Initiatives & Special Projects - The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation

Cultivating Hope Through Action: How Public-Private Partnerships Are Strengthening Child and Family Well-Being in L.A. County

Government and philanthropy often share common goals and a capacity to enable wide-scale systems change. When they work together, they make ideal partners—philanthropy contributing nimbleness and a spirit of experimentation, while government commands the resources to sustain what works. In Los Angeles County, such collaboration was catalyzed by the murder of an 8-year-old boy in 2013. This tragic death prompted the Board of Supervisors to empanel a commission of notable child welfare experts to examine systemic failures.

Since then, an increasingly durable and agile spirit of collaboration in L.A. has fueled an ability to test new ideas, assess their effectiveness, and bring them to scale in ways that significantly impact child welfare reform. As a result of these efforts, the previously siloed and reactive child protection system is moving toward becoming a more integrated countywide child well-being system. Cultivating Hope Through Action: How Public-Private Partnerships Are Strengthening Child and Family Well-Being in L.A. County, is a report chronicling the work that drove increased collaboration and funding in L.A. County. It also addresses ways to grow similar collaborative ecosystems for child and family well-being in the future. Read the executive summary and full report below.

Recognizing that meaningful change requires working in partnership with community, the Foundation regularly partners with nonprofit, government, and philanthropic peers to respond to emerging sector needs. We are propelled by our responsive DNA to engage in an array of initiatives and special projects promoting cross-sector collaboration and organizational effectiveness. The result is an outsized impact that would not have been possible through our regular grantmaking alone.

Cross-Sector Collaboration

Tapping the power of collaboration to address complex challenges and increase impact, the Foundation works to improve or reimagine public and private systems into entities that drive better outcomes and strengthen communities across LA County. We do so in the following areas:

Arts and Culture

Creativity is one of our region’s greatest assets, and arts and cultural expression play a vital role in our quality of life. The Foundation is committed to supporting arts and cultural entities, promoting access for all Angelenos.

Child & Family Well-Being

All children deserve to thrive in the communities where they live, learn, and play. The Foundation actively leads, serves, and supports a variety of initiatives focused on promoting healthy outcomes for children and families.

“If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”– African Proverb

Organizational Effectiveness

We believe strong nonprofits help communities flourish. The Foundation supports a variety of activities designed to bolster the capacity and sustainability of individuals, teams, and entire organizations. Capacity building activities include the following:

Leadership & Professional Development

The Foundation supports people powering change by investing in capacity building activities for nonprofit leaders and staff, offering a mix of individual and team-based learning opportunities.

Nonprofit Sustainability lnitiative

Launched in response to the 2008 Great Recession, the Nonprofit Sustainability Initiative (NSI) is a funder collaborative that helps LA County nonprofits pursue strategic alliances and restructuring to achieve greater effectiveness and efficiency.