Do More Than Grow: Can ProNet Advance the Program Field?

As a “newbie” to the community foundation field in 2007, the first thing I did was attend the ProNet annual meeting in San Francisco, where I met about 75 other program staff from across the country. I was amazed by the geographic diversity and the warm reception by the “ProNetters.” And I was relieved to find a community I could connect to in the community foundation world. I ended up joining the steering committee. 

The recession hit a year later, engagement with ProNet waned, and it took until last year in San Francisco to revive the membership and see a reinvigorated community foundation field arrive en masse to the Fall Conference. That meeting was part therapy, part a celebration of spirit of having survived recessionary times, and part reengagement of our professional network of program staff across community foundations.

The theme of this morning’s opening plenary, “Do More Than Grow,” is very timely for ProNet. And last night, we had another rousing annual dinner meeting of members at the Red Fish Grill. We were fortunate to have Vikki Spruill, the Council’s new CEO; its new managing director of Community Foundations, Christopher Goett; and Joann Ricci of the New Orleans Community Foundation welcome us. The steering committee also contemplated ProNet’s upcoming 20th anniversary in 2014, which also fortuitously happens to be the community foundation’s field centennial. It is both a great opportunity and a challenging one.

The steering committee has struggled with its membership. With more than 700 community foundations across the nation, we ought to have more members in our ranks. Yet ProNet membership hovers at only 122. It’s time to explore why, stop dwelling on our need to just “grow,” and engage those not at the table. This is our challenge.

ProNet is a welcoming and energetic affinity group, so the opportunity is a great one to seize. How can we impact our membership in meaningful ways? How can we diversify our members from a gender, age, cultural, experience, and asset-size perspective? How can we provide excellent content for engagement and impact? How can we “do more than grow”?

Susan Hallett, vice president of programs at the Community Foundation Serving Richmond and Central Virginia, is my new cochair for the coming year, and ProNet will start to engage its members to think of ways to continue invigorating our field and plan for our 20th anniversary during the centennial celebration. We ask you to join us in thinking of ways ProNet can do more than grow—for wherever you are, for our sector, and for our communities and the people who live there. Susan is at shallett@tcfrichmond.org. You can reach me at priscilla@sacregcf.org.

Priscilla Enriquez is chief giving officer for the Sacramento Region Community Foundation in California.