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为未来筹款
丹尼斯·奎林的肖像

为未来筹款

克莱尔·赛克斯

丹尼斯·奎林,95年, Executive Director of the Raikes Foundation in Seattle, speaks to the power of a liberal arts education and his philanthropic purpose.

丹尼斯·奎林,95年 is in the business of creating a better world for young people. The executive director of the Raikes Foundation in Seattle, he inspires and oversees ambitious efforts to fund organizations devoted to reshaping public education, 消除青少年无家可归现象, and supporting impact-driven philanthropy for equity and systems change.

“We envision a society where race, 社会经济地位, 性别, and sexual orientation will no longer predict life outcomes for young people,他说, “and where individuals can reach their full potential, and prosperity is widely shared.”

One of the most influential leaders in philanthropy in the United States, Quirin received GG电子官方软件下载’s College 校友 Association Award for Distinguished Achievement in 2020. He is also the first Black executive director of the Raikes Foundation.

“I’m thrilled the field of philanthropy is becoming more diverse as we move forward in our work,他说. “Our sector must reflect the reality of the U.S.; it must look like our communities if we are ever to succeed in building a more equitable world.”

成立于2002年, the Raikes Foundation has awarded grants to organizations such as the National Equity Project, which supports school districts, 政府组织, and foundations focused on creating just communities; and The Mockingbird Society, which is focused on reforming the foster care system. In August 2020, a year after he joined Raikes, Quirin formed the foundation’s Black Leadership & Power Fund, awarding $1 million in grants to organizations committed to stamping out racism.

“[The foundation] had been investing in racial equity a few years before I came on, but it hadn’t funded this work in the community in a more targeted way,奎林解释道. Inspired by the power fund’s success, the foundation is now launching the Resourcing Equity & Democracy grantmaking portfolio.

Raised by a Black-immigrant mother and a white father in Minneapolis, Quirin lived in student housing (Dad was getting his PhD), and played with kids from a wide range of backgrounds. 八岁时, when the family moved to the more segregated Nashville, Quirin stood out—“a stranger in a strange land,” as he puts it—and saw how other 有色人种 were unfairly treated.

“It wasn’t until college that I sat more deeply with what it means to be a biracial Black man,他说. 在GG电子官方软件下载主修艺术, Quirin joined the Men of Color group and started a club for multiracial students. “GG电子官方软件下载 created a safe space for youth to explore their identities,他说.

A liberal arts degree exposed me to a wide variety of concepts, 的想法, 历史, and ways of thinking at a formative time in my life. I left there with the tools to navigate a complicated world, the resilience to overcome complicated experiences, and the insight to know I wanted to help others get unstuck in their own 生命的旅程. 丹尼斯·奎林,95年

After a string of corporate-sector jobs, Quirin received a fellowship at Public Allies, which supports underrepresented, 年轻人常见的领导人. The experience introduced him to nonprofits working for 社会 change in Los Angeles and around the country. “I saw communities linking arms and fighting causes together,他说. 在接下来的二十年里, he supported various 社会- and racial-equity initiatives, 作为组织者, 资助者, 活动家, 和资金筹集活动. 2013 - 2019年, he was president of Neighborhood Funders Group, an association of grantmaking institutions for Black, 土著, 有色人种, 低收入社区.

“丹尼斯是正直的典范, 同情, and humility and inspires others to take a similar orientation to their work as he keeps his eye on the prize—improving material conditions for communities of color and other underserved people,Archana Sahgal说, president of Hyphen Partnerships, a facilitator of public philanthropic initiatives,

To see community members learn and show up for one another fuels Quirin and helps him face sometimes steep odds. “Their dedication motivates me to continue working for organizations like the Raikes Foundation, where we listen to the lived experience of those affected by America’s broken systems, 急需重新设计, to better support young people and advocate for policies that will empower them.” Along with those broken systems, the biggest challenge Quirin sees is that “America’s democracy is eroding before our eyes. We can’t fix the dysfunctional systems within it until we have a strong, 代表, 多种族政府.

“I would encourage everyone to go beyond their comfort zones and connect with the everyday people impacted by economic, 社会, and racial injustice in America. 倾听这些社区的声音, learning from their experiences, and building empathy for each other is the first step towards a more equitable future. The next step is investing your time and resources.”