Recap preso

25:40 Retreat Recap
December 14-15, 2012

25:40 Retreat | Jonathan Lewis | 1

Purpose

This is a photo of men dressed as pandas carrying a big wooden box. Without an explanation
of purpose, this picture makes absolutely no sense.

Conversation snippets...

“Sometimes [some board members] tell me they don’t
know what’s going on in my head.”

“Sometimes I don’t entirely know all of the things
25:40 is doing.”

“I feel once I go to South Africa and see for myself,
then I will be able to better understand what we are doing.”


25:40 needs to answer these questions...

Through conversations with board members, we felt it would be beneﬁcial for
25:40 to explore the following questions.

What is 25:40 doing?

Why is 25:40 doing it?

How does 25:40 tell their story to each
other and the rest of the world?


What does this deck contain?

This deck contains a summary and synthesis of conversations held during the
weekend retreat addressing the questions: what is 25:40 doing, why is 25:40
doing it, and how does 25:40 tell their story. Content in this document is not
meant to be a record of “ﬁnal decisions” but rather an artifact to spur
inspiration, reﬂection and action.


Approach: Table of contents

Approach 7

Where have we been? 9

Where have we been: Themes 16

Where have we been: Focus Reﬁnement 29

What problem are we solving? 34

How did this become a problem? 38

How is 25:40 solving the problem: Aftercare Program 43

How is 25:40 solving the problem: Project Grants 50

Where are we going? 55

What are our individual roles? 64

How do we build capacity 75

Wrapping up 82


Approach

During the retreat, board members Jack Lewis and Alec Zacaroli went to work diagramming
knowledge and experience to then use for critical reﬂection and discovery.

Approach
To gain an understanding about: What are we doing, why are we doing it, and how do
we tell our story; the retreat-group explored two lines of questions:

Narrative Objective

What problem are we trying
Where have we been?
to solve?

What’s 25:40’s approach and role
Where are we going?
in solving it?

How do we know when we What are our individual roles
get there? moving forward?


Where have we been?
This is a historic photo from the Nazareth House, a convent in South
Africa.

Where have we been: Timeline


Where have we been: Cape Town 2003-2005

“Through the Nazareth House’s amazing and
touching video, we were introduced to the plight of
kids battling AIDS and poverty in South Africa. We
were never able to turn away.”

During their time in Cape Town, 25:40
provided funding for the following
orphanages; Nazareth House, HOKISA
(Homes for Kids in South Africa), and
Bauphumelele Children’s Home.


Where have we been: Cape Town Hamburg

Dr. Carol Baker, Founder of Keiskamma Trust

In 2005, Alec and Amy developed a South African government, Alec and Amy
relationship with Dr. Carol Baker who was decided to support Dr. Carol Baker in her
working in the Eastern Cape (rural East work in Hamburg, South Africa.
South Africa). At the time Anti-Retrovirals
(ARVs) were not available and people were
just dying off. After seeing the great need in
rural areas, and a relative neglect from the


Where have we been: Hamburg 2005-2009

The Umtha Welanga Health Center started off as an
AIDs hospice but after securing funding from 25:40 and
PEPFAR was able to provide treatment and ARVs to
people in Hamburg and the surrounding areas.

While in Hamburg, 25:40 provided ﬁnancial orphans in the villages of Lover’s Twist and
support to the Keisakamma Trust (KT). Mgababa. Also, 25:40 helped facilitate the
Through their support and others, KT was Hamburg Social Development project, a
able to complete projects including: a volunteer committee of Hamburg
health center, health education program, community members who design and
art and music programs. Additionally, 25:40 implement development projects.
worked to set up after-school programs for


Where have we been: Hamburg Canzibe

Paul Cromhout, Director of the Small Projects Foundation

Towards the end of their tenure in coupled with Keisakamma Trust securing
Hamburg, Alec and team felt a strong funding from numerous other organizations
desire to be more involved in the design led them to a different part of the Eastern
and implementation of projects on the Cape...Canzibe. This move was spurred by
ground. Additionally, 25:40 wanted to focus relationships with Paul Cromhout, and Alice
on projects that directly served orphaned Clarfelt, development workers in that
and vulnerable children. These desires region.


Where have we been: Canzibe 2009-present

Artist rendering of the proposed Hlalani Kum Learning
Center in Canzibe.

Upon moving to Canzibe, 25:40 began Small Projects foundation. This action plan
investing in a number of initiatives to help included projects such as helping OVCs
the Canzibe community and greater acquire their birth certiﬁcate. Additionally
Ngqeleni district care for orphaned and 25:40 has begun to pilot an OVC after-
vulnerable children (OVCs). One of the school program focusing on: education,
ongoing initiatives was the OVC Action health, nutrition, advocacy and skills.
plan, facilitated by a local non-proﬁt, the


Themes

This is a portion of the whiteboard used to map out the history of the organization.

Serving the neglected and overlooked.

Photo taken by Jack Lewis in Hamburg, South Africa. 25:40 Retreat | Jonathan Lewis | 17

Serving the neglected and overlooked: Observations

Witnessing great need and explicit suffering is a motivator for action.
The neglected and overlooked are often those with the deepest needs.
25:40 started after Alec and Amy witnessed the needs of orphans and
AIDs victims during the AIDs crisis in South Africa. Once the global focus
shifted to orphanages in urban areas, 25:40 shifted it’s focus to the rural,
under-developed homelands in the Eastern Cape.

25:40 has worked with organizations until they are more self sufﬁcient
in their ability to raise support and build capacity.
In addition to serving communities who are traditionally neglected or
overlooked, 25:40 also showed a theme of moving towards
organizations that did not have as strong of a support network or were
not as established in their operations. This was evident in both the move
from Cape Town to Hamburg and Hamburg to Canzibe.


Serving the neglected and overlooked: Considerations

It can be challenging for a team to be both a first responder while
also being responsible for the long term, detail-oriented refinement of
a program.
Some people get energized from starting new projects and initiatives,
and others get energized by sustaining and refining the operations of an
existing project. I suggest thinking about whether 25:40 has the
resources to focus on both starting new projects and refining older ones.
If so, what does the allocation of resources look like to explore new
avenues while refining old ones without getting spread too thin?

Saying no to someone in need is tough.
With so many areas and kids who are neglected and overlooked, it can
be difficult to determine which projects to take on, and which projects to
politely decline. Consider coming up with specific criteria that will help
narrow down projects 25:40 chooses to invest in.


Child focused.

Photo taken by Jack Lewis in Hamburg, South Africa. 25:40 Retreat | Jonathan Lewis | 20

Child focused: Observations
Children were the impetus behind the creation of 25:40.
The ﬁrst organization 25:40 supported was an orphan care facility in
Cape Town. Alec noted that one of the reasons why Amy Zacaroli felt a
connection to helping orphans in South Africa is because she was
adopted.

Projects no longer being child focused was one of the reasons for
moving from Hamburg to Canzibe.
When discussing the transition from Hamburg to Canzibe, one of the
factors that prompted the move included Keiskamma no longer giving
25:40 the opportunity to fund projects that were directly focused on
children.


Child focused: Considerations
With a problem as complex as orphaned and vulnerable children, it
appears most development work in a community could be traced
back to helping kids.
Be aware of this and try to develop a framework for the types of projects
25:40 will invest in that do not involve interaction with children.

Orphaned and vulnerable children is still a very broad focus.
Due to the expansiveness of the problem it is important that criteria are
used to have a focus more specific than Orphaned and Vulnerable
Children. Consider having a more narrow focus that not only describes
who 25:40 serves but specifically how 25:40 plans on serving them.

Manage expectations for how money is being allocated.
While someone can be the “official sponsor” of a project, it can be tough
to specify exactly where money is going if an organization engages in
many different projects with different populations. Consider how this
truth will be acknowledge for both people who invest in 25:40 and
projects as well as organizations 25:40 invests in.


Partnership.

Photo of the Masonwabe Pre-School in Canzibe, a 25:40 funded project.

Partnership: Observations

Partnerships develop alongside personal relationships.
Partnerships with Keiskamma Trust, Small Projects Foundation, Canzibe
Mission, Transcape and Living Waters were all developed in conjunction
with personal relationships with the Founders. Additionally, partnerships
seemed to weaken along with personal relationships (namely with Carol).

Part of the joy of operating (and in some cases volunteering) with
25:40 is in the relationships developed with operations individuals in
South Africa.
When hearing board members talk about their experiences in South
Africa, and reading stories from the mission trips, some of the most
enjoyable relationships are those between 25:40 U.S.A and those on the
ground full time in South Africa.


Partnership: Considerations
Manage expectations for the partnership relationship.
Partnerships that are tied to personal relationships can make for either
very rewarding or trying experiences for an organization or business.
Consider having intentional conversations about both partners’
expectations from the partnership. Talk through topics such as
accountability, success metrics, sustainability, handling disagreements,
and focus.

Manage expectations about 25:40 U.S.A’s role as a partnership.
As a vision gets realized and on-ground operations get underway, it is
important to have clearly deﬁned role about who is responsible for the
day to day decisions. Also have a clear vision as to what future
development and reﬁnement looks like when a project has multiple
owners.


Learning and creating.

A “proposed mission statement.” While this was written as a joke (Thanks Alec :-), it’s indicative
of how board members view 25:40 as a chance to learn & grow in a new way. Lewis | 26
25:40 Retreat | Jonathan

Learning and creating: Observations

25:40 wants board members, and volunteers to do more than just
write a check.
During the weekend retreat there was an explicit desire that people in
the United States be able to help orphans in South Africa, beyond
writing a check.

In addition to helping OVCs, 25:40 wants its team to grow in their
ability to be agents of social change.
One of the reasons 25:40 moved from Hamburg to Canzibe was
because of a desire to learn and grow, as board members and
volunteers. They felt being in Canzibe and working alongside the Small
Projects Foundation while piloting an aftercare program would put them
in a position to learn.


Learning and creating: Considerations
Be mindful of the time investment it takes for people to become
experts and thought leaders.
Many people would say this takes at least 10,000 hours (roughly 10
years of a 40 hour a week job). Think about what it looks like to develop
an expertise through explicitly learning from experts in a ﬁeld.

Develop a rigorous practice of learning from people who are doing
things well in the OVC care space.
Aftercare, skill development, gardening, education, and advocacy are
being done across the globe. Find organizations, academic institutions,
and individuals who know how to do them well, and learn from them.

Have a plan for the role individuals will play in the creative process.
Collaboration is a great thing, however having “too many cooks in the
kitchen” can slow down the creation and implementation process. Be
intentional about the role individuals have in creating an initiative.

Develop a practice of documenting what is learned.
Whether it’s journaling, writing blog posts, creating case studies, or
presentations for talks and speaking engagements; wisdom is best
gained when you force yourself to reﬂect on what you’re doing.

Cape Town Hamburg Canzibe

Focus Reﬁnement

Focus Reﬁnement

Cape Town Hamburg Canzibe

Financially supporting Providing grants to Providing grants to those
orphan care facilities in those helping orphans helping orphans in rural
South Africa. in rural South Africa. South Africa. And piloting
a community implemented
after-school program.


Focus Refinement: Mission Statement

Cape Town 25:40 financially supports orphan care facilities in South Africa.

25:40 partners with organizations working to address issues
Hamburg affecting and creating orphaned and vulnerable children through
providing grants, and project specific feedback.

25:40 partners with rural communities in South Africa to help them
Canzibe meet the needs of orphaned and vulnerable children. We do this
through advocacy and after-school programs.


Focus Reﬁnement: Considerations

Our goal for the mission statement was to have something that was
clear and succinct, that also encompassed all of the projects 25:40
was involved with. After reﬂecting on the discussion and reading
some more about the purpose behind mission statements I would
like to suggest the following as one potential direction to take the
mission statement.

25:40 helps communities in rural South Africa meet
the needs of orphaned and vulnerable children. We do
this by providing grants to organizations addressing
issues leading to communities not caring for orphans
and through overseeing the design and
implementation of after school programs.


Focus Reﬁnement: Resources

If interested, I found the articles below to contain helpful suggestions
for writing a mission statement.

http://www.fastcompany.com/1400930/how-write-mission-
statement-isnt-dumb

http://www.ssireview.org/blog/entry/the_eight_word_mission_statement


Focus Refinement: Next steps
1. Collect your top 3 mission statements.
a. Give yourself a timeline for coming up with the top three (1-2 weeks).
2. Send them to your friends and family, and ask some or all of the following questions.
a. Given the mission statement, how confident are you that you would be able to
guess some of the specific projects 25:40 is involved in (e.g. digging wells)?
i. Not Very Confident
ii. Somewhat Confident
iii. Confident
iv. Very Confident
b. Which of the following statements best describes how compelling the mission
statement is?
i.
I’m indifferent to it.
ii.
Seems like they’re doing something good
iii. Intriguing and I want to know more
iv.
Super provocative, I’m ready to see how I can help them
c. Based on the mission statement which projects would 25:40 be involved in.
i. Pre-schools
ii. Adult skills centers
iii.
Women’s health
iv. Square meter gardens cultivated by Orphaned and vulnerable children.
v. Water wells
vi. HIV/AIDs awareness and education
vii. After-school programs
viii. Adult Sports leagues.

Where have we been: Next Steps

Where have we been: Next Steps
1. Create a PowerPoint deck or video that briefly explains 25:40’s
journey over the past 10 years, and update it once a quarter (if
necessary). This can be used for future board members, employes,
volunteers, investors and donors.

2. Test your mission statement with friends, family and strangers.

3. Have board members come up with a personal education growth
plan. In this plan, they identify the skills they would like to develop,
experience they would like to gain, and a process and strategy for
doing so.

4. Create an ideal partnership description where as specifically as
possible, you outline what 25:40 expects from a partnership. This
should be structured so that advisors and board members can find
consensus on justifying phasing out certain partners (and keeping
others on).


What problem are we solving?

Poverty, abuse, violence, education are often referred to as wicked problems. They are
problems with no deﬁnite solution and connected to other wicked problems.

What problem are we solving.

Orphaned & Vulnerable Children

Communities not caring for Children becoming
orphaned and vulnerable children. orphaned and vulnerable.

Over the retreat, we explored the problem space of Orphaned and
Vulnerable Children. Upon further reﬂection, I feel there may be two
problems 25:40 is currently addressing: communities not caring for
OVCs and children becoming OVCs. This distinction is important
because the solutions for helping communities care for OVCs could
be vastly different than addressing some of direct causes of children
becoming OVCs. When it comes to allocating time, resources, and
brain power, this type of clarity and detail around deﬁning the
problem is critical.

Communities not caring for Children becoming
orphaned and vulnerable children. orphaned and vulnerable.

How did this become a problem?

How did this become a problem: Inﬂuencing factors

Modern Cities & Culture Extreme Poverty Rich Tradition

Abundant Resources AIDS History of Conﬂict & Segregation


A government with many resources that are not always allocated to
those that need it.

A history that has left lingering hurt fear, anger, and
frustration.

Areas of the country, “The Homelands,” that have been undeveloped
and neglected for 75+ years.

Epidemic of AIDs killing a large portion of the adult population.

The collision of modern and traditional cultures with the younger
generation not feeling a strong connection to either and choosing the
more hedonistic elements of both.



Disease

Violence

Lack of education

Abandonment

No moral framework.


How is 25:40 solving this problem?

Aftercare program in Canzibe, South Africa.

How are we solving the problem: Aftercare Program

45

Aftercare Program: Components

25:40 aftercare program will help students excel
academically through tutoring and supplemental materials
and lessons. This will be implemented by 2-3 “educarers”
who will also be in charge of skills development.

25:40 aftercare program will make sure their students are
healthy through regular health checkups and periodic
doctor’s visits. This will be implemented by a “health
advocate” who will also assist with counseling.

The development of skills is crucial for children who do not
make it to university to thrive in this culture. In addition to
providing academic tutoring, the “educarers” will train
students in skills that can either be monetized, provide
sustenance, or be an outlet for creative expression.


Aftercare Program: Components

Nutrition is a vital part of students learning and being
productive. 25:40’s aftercare program will provide one meal
to every student, each day. This portion will be implemented
by a cook.

Under South African law, every orphaned and vulnerable
child has a right, and is eligible to receive money and other
beneﬁts from the government. Our advocates make sure our
kids have a voice, and are cared for appropriately both by the
government and by their appointed caregivers. This will be
implemented by a child rights advocate.

25:40 will also have a counselor onsite at every school. This
person will be in charge of providing emotional counseling,
conducting home visits (with the child advocate), and
working with the children on developing life skills.


Aftercare Program: Success Indicators

25:40 education initiatives will be a success based on level
and improvement of test scores administered in schools.
Additionally 25:40 will ﬁnd an external diagnostic test or task
to identify academic progress.

This module will prove successful when 25:40 can show a
decrease prevalence and re-occurrence of health problems in
their population of students when compared to the normal
population. Additionally, success will be indicated by
successfully reported cases to doctors and hospitals (which
otherwise would have gone untreated.

The success of the skill development portion of the aftercare
program will be determined on a skill-by-skill basis. For
example: for the gardening/farming skill set, success will be
determined by the quality of the gardens (do they yield a
crop) and autonomy of students who have been through the
program to raise their own garden.

Aftercare Program: Success Indicators

The nutrition program will be evaluated based on the number
of meals served per day.

The success of the advocacy program will be judged based
on the quality of relationship developed with local schools. If
the schools are willing to send the student’s lessons the
week before, the advocacy module will be successful.
Additionally, qualitative stories of children’s home experiences
will be used to judge the success, and whether caregivers
are willing to set up and attend PTA meetings.

The counseling module will be successful based on
qualitative analysis of the experiences of students and
families in the program.


How are we solving the problem: Success Indicators

Ability to resourcefully train community members.

One of the main components of 25:40’s aftercare program is the
ability to train and replicate across the region. So after the individual
modules prove to be successful, 25:40 will need to ensure they are
able to train and replicate with the same degree of success.


How are we solving the problem: Next Steps
1. Find 5-10 organizations who are implementing successful
aftercare programs in developing countries. Talk to them about
methods, materials, curriculum, staff, leadership, success metrics,
budget and financial structure.

2. Research assessment methods (tests or tasks) to determine the
success of the academic portion of the program.

3. Determine the optimal number of doctor visits per child/per year.

4. Establish a process for documenting what is done for each part of
the model, reflecting on what works and what doesn’t, and creating
materials for sharing best practices. Also create a practice and rubric
for collecting stories from the rights advocate and counselor.

5. For everything that 25:40 does, be able to specifically state how it
relates to the mission, why you’re confident it will solve the problem,
how you’re going to measure and be accountable for its success.

How are we solving the problem: Next Steps cont.

6. Gain an understanding of pedagogical theory.

7. Research and create rubrics for case reports for the counselor,
health coordinator, and advocacy coordinator.

8. Create detailed job descriptions for every staff member and key
volunteer position.


Project Grants

Artist rendering of Hlalani Kum skills center.

Project Grants: Description

With additional resources, 25:40 supports speciﬁc projects and
initiatives, that directly address communities not caring for orphaned and
vulnerable children. These grants allow 25:40 to have greater traction in
addressing an issue on multiple fronts while leaving the day-to-day
management of projects to outside organizations and individuals.


Project Grants: Proposed Criteria
1. Does this directly help us accomplish our mission?

2. Can we ﬁnancially afford to do it, while still having an excellent
aftercare program?

3. How long is the initiative? Is it’s success contingent upon 25:40
funding it for multiple years?

4. What are the proposed indicators of success? Is this an indicator that
can be measured or explicitly witnessed? Is this successful state
radically different than the current state? If it’s a more long term initiative,
can we put in place checkpoints to make sure it is on track for being
successful?

5. Are we prepared to say no to this if it’s unsuccessful or not directly
related to our mission?

6. Has anyone else done this anywhere? Were they successful? How
are we like them? How are we different than them?

Project Grants: Next Steps

1. Identify the questionnaire and/or observation techniques SPF uses to
identify orphaned and vulnerable children.

2. Create a grant form/application to ﬁll out for every initiative outside of
the aftercare program.

3. Identify the success indicators of the square meter garden program.

4. Make grant project review and accountability part of 25:40 quarterly
meetings.


Project Grants: Considerations

Create a grant application that outside organizations and contractors ﬁll
out before 25:40 will give them funding.

Have formal presentations with the board members before each grant
discussing the criteria.

Facilitate conversations with organizations who receive grants about
boundaries between personal relationships and organizational
relationships.

Don’t be afraid to stop funding projects.

Put check ins and end-reviews on the calendar ahead of time.

Try to limit time spent on outside projects to just the review of initial
proposal, reviews during check-ins, and ﬁnal review.


Christ Centered: Observations
“We are off the fence, we are a Christian organization.”
During the retreat, the group talked briefly about how 25:40 initially
decided that it was going to be a Christ-centered organization. However,
there were many points in their history where the groups or projects they
were financing were not always explicitly Christian. The team expressed
an interest in exploring what it looks like to have Christ at the center of
all they do.

Christ is the “palm of the hand” or the center of everything we do.
In the description of the after-care program, the 5 components of the
program are referred to as the “fingers” (referencing the hand logo) and
Christ is the palm from which everything operates.


Christ Centered: Considerations
To be Christian does an organization need to do more than just good
works?
If the answer is “yes,” what is our rationale for this?

What are the implications for staff volunteers and board members?
In the description of the after-care program, the 5 components of the
program are referred to as the “ﬁngers” (referencing the hand logo) and
Christ is the palm from which everything operates.

What are the implications of project grants?
Based on the answers to the above two questions, how does 25:40
being a Christ-centered organization affect the criteria for outside
projects?

How does one determine the effectiveness of a ministry?
When doing research, most pastors and ministries said it was incredibly
difﬁcult to measure the effectiveness of something that is about personal
transformation. However, they also all stressed that measurement is
important because it helps churches and ministries be good stewards of
resources. On the next page I’ve included some links/resources that
may be helpful.

Christ Centered: Resources
http://www.christianleadershipalliance.org/?measuringeffective

https://www.ministrymagazine.org/archive/2009/November/measuring-ministry-effectiveness-objectively

http://www.connectionsonline.org/Connpdf/4-05%20Connections.pdf

http://www.buildingchurchleaders.com/articles/1988/le-1988-002-2.21.html?start=3

http://faithoncampus.com/how-do-you-assess-your-ministrys-effectiveness/

http://faithoncampus.com/how-is-your-ministry-forming-students/

http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2000/october-online-only/cln01011.html?start=2

http://churchexecutive.com/archives/new-ministry-ideas

http://nazarene.org/files/docs/dobson_paper.pdf

http://www.markhowelllive.com/alan-danielson-on-measuring-small-group-ministry-effectiveness/

https://youthministry360.com/training/measuring-ministry-effectiveness-without-looking-at-numbers

http://www.churchvolunteercentral.com/cvdaily/measuring-ministry-effectiveness/

http://www.faithandleadership.com/features/articles/measuring-ministry?page=0,2

http://www.thelogosministry.org/docs/1-CMEM.pdf

http://waynestocks.com/2010/10/13/what-matters-now-in-childrens-ministry-effectiveness-by-dan-scott/

http://childrensministry.com/articles/this-is-a-test!

http://www.genonministries.org/genon-church/equipping-churches/children-and-youth-ministry-evaluation-and-support/

http://www.genonministries.org/download_file/view/42/

http://www.genonministries.org/download_file/view/105/


Where are we going: Vision

Reﬁne Replicate Scale
Reﬁne curriculum until Scale to one additional Scale to entire Ngquelani
success indicators have location with the constraint district.
been achieved. of using only half of the
operating cost. Fully build out training
Establish core staff, board materials and push to other
members, and volunteer Train another set of organizations & locations
programs. teachers, instructors, & for feedback and
advocates. replication.
Document lessons learned,
success stories, and Explore securing funding
training materials. from South African gov.

Where are we going: Time

1-2 years 1-2 years 2-3 years


Where are we going: Personnel & Clients

Six full-time staff Six full-time staff. Six full-time staff.

40 OVCs Six part-time (or 300 part-time (or
subsidized staff). subsidized staff).

80 OVCs 2,000 OVCs


Where are we going: Financial Investment

25,000 USD/year < 38,000 USD/year <182,000 USD/year


Where are we going: Hypothesis that will be proven

25:40’s methods and 25:40’s staff is able to train 25:40 is able to replicate
curriculum are able to meet new staff through the use the program to the same
the pre-determined of appropriate training degree of success for less
success criteria. materials. than 3,000 USD per
program (40 OVCs per
The original and new program).
aftercare programs can be
sustained with less than
38,000 USD.


Where are we going: Summary

In 5-7 years, 25:40 will have cultivated a network of aftercare
program that provides exceptional care to all 2,000 OVCs in
the Ngqeleni district of South Africa. Each program will be
run by community members, and receive less than 3,000
USD from the private sector.


Where are we going: Next Steps

1. Document all methods used, once something proves to be
successful, turn the documentation into training materials.

2. Turn major success (and failure) stories into case studies.

3. Continue to build advisor network. This network will provide
feedback on progress and serve as ampliﬁers for future success.


Where are we going: Considerations
Try not to dwell on next steps, until you’ve proven all of you’re
hypothesis for the step you’re currently on.
Reﬁning a curriculum so that it not only is effective but can be
passed on easily can be difﬁcult. Make sure the step/hypothesis are
validated before thinking about replicating, scaling etc.

If you had to choose between the aftercare program and outside
projects, which would you choose?
If the aftercare program becomes wildly successful, there may not be
enough resources to devote to both scaling, replicating, and
amplifying the program and simultaneously reviewing and tracking
grant projects. If 25:40 had to make this decision today, which one
would they choose?


What are our individual roles?

What are our individual roles: Considerations

Create an org chart.
If you have not yet, create an org chart that includes board, advisory
board, jobs (even if they are not staffed), and 25:40 South Africa
staff. This can be adjusted as necessary, but it’s important to get
something on paper. Example org chart on next slide.

Fill gaps through pro-bono and volunteer programs
To ﬁll gaps especially in the marketing/communications/fundraising
efforts consider networking with advertising professionals in the DC
area or creating internships through Virginia colleges and universities.
Some resources:
• TapRoot Foundation: http://www.taprootfoundation.org/
• D.C Ad Club: https://www.dcadclub.com/about
• VCU Brand Center: http://www.brandcenter.vcu.edu/
default.aspx


How do we build capacity?

During the retreat there was an expressed need for building capacity
of the organization. Speciﬁcally around these areas.
• Fundraising
• Grant writing
• Building Program Foundation
• Administration
• Blogging, Communication, & Advertising


How do we build capacity: Considerations
Fundraising
Consider raising money on a per-project basis, for the duration of
the project. For example we know that it’s going to take at least
$102,000 dollars over 3 years for you to prove the after-care
replication model is successful. Package this as a partnership for
churches and schools where members and students can be
witnesses to the success of the program/model after signing on to
support a certain amount per year.

Speciﬁc ideas for fundraising include:
• School partnerships: Find schools to support you over three
years. Give them photos, posters, etc. And start a some cross
border education programs (pen pal, collaborative learning
etc).
• Church partnerships: Similar to school, but either with Sunday
school classes or to go on their mission wall.
• Get college students to design or create a fundraising
campaign that can either be implemented on a yearly basis or
raise all necessary funds at once.

Grant writing
Write a job description that includes speciﬁc responsibilities for
grant writing. Then ﬁnd a board member and make it their job or
responsibility to learn about grants, and write them.


Building Program Foundation
This will become more of a reality once you speciﬁcally create job
descriptions based on program goals/needs. Then you’ll be able to
divvy up among existing board members and see where there are
gaps. From there you can decide if you need to ﬁnd volunteers or
hire staff.



Administration
This will shake itself out once job descriptions are created and we
can see a list of administrative duties, and which ones are not
getting done or are stretching people pretty thin.



Blogging, Communication, Advertising
Consider writing a plan that includes:
• Who are you trying to communicate with?
• What is the main message for each of these audiences?
• What do you want them to do (how should they act after
receiving your communication?
From there identify the best means for communicating and
reinforcing this message.


The questions we started with.

What is 25:40 doing?

We help communities in rural South Africa meet the needs of
orphaned and vulnerable children. We do this by providing
grants to organizations addressing issues leading to
communities not caring for orphans and through overseeing
the design and implementation of after school programs.

Why is 25:40 doing it?

After 10 years of funding projects and organizations in the
orphan care space, we feel there is an opportunity for rural
communities to care for OVC’s using less ﬁnancial resources
from outside of their community. We’re trying to pilot a
program to prove that it is possible.


The questions we started with.

How does 25:40 tell their story to each other and the rest of the world?

Narrative Objective

What problem are we trying
Where have we been?
to solve?

What’s 25:40’s approach and role
Where are we going?
in solving it?

How do we know when we What are our individual roles
get there? moving forward?


Suggested action items.

How does 25:40 tell their story to each other and the rest of the world?


Initiative Descriptor Sheets.

During the retreat, we completed one of these sheets for all initiatives 25:40 was responsible
for designing and reﬁning.

Aftercare Program: Academics Module
Description
Tutoring OVCs to ensure success in schools.

Who else is doing this? Are they successful?
Vision trust international.
How does this initiative help us accomplish our mission?
It gives children an opportunity to receive more school and training. By having basic literacy and numeracy
skills and by passing matric, children are more likely to have a job where they can earn a living wage.

What truth’s or empirically validate research is this based on?
Children that pass matric have a higher likelihood of getting a job.
What hypothesis is this based on?
Our program improves academic performance and passing rates.
What are indicators of success?
Passing matric, improved test scores, passing each grade, gaining academic competency.

How long will it take to determine if this is successful?
1-2 years depending on assessment.
How much will it cost?
$25,000 (for the entire school)

How long will this be sustained?
As long as 25:40 is in the Eastern Cape.

What other people and/or organizations does this involve?
OVC Coordinator, Advocacy Coordinator, Health Coordinator, Counselor, Cook, 4-educarers.

Is this dependent or connected to other initiatives?
Other 5 modules.

Other
Things that we need: Academic curriculum, study habits curriculum, understanding of pedagogical theory,
know what assessment tests to use, ﬁnding out what it would take to replicate, job descriptions for everyone,
educarers review process. 25:40 Retreat | Jonathan Lewis | 88

Aftercare Program: Health Module
Description
The health coordinator is the person responsible for measuring and advocating for children’s health to
hospitals and caregivers.

Keisakamma

Caring for Orphans involves making sure they are healthy.


A nurse is needed to make sure kids are healthy. We are taking the right metrics.







Other
Things that we need: Baseline health assessment rubric, process for home visits, method for teaching
teachers what to look for in students, job description, ways to make this more efﬁcient (do we need a health
person).

Aftercare Program: Nutrition module
Description
1 meal a day for each child in the program.











Other


Aftercare Program: Skills module
Description
Teaching skill such as gardening, arts, crafts, etc...that could later lead to sustenance, monetization, or
creative expression.


In caring for children it is important to teach them skills that will help them to both sustain and express
themselves.


The process 25:40 uses to teach these skills leads to proﬁciency and autonomy post graduation.







Other
We need to make sure we can replicate the skills training, and ﬁnd a way to capture the curriculum. Right now
it’s based on having edcarerers skilled in certain areas.


Aftercare Program: Advocacy Module
Description
The counselor is employed as part of the after-care program. He or she will provide emotional counseling,
conduct home visits, and provide support to care-givers.





The frequency with which they visit children at their homes.






Other
We need to: develop training materials to train other counselors, and complete case reports.


Skills Center
Description
The skills center will be a brick and mortar establishment featuring a skills center, 2 sets of classrooms (for
aftercare and pre-schools), a kitchen, sexual abuse center, toilets, volunteer accommodations and computers.
It will be used to teach community members various skills such as farming, tire repair, sewing, and brick
making.




A building is necessary to replicate the school after-care program. If we build the skills center, community
members will use it.

The frequency with which they visit children at their homes.




Living waters.


Other


Gardening Program
Description
Every child is trained and given equipment to grow vegetables. Gardens are grown where the kids live. This is
volunteer led.
Gardening God’s Way.
It gives children healthy food. It reduces the cost of providing meals. It gives children a skill to use later in life. It
gives children conﬁdence and self value.
Gardens produce food that kids will actually eat. The gardens are reducing the cost of food. Children tending
to square meter gardens lead to adults growing food for families. Square meter gardens increase conﬁdence.
Gardens yielding crops. Children planting crops 2 seasons in a row. Crops being consumed. Children having
higher self esteem.
1 year
120 children = 12,000
2,000 children = $192,000
Small projects foundation.

Other


OVC Identification Study
Description
Identifying who are classified as an OVC, noting where they are located, where they are going to school, and
who is their caregiver.

Gardening God’s Way.

It identifies the client population.

You can’t help someone until you know who they are and the extent of the problems you are trying to solve.




$25,000 - initial study
$3,000 - Follow up study


SPF foundation, employees and volunteers.


Other
We need to: determine how often we re-evaluate, or repeat the study; determine if 25:40 wants to get to a
place where they have the capacity and internal knowledge to implement this elsewhere.


Role of 25:40 within outside initiatives
During the retreat there were discussions surrounding what role
25:40 should play with outside initiatives (e.g. OVC identiﬁcation
study). The following slide outlines some of the responsibilities 25:40
is hoping to have with outside initiatives.

Role of 25:40 within outside initiatives
• Review proposals for projects
• Financially support projects
• Review results of projects
• Keep vendors accountable for reporting an justifying why they are
doing what they are doing.
• Make sure that materials are created so that there can be culturally
speciﬁc implementations of similar programs elsewhere.
• Make sure programs are rolled out in an orderly fashion in
conjunction with other 25:40 sponsored programs
• If a 25:40 funded initiative is not successful, identify key
breakdowns and pain points that are barriers to success. Make
vendors articulate clearly the proposed solutions to pain points,
and work with vendors revise the timeline-to-success.


Questions that we would like to answer.

During the retreat, we kept a running list of all the questions we
would like to answer at some point. Questions in bold are ones that
Jack or Alec identiﬁed as more important.

Questions that we would like to answer.
• Why would someone choose 25:40 over other organizations?
• What makes 25:40 unique?
• How can we be consistent in understanding what’s going on across the organization?
• Who needs to be aligned on our key messages?
• How do we ensure stakeholder involvement?
• How do we vet and get collective buy in on ideas?
• What is the optimal interaction between 25:40 U.S.A. and 25:40 South Africa?
• If our budget was unlimited what would we do differently?
• How can we effectively use social media?
• How do we deﬁne or measure success?
• Do we need a business plan and if so what should that look like?
• Is there anything we can do that will help us be self sustaining so we do not have to rely on donor dollars?
• What can we do to improve overall communication?
• How do stakeholders envision God’s role?
• How big or broad is the scope of our vision (geography, etc)?
• What should be done to ensure the long term sustainability of 25:40 beyond Alec and Amy?
• What is our current mission/vision?
• If someone did this full time, what should the focus on?
• What do we do when kids are too old for aftercare?
• What roles should our board members play?
• What roles do our board members want to play?
• How doe we go about building capacity?
• What skills or knowledge does Alec need? What does that look like and to what end?
• What is our framework for deciding what to implement?
• How do we get volunteers involved?
• What questions does SPF ask in their survey to identify kids?
• Where did SPF get the OVC deﬁnition?
• How much time does it take Amy to complete administrative tasks?

Questions that we would like to answer, continued

• What level of input can we/should we have based on what’s going on the ground in South Africa.
• What is our focus?
• What does ownership look like?
• What does being a thought leader look like?
• How do we know when it’s time to scale?
• How do we know we are implementing the best practices?
• What does being a thought leader look like?
• What is the ideal health coordinator to student ration within each aftercare program?
• How often should doctors perform checkups on students in the aftercare program?
• How do we show that square meter gardens help students develop necessary skills?
• What percentage of square meter gardens do we want to be successful in order to show that the program is worth investing in?
• What are the baseline health metrics of OVCs in the community not involved in our aftercare program?
• What are other non proﬁts in SA and other countries addressing similar issues doing?
• Who is doing advocacy well?
• Who is doing education well?
• Who is doing health well?
• Who is doing nutrition well?
• Who is doing skills well?

OVC Definitions

The following slide contains the definitions for orphaned and
vulnerable children, as well as specific reasons children become
vulnerable after they lose their parents and go to a caregiver.

OVC Deﬁnitions
Orphaned Child: A child who has no surviving parent caring for him or her.

Vulnerable Child: A child whose survival, care, protection or development may be
compromised due to a particular condition, situation or circumstance and which prevents the
fulﬁllment of his or her rights.

A child becomes orphaned and either
• The community or extended relatives cares for and nurtures the child
• The child is not cared for because of one of the following reasons
• Relatives or neighbors have their own kids to feed and are unable to provide for
the new child.
• New caregivers have no money.
• Other people in the household are abusive.

Mission statement ideas

The following slide contains mission statements that were quickly
written and ranked.

Mission statement ideas

•
25:40 gives lawyers a second chance.
•
25:40 serves orphaned and vulnerable children (OVCs) in South Africa through
community implemented after-care programs.
•
25:40 provides hope to orphaned and vulnerable children in southern Africa.
•
25:40 develops aftercare programs to support OVCs.
•
25:40 develops Christ-centered empirically validated programs to care for OVCs.
•
25:40 helps South Africa’s OVCs through Christ-centered programs focused on
Advocacy, Nutrition, Health, Skills, and Education.
•
Promoting education, health, safety, and skills for orphaned and vulnerable children in
Southern Africa.
•
Fostering informed, community-based, care for OVCs in Southern Africa.
•
Developing programs and partnerships to serve OVCs in southern Africa.
•
Providing a path for meaningful and sustainable involvement in the lives of OVCs
through Christ-centered community-based programs.
•
Empowering communities to care for OVCs in South Africa.
•
Implementing best practices for serving OVCs.
•
Committed to serving OVCs in Southern Africa.
•
25:40 provides hope to OVCs in Southern Africa.

Recap preso

Empfohlen

Empfohlen

Weitere ähnliche Inhalte

Ähnlich wie Recap preso

Ähnlich wie Recap preso (6)

Recap preso