PLATINUM2022

BLACKBERRY RADIO INCORPORATED

Redefining the Culture. Representing the Future.

aka BlackBerry Radio   |   Providence, RI   |  https://www.blackberryradio.org

Mission

We utilize radio to resolve social ills and crisis in the Black, Indigenous, and LatinX communities by teaching youth and young adults how to implement communication skills to effect positive social, economical, and educational change through broadcast and new media.

Notes from the nonprofit

BlackBerry Radio Incorporated was founded in 2010, after having worked within the Black and LatinX communities of Boston, Massachusetts, Providence, Rhode Island, Norfolk, Virginia, and Roxbury, Massachusetts. Since 2007, we have served the community, helping children connect with their parents through our Custody Advocate program. We continued to work with at-risk youth to curb violence in our community through the ManUp Movement program, where we assist youth in resolving conflict using peaceful, mutual resolution. We use radio and broadcasting to channel the natural energy of the youth and young adults positively.

Ruling year info

2021

President/CEO

AMIR SHAKIR

Vice President

Claudette Wright

Main address

10 DORRANCE STREET UNIT 700

Providence, RI 02903 USA

Show more contact info

EIN

47-4852358

NTEE code info

Radio (A34)

Media, Communications Organizations (A30)

Alliance/Advocacy Organizations (F01)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990-N.

Communication

Blog

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Many of our energetic and eager young people aspiring to be radio personalities in the field of Communications cannot afford to pay the cost of a 6 or 18-month course, let alone the tuition of a 4-year college or university. To most of these young minds, cost becomes a deterrent and many of them never pursue their dream careers in radio and television. Further, many media companies don't touch on the issue of mental health and child custody in the Black community, leaving a void of information as it relates to these issues.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Radio Personality Classes

Teach at-risk and high-risk youth how to use radio and the power of communication to resolve conflict and heal the community.

Population(s) Served
Young adults
Economically disadvantaged people

To assist parents in navigating the family court system to ultimately gain access to a natural, positive, bonding relationship with their children.

Population(s) Served
Adults
Economically disadvantaged people

Where we work

Videos

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of new donors

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Single parents, At-risk youth, Economically disadvantaged people, Children and youth, Ethnic and racial groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of donors retained

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Ethnic and racial groups, Social and economic status, Family relationships

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of new grants received

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Ethnic and racial groups, Family relationships, Social and economic status

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of multi-year grants received

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of consulting projects completed

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Family relationships

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of new advocates recruited

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Ethnic and racial groups, Children and youth, Family relationships, Social and economic status

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Estimated number of funding dollars secured for the sector

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Children and youth, Ethnic and racial groups, Family relationships

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Estimated number of new funding sources secured for the sector

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups, Social and economic status

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of list subscribers

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Ethnic and racial groups, Social and economic status, Family relationships, Age groups

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of media articles reflecting preferred issue framing

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Family relationships

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of independent organizations served

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Social and economic status, Family relationships, Age groups, Ethnic and racial groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Total dollars received in contributions

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Ethnic and racial groups, Family relationships, Health, Social and economic status

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of children who have access to education

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Social and economic status

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of comment letters to government agencies

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Social and economic status, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of Facebook followers

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Social and economic status, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of online groups served

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Social and economic status, Health, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups, Age groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of people on the organization's email list

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Social and economic status, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups, Age groups, Health

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of new constituencies represented among advocates

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Social and economic status, Health, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups, Age groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of unique podcast audience members

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Social and economic status, People with diseases and illnesses, People with disabilities, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Number of broadcast audience members

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Population(s) Served

Age groups, Social and economic status, Health, Family relationships, Ethnic and racial groups

Type of Metric

Context - describing the issue we work on

Direction of Success

Increasing

Our Sustainable Development Goals

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

We utilize the talents of volunteers to host radio programs on our radio stations, and to help spread awareness and information to our community on how to navigate the family courts during family custody issues, and mental health in the Black community, while providing our volunteers with the tools they need to succeed in the broadcast industry.

Our strategies are to engage the audience during radio programs, meet the listeners in their respective communities, armed with material and information to empower the individuals in need with contacts and services. We will continue to forge partnerships with nonprofits, clergy and community leaders to effect the change we wish to see through dialogue and doing. Our main strategy involves getting our hands dirty and working closely with grassroots organizations to assist the people in our community with access to resources.

We rely on partnerships and relationships with various organizations, advocates, individuals and businesses to strengthen our ties to the community, and are capable of volunteering for some of the family services as consultants and advocates. Our founder is a 31-year radio veteran, whose skill set and knowledge of the industry will be useful in teaching the aspiring radio personalities and producers what they need to know in order to succeed.

We have helped to cultivate the talent of Donya 'Donya Blaze' Floyd (Essence, Radio One, Power 99FM, 103 Jamz); Rocsi Diaz (Entertainment Tonight, BET); and Jon-Al Sawyer. We have also helped children reunite with their fathers through our 'My Family Advocate' program, aimed at assisting fathers with visitation and custody matters. We have been instrumental in encouraging young, Black people in the community to seek and sustain attention for mental health issues that have plagued them and caused them to spiral out of control. Using radio and the power of communication, we have been able to make small strides, with yet even more big steps to go.

How we listen

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.

done We shared information about our current feedback practices.

  • 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

  • Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?

    We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded

  • What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?

    We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback

Financials

BLACKBERRY RADIO INCORPORATED
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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lock

Connect with nonprofit leaders

Subscribe

Build 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.

BLACKBERRY RADIO INCORPORATED

Board of directors
as of 11/18/2022
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board co-chair

Amir Shakir

BlackBerry Radio

Term: 2010 - 2029


Board co-chair

JaToria Jones

BlackBerry Radio

Term: 2012 - 2029

Bonnie Artigua

BlackBerry Radio

Amir Shakir

BlackBerry Radio

Jon-Al Sawyer

BlackBerry Radio

Shahara Jaghoo

BlackBerry Radio

Jean Morrison

BlackBerry Radio

Kevin Carson

BlackBerry Radio

Tauna Good

BlackBerry Radio

Mick Bentson

BlackBerry Radio

Terri Brown

BlackBerry Radio

Henderson Vaughan

BlackBerry Radio

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes

Organizational demographics

SOURCE: Self-reported; last updated 11/18/2022
info Candid has made improvements to the race and ethnicity options.

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
Black/African American
Gender identity
Male, Not transgender (cisgender)
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual or straight
Disability status
Person with a disability

The organization's co-leader identifies as:

Race & ethnicity
Black/African American
Gender identity
Female, Not transgender (cisgender)
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual or straight
Disability status
Person without a disability

Race & ethnicity

Gender identity

 

Sexual orientation

Disability

Equity strategies

Last updated: 04/16/2021

GuideStar 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

Data
  • We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
  • We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
Policies and processes
  • We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
  • We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.