Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
There is a long history of neglect and disenfranchisement of Orange County’s working-class communities and communities of color. Communities of color and working families are left out of the decision-making processes that affect their lives and futures. Consequently, local and regional policies have been developed to serve corporate interests and a privileged few, often to the detriment of Orange County’s communities, neighborhoods and public services. Political inequality gives rise to economic inequality. Despite its thriving economy, Orange County has a huge proportion of extremely low-wage jobs, projected to grow in the next decade. Housing is scarce and people struggle with overcrowding and cost burdens, or choose to move further from their jobs and undertake long commutes, adding to congestion and pollution. Open space and park space are limited, particularly in low-income communities. These challenges have negative impacts on community cohesion, public and family health,
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Local Government Accountability
OCCORD’s Local Government Accountability program develops leadership and builds organizational structures to engage residents and stakeholders in land use planning and economic development decisions that affect their lives. Through strategic, coalition outreach, we train local and regional groups to work collaboratively, and through targeted, neighborhood-based outreach, we train new leaders and build sustainable organizational infrastructure in low-income communities of color to identify and advocate for policy changes that improve their standard of living.
Citizenship & Immigrant Integration Program
OCCORD’s Citizenship & Immigrant Integration Program provides assistance to Lawful Permanent Residents to complete their applications for U.S. Citizenship, leads citizenship classes to help applicants prepare for their citizenship interviews, and develops volunteer leaders to help others through the citizenship process and participate more fully in civic life. We work with local and regional organizations to provide these services to their members and constituents.
Community Engagement & Civic Participation
Working in concert with our Citizenship Program that enfranchises and educates new citizens/voters and our Local Government Accountability Program that focuses on policy change, our Community Engagement & Civic Participation program focuses on leadership training for residents to equip them to effectively communicate with city officials about their needs and prepares them to participate in official decision-making boards and committees. Through this program we also prepare and mobilize volunteer leaders to educate voters about issues of importance to their communities so that they have a say in how public resources are distributed and have their needs better met.
Where we work
External reviews
Photos
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
We aim to address root causes of poverty and inequality in Orange County. Our goals include the following:
- Securing the protection of public lands for community uses, and encouraging local municipalities to transfer some publicly owned parcels to the stewardship of community land trusts
- Advocating for increased investment in affordable housing and the adoption of policies to protect families and communities of color from displacement, including just cause eviction policies.
- Educate, empower, and mobilize Orange County’s communities to engage civically through advocacy, volunteering, and participating in their local democracy
- Advocating for local political systems that provide fair representation for all communities, including district elections, government transparency, and participatory budgeting.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We pursue this goal through a multi-pronged strategy. We organize, train, and develop grassroots community leaders, and grow the civic engagement of communities of color, working families, and immigrants. We help lawful permanent residents become U.S. citizens, encouraging them to participate in their local democracy. We engage in nonpartisan civic engagement activism, including voter education and Get Out The Vote efforts. We conduct policy research and advocacy, unearthing and identifying root causes of Orange County’s challenges, using data to interpret and explain, and developing policy solutions. We build coalitions of allied organizations, leaders, and constituencies in Orange County to advocate for our shared values.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Our theory of change has three key components: fighting for structural changes that address root causes of inequality, bringing diverse groups together around shared goals, and empowering individuals to become organizers in their communities. This approach allows us to scale our impact beyond what can be accomplished by a single organization, and makes our work sustainable for the future.
Our skilled and experienced staff are our greatest asset. They bring years of experience working in Orange County’s diverse communities, language and cultural capabilities, and personal passion to their work. Our relationships with allies, including fellow nonprofits, faith congregations, and labor unions, helps us expand the scope of our work and build strong coalitions to advocate for our values. We have a long history of success in Anaheim and Santa Ana, and have built relationships of trust and respect with community members over many years. Finally, diverse funding support underpins our work.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We won a campaign for the establishment of district elections for Anaheim’s City Council in 2014, and the adoption and implementation of a fair district map in 2016. In 2017, we led a coalition of organizations that won the establishment of a community land trust (CLT) in Santa Ana, which has suffered from a lack of affordable housing and community space, and severe gentrification-related displacement. We successfully placed a living wage measure on the ballot in Anaheim for the November 2018 election. Together with CAIR-LA, we developed a youth leadership program aimed at building leadership skills and solidarity for Muslim and Latino youth. Our naturalization program has helped nearly 7,000 people complete their applications for U.S. citizenship, and referred more than 1,000 to our legal partners for additional assistance.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development
Board of directorsas of 10/10/2023
Cesar Covarrubias
Executive Director, Kennedy Commission
Term: 2020 -
Cesar Covarrubias
Kennedy Commission
Amanda Byrd
SoCal Grant Makers
Carolina Sarmiento
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Eric Altman
Eric Altman Consulting Inc.
Alejandra Ponce De Leon
Advancement Project California
Rafael Solorzano
University of Florida
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/17/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.