PUBLIC ALLIES INC

Public Allies aims to develop results-focused, values-driven leaders who build effective nonprofit and public sector organizations and bring together diverse people to advance solutions to pressing community needs.We want to infuse local communities with indigenous leadership talent that helps pull the right people and resources together to tackle problems and create brighter futures for communities.

Public Allies employs two integrated strategies to change the face and practice of leadership: 1) The Public Allies signature AmeriCorps Ally Program identifies diverse young adults and prepares them for leadership through paid full-time nonprofit apprenticeships and rigorous leadership training. 2) Public Allies' Alumni Programs connect and engage our growing network of diverse leaders. Our alumni strategy focuses on 1) creating opportunities for alumni to participate in and support the Ally program and 2) investing in alumni to achieve high impact as social entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, public policy advocates and community leaders in other positions. Our Approach Core to our work of developing results-focused, values-driven leaders is our approach to national service and leadership development which is distinct from other programs. We believe that more diverse, inclusive, collaborative, asset-based leaders committed to continuous learning and integrity will better engage communities to solve problems. We recruit diverse, young adults who are from the communities where we work and help them develop skills to be effective community-builders. As part of Public Allies' paid 10-month apprenticeship, Allies serve in full-time positions at local nonprofits, participate in regular leadership and professional development trainings, and design and implement team service projects. Our Allies and staff are committed to careers working for community and social change. Public Allies helps dozens of local nonprofit organizations in each community access federal funds and human capital to expand and improve their services. Our leadership curriculum is at the cutting edge of leadership theory and practice. The curriculum is grounded in values that help leaders engage all kinds of people and offers a blend of individualized and group learning that applies the best practices of leadership development and adult education. Public Allies does service with communities, not to communities. Public Allies practices our asset-based approach to community leadership by engaging people from our communities to serve with us.

Public Allies has a proven program model with three-fold impact: (1) builds the capacity of nonprofit organizations, (2) expands and improve services to meet local needs, and (3) develops leaders committed to a lifetime of working for community and social change. In addition, we have a growing network of 21 Public Allies sites around the country implementing our signature Ally apprenticeship which includes partnerships with 17 local universities and nonprofit organizations. These partnerships build local capacity, strengthen management, deliver consistent program quality, leverage trusted brands, and streamline costs. We have strong local networks with more than 400 nonprofit organizations work with us to develop talent and engage young people to address community issues. Other key assets include: A National staff of 21, local staff of 72 and a national budget of more than $14.1 million, a board of directors with representation from the public and private sectors.A growing Alumni Network with more than 3,800 Public Allies alumni across the countryTurning the Tides partnership with the Alliance for Children and FamiliesNational partnerships with Citizen Schools, the YMCA and the United States Tennis Association (USTA)CEO, Paul Schmitz chairs the Nonprofit Workforce Coalition and co-chairs Voices for National ServiceCEO, Paul Schmitz's book, Everyone Leads: Building Community Leadership from the Bottom Up, is complete and slated for publication in October 2011.

RESULTS Allies are diverse. More than 67% are people of color, 60% are women, 50% college graduates and 15% LGBT.Allies have served more than 285,000 people per year through their work at local Partner Organizations and team service projects.More than 90% of Partner Organizations report that Allies met or exceeded their goals and expectations.More than 80% of Allies demonstrated gains in leadership skills and self confidence.Nonprofits hosting an Ally saved more $20,000 annually considering what it would cost to do the same work without Public Allies. Nationally, Allies will save nonprofits more than $12 million this year.67% of alumni are still in communities where they served with Public Allies.More than 75% of Public Allies graduates have continued careers in nonprofit and public service. Their level of civic, political, and volunteer activity more than doubles their age cohort.Received the Pew Center for Civic Change's prestigious Civic Change Award in 2006 and Fast Company Social Capitalist Award in 2008. Best Practices honored by McKinsey & Company, Bridgespan Group, Cisco, AmeriCorps, and others. What haven't we accomplished yet? Clear community impact goals at the local levelTools and systems for effectively measuring our success in building the organizational capacity of our local Partner OrganizationsDeep and wide grasp of the current impact of our alumni on communities