Our Next Chapter

Seven years ago, I came back home to Detroit—where I knew I needed to be. 

At the time, I was still leading a national team across 52 regions of the country. I was passionate about my work, I loved my team, and I loved the communities I worked alongside. 

However, Detroit was in the midst of a challenge where the circumstances had not been created by city residents, but rather by a system that kept Detroiters, especially Black Detroiters, away from the table, away from decision-making, away from resources, and away from power. 

I knew that my city, my family, and my people deserved more. But what was my role in creating the change that was so desperately needed?

For me, the answer took shape when I founded Strategic Community Partners in 2015. 

What started as a rough idea sketched out at my dinner table has grown in just six short years to a national organization and a growing team that is unapologetically committed to building the capacity of communities and placing power, influence, and resources directly in their hands.

In 2021, we took yet another major step towards our vision and our three-pronged approach to this work.

Our for-profit arm continues to engage in transformative partnerships with mission-driven organizations to scale equitable missions on local, regional, and national levels. 

Secondly, we have adapted our community center, which we purchased, renovated, and opened in 2019, to include virtual events and other opportunities during the pandemic to ensure community members and nonprofit leaders still have access to the resources they need. 

Finally, our nonprofit wing has continued rapid growth as we expand our Equity Initiatives including communities of practice, additional scholarships and conferences, incubators, and accelerators. In its first full year of operation, our nonprofit wing has served, supported, and impacted more than 50,000 young people, community members, educators, and beyond.

And this is just the beginning. In 2022, we will begin offering fiduciary services for Black-led organizations and doing so affordable and equitably to ensure these organizations have a seat at the table and retain their much-needed funding. 

Our nonprofit fiduciary service fee will scale from 1-5%, allowing nonprofits to retain as much of their funding as possible for their critical work. With that fee, we will also pay it forward--offering capacity building, technical assistance, community- and coalition-building with our grantee organizations. We aren’t in the business of taking money from organizations doing necessary, powerful, and liberating work with our community and organizations who need every dime of their funding.

2022 represents the next chapter for us as an organization and another chapter with and for communities we are a part of and deeply care about.  Our team is prepared to unapologetically pursue with even more passion, excellence, integrity, and equity our vision of a world where marginalized communities will secure seats at the table, lead the charges, and bring the solutions that their communities deserve, desire, and need. 

We look forward to having you join us in this work.

In solidarity,

Dr. Chanel Hampton

Founder & CEO

Strategic Community Partners