organizations on the front lines of social and community change.

From the beginning, Evelyn and Walter Haas had a commitment to, and belief in, the power of people to drive positive change.It was the leadership and enthusiasm of people around them—people who were organizing their…

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Demonstrators rallying for racial justice Letter from the President

Imagine a California Where We All Belong

| by Cathy Cha

We need to keep pushing for belonging for people that historically have not had equal access

Reflecting on the good work happening across many fronts to make our state more inclusive.

When I walked into the Fannie Lou Hamer Center for the first time, I instantly felt the warmth and comfort of this community space for Black students at UC Berkeley. Tucked away in a lesser-known part of campus, it’…

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Scene outside of an Oakland polling place during the 2022 midterm elections Letter from the President

Beyond the Midterm Elections: Next Steps to a Stronger Democracy

| by Cathy Cha in Democracy

Year-round dedication is needed to ensure our democracy leaves no one behind

We may have avoided the worst-case scenario during the midterms, but our work is not yet done.

In the weeks since the 2022 elections, I’ve had one main response: phew. The anti-democratic nightmares we’ve all been having didn’t come true. We generally saw sanity prevail across the country with the defeat of a…

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Students entering campus Letter from the President

Back to School is a Time of Possibility

| by Cathy Cha in College Success

For Far Too Many Students, the New School Year is Linked to Anxiety and Concern

Through our College Success program, Haas Jr. is working to level the playing field for all higher education students.

It’s back to school time. I’ve been busy getting my two kids settled into the school year. Nervousness and butterflies are in the air, but at the same time there is a powerful sense of possibility about the year ahe…

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Letter from the President

The Power of Community Leadership

| by Cathy Cha in Leadership

Across California, our civic and local leaders too often are not reflective of the communities they are supposed to serve.

After working in party politics at the national and state levels, James Woodson decided the real route to change lies in communities closer to the ground. “Building up grassroots leaders is how you build power, and that’s not really what political parties are made to do,” he said.

After working in party politics at the national and state levels, James Woodson decided the real route to change lies in communities closer to the ground. “Building up grassroots leaders is how you build power, and…

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