Every Voice Shines New Light

The value of an idea increases exponentially when it’s shared. From our staff, partners and grantees to the people impacted by their efforts, each perspective offers new insight into the critical issues at the heart of our work.

Our Contributors

Sepi Aghdaee

Sepi served as a Program Officer at the Haas, Jr. Fund
Rachel Baker

Rachel works to strengthen the field of leadership development for social change.
Cathy Cha

Cathy leads the Fund’s work to advance rights and create opportunities for all people.
Denis Chicola

Denis works to ensure that communications are at the core of the Fund’s efforts to advance rights and create opportunities.
Holly Delany Cole

Holly directs the Fund’s flagship leadership investment program, which helps grantees to build the leadership they need to reach their goals.
Matt Foreman

Matt oversees the Fund’s extensive support for the drive for equal rights and opportunities for LGBT people.
Victor Garcia
Walter J. Haas

In his leadership of the Haas, Jr. Fund, Walter J. Haas is guided by a commitment to serving the community and to creating opportunities for all people to succeed.
Ira Hirschfield

Ira oversees the Fund’s investments and leads its work on selected community partnerships.
Jennifer Kirschenbaum
Tomás D. Morales
Paula Morris

Paula has worked with the Fund’s Flexible Leadership Awards program since its inception in 2005, and was its program director until January 2015.
Beth Rayfield

Beth Rayfield is the director of institutional advancement at the Center for Community Change (CCC) and former development director at CHIRLA.
Robert Ross
Jennie Lehua Watson

Jennie leads the Fund’s work to advance rights and create opportunities for all people.
Evan Wolfson

Evan is the founder and President of Freedom to Marry, a longtime Fund partner and key player in the campaign to win marriage equality nationwide.
Linda Wood

Linda leads the Fund’s work to strengthen leaders, organizations and movements that are advancing social change.
Sylvia Yee

Sylvia served as the Fund’s Vice President of Programs

Lifting Up Community Voices

June 17, 2019 | by

Summer 2019 Letter from the President

In this letter, President Cathy Cha shares how new communities across the country are making their voices heard through organizing and coming together to work for change.

No matter where we are on the political spectrum, I think we can all agree that more participation in our democracy makes the country stronger. As we mark the 50-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising for LGB…

A Vision for Racial Equity

June 17, 2019 | by

Funder Collaborative Aims to Expand Racial Equity Support for Social Change Leaders

Organizations need more resources to make racial equity a priority—The REACH Fund is trying to fill the gap.

Earlier this year, the Haas, Jr. Fund joined with 11 funding partners to launch a new collaborative fund aimed at ensuring that organizations and movements can find much-needed help with the important work of m…

Supporting Nonprofit Fundraising Professionals

June 12, 2019 | by

Lifting Up the Leadership and Vision of “Resource Leaders”

Fellowship recognizes the leadership of those who raise the financial resources to drive social change.

Nonprofit organizations and movements run on passion, activism and people-to-people connections. But they also need money. Raising resources is central to achieving social change, but fundraising is often s…

Jirayut “New” Latthivongskorn hugs a high school friend while wearing his mortarboard during his graduation party at Marina Park in San Leandro to celebrate his achievement at UCSF’s School of Medicine.

From Dreamer to Doctor

June 12, 2019 | by

Hats Off to the First Undocumented Graduate of UCSF Medical School

New Latthivongskorn’s story is a reminder of the power of the American Dream.

In a front-page article in May, the San Francisco Chronicle told the story of how a young man born in Thailand became the first undocumented graduate in the history of UC San Francisco’s Medical School. At the Haas,…

Businesses Unite Against Discrimination

June 12, 2019 | by

Open to All Campaign Signs Up 4,000 Businesses—and Counting

Leading companies and businesses of all sizes join forces against discrimination and say their doors are open to everyone on equal terms.

An overwhelming majority of Americans believe discrimination is wrong. They understand that our nation, our communities, and our organizations are stronger when we respect the human dignity of all people, and when e…

Lessons from Orange County

Boosting Civic Participation

The success of a cross-issue collaborative in the county highlights lessons for philanthropy about boosting community organizing, voting, and leadership development.

There is a powerful and promising trend under way in cities and counties throughout California. People and organizations are coming together across traditional dividing lines to build power in communities that don’t…

Voices from the Field

Hear insights, challenges and breakthroughs from our grantees’ inspiring work.

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Cal State University San Bernardino students

Dreaming Higher

Investing in California’s Future by Investing in Undocumented Students

Interview with Cal State University San Bernardino President, Tomás D. Morales, on helping undocumented students and their families navigate public higher education.

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First Person Stories

See the issues at the heart of our work through the eyes of those most closely affected.

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Jirayut “New” Latthivongskorn

Future (undocumented) doctor

New once kept his undocumented status a secret from everyone outside his family. Today, he is proudly the first undocumented medical student at UCSF.

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Dreaming Higher

Investing in California’s Future by Investing in Undocumented Students

Cynthia Buiza

Executive Director, California Immigrant Policy Center

Cristina Jiménez

Advancing the Dream of Dignity for All Immigrants

Supporting Nonprofit Fundraising Professionals

Lifting Up the Leadership and Vision of “Resource Leaders”

A Park For All

An Immigrant’s Perspective on Crissy Field

Every Voice Shines New Light