Alliance for Children Everywhere
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
We are working to address Family and Community needs in developing countries by providing, Crisis Nurseries, Family Preservation and Education. We work with at risk children and families to hopefully help families stay together and where that is not possible, we train in country foster to adopt families.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Alliance for Children Everywhere
House of Moses has sparked much interest both domestically and internationally because it is a unique model providing 24/7 nursing care for up to 40 pre-mature and high risk infants, some of who weigh less than 2 pounds on admission. Some of the babies at House of Moses have been abandoned, but most have lost their mothers, many in childbirth due in large part to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Babies are nurtured here until they are healthy enough to be returned to extended family or adopted. We also partner with local churches to identify possible foster parents, train them and work with the government to place children into suitable homes.
Bill and Better Bryant Crisis Nursery
The Bill and Bette Bryant Crisis Nursery is home to 23 toddlers most of who are orphans or were found abandoned by police. Many wewre simply lost, seperated from parents or caregivers. We work to reunite these children with families, find a foster home or adoptive family.
Family Preservation Program
This program has three parts: Nutrition & Nurture which provides emergency food and nutrients for familes with children under the age of five so that children do not end up in institutions. Empower & Earn provides job skills training to parents in our programs so that they are able to keep their families together through earning a fair wage. Save & Support includes access to savings groups and micro loans so that people are able to start small businesses.
Faith Works Free Education Program Faith Works Free Schools are for children who would not otherwise receive an education. Current enrollment is 1,200 children from Grades 1-7. The Faith Works program is targeted to students who live in the slums of Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. Each child receives a free nourishing lunch during the school day. The schools are housed and operated by local indigenous churches, with funding and other material support provided by Alliance for Children Everywhere. The Helen DeVos Christian School Provides an opportunity to 300 pupils to receive quality Christian education in grades 5 - 9.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability - Member 2012
External reviews
Photos
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn 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?
Alliance for Children Everywhere was created to provide emergency care for orphans and abandoned children until they are placed with an extended family, fostered or adopted. The vision of ACE is to see every child in a secure family and enriching environment. This is being achieved through strengthening vulnerable families, reunification, kinship, foster family care, adoption and education. To impact the root cause of abandonment, we supply milk and medicine to mothers, or extended families so they may care for their children. We partner with churches to embrace isolated mothers and families, and educate impoverished children. We are a Christian organization, working with all people and with all children no matter what their religion or background. Our efforts now are focused in Zambia, Africa, a sub-Saharan country thought to have the highest per capita percentage of orphaned children. In the capital city of Lusaka, we partner with the local churches to rescue, care for, and educate abandoned children who would otherwise die.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The approach of our programming is to empower Zambian professionals, families, churches and communities to care for and support themselves and their children. By partnering with local churches and Christian organizations, ACE and our partner organization, Christian Alliance for Children in Zambia, develop and support integrated child welfare strategies to bring vulnerable children into healthy homes, families, schools, and communities. They do this by:
1. Rescuing children who would otherwise die
2. Empowering Zambian families to care for their children
3. Providing essential milk, medicine and counseling to families in crisis
4. Facilitating adoptions or foster care when there is no family
5. Partnering with churches to educate children who would otherwise be too poor to afford an education.
We are culturally aware, our programs are relevant, we share responsibility, and we develop reproducible models.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
ACE oversees an annual budget of 1.5 million dollars in diverse funds generously donated from individuals, churches, businesses and foundations. There is a staff of five working out of the Tucson, Arizona home office of founder Virginia Woods, and 85 Zambians who work with the children in Zambia. Field partners include The Amway Foundation, Bethany Christian Services, the Zambian Department of Social Welfare, local police, victim support units, community leaders, churches, health clinics, and various other non-government organizations. ACE and CACZ are not political, dogmatic, denominational, proselytizing, or partisan. We maintain very low operational costs, exemplary by all standards. The American organization is overseen by a strong and diverse board of directors. CACZ oversight is provided by a Zambian board comprised of development professionals, church representatives and community leaders.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
ACE has been in Zambia for 20 years. The work has grown each year. This year ACE and CACZ educated more than 2000 primary school students, 191 middle school students, and 357 high school students. 100 % of the senior class passed their government final exam. Our crisis nurseries cared for 115 infants and toddlers, reuniting 37 with their families, placing 11 in foster care and 8 were adopted. We fed over 180 children under 5 years of age, per month, in Lusaka as well as the children in our temporary homes. One of our primary schools had food donated so that the students could get a mid-day meal and this school also was electrified so that they did not sit in darkness. We hired 3 university-graduate full-time social workers with another to be added in 2015. We launched a foster care program after receiving approval from the Zambian government. This is one year of work. We have funds to continue what we are presently doing but the need is overwhelming so all donations are welcomed.
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?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, 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 engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
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.
Alliance for Children Everywhere
Board of directorsas of 03/10/2022
Ms. Pamela Hove
Steelcase
Term: 2020 - 2022
MS Clare Boals
Willow, Inc
Term: 2020 - 2022
Virginia Young Woods
Founder, Alliance for Children Everywhere
Clare Boals
Oscar Health Insurance Co
Pam Hove
Steele Case
Laura Pearce
Teacher
Bwalya Melu
Consultant
Carmen Morris
Accountant
Kevin Biekert
Banker
Barbara Hughes
Retired
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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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 ? Yes -
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
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
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/10/2022GuideStar 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 review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- 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.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- 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.