Janine Lee Collaborative

The Janine Lee Learning & Leadership Collaborative (formerly the Accelerating Equity Learning Collaborative) inspires and equips leaders to be social change agents who engage with the structural, relational, and transformational conditions of systems change to advance equity and justice within their organizations and communities. In 2024, the Collaborative was renamed to honor Janine Lee, who led Philanthropy Southeast for more than a decade and was a dedicated champion of philanthropy and its potential to transform lives and communities.

Through the collaborative experience, leaders will:

• Strengthen and heal through inspiration, courage, and hope, advancing personal growth by understanding narratives, uplifting and exposing the truth, and engaging in reflective work that leads to internal change.
• Build a network, community, and a movement that creates a sense of connectivity to communities, equity, and justice.
• Be moved to action with strategies, tools, and concrete opportunities to create change.

Here’s what members of our 2023 cohort had to say about the benefits and impact of participating in the collaborative:

“It was a safe space to grow, learn and lean in. It inspired me to be more curious, courageous, kind and bold learning from my equity-focused peers.”
 

“I feel better connected to a group of mission-aligned peers in philanthropy to create something bigger together than any of us could have created individually.”
 

“Currently, my foundation is starting the racial equity journey internally and I can navigate conversations empowered. The program enabled me by giving me the tools, courage, and lived experiences to help with this journey.”
 

“The experience was life-changing for me personally and professionally. It challenged me to confront my biases and unlearn what I thought was my truth.”
 

“Having the ability to bond, connect and learn from peers, who I now consider friends, that share in the passion and momentum to move equity forward was of extreme value to me.”

Participants will be asked to invite a board member, CEO, or Senior Leader from their organization to attend the closing session on 11/11.

In-person programming will include:

• Local experts highlighting work to accelerate equity in their communities
• Tours, site visits, and local experiences that amplify learning and ground collaborative members in the region’s culture and history
• Honest and vulnerable discussions about the successes and challenges of equity work in the Southeast
• Actionable takeaways that can be applied on the organizational and community levels
• Opportunities to build relationships with fellow participants and Philanthropy Southeast leaders from across the region

Virtual programming will include:

• Actionable content, tools and resources to deepen learning from in-person experiences
• Opportunities for reflection and debrief to connect the dots from learning to application

Reflection Partners and Final Work Product:

Throughout the year, collaborative members will participate in ongoing individual and paired reflection activities that will become part of a final work product to highlight learning and growth as well as opportunities to apply that learning in their own organization and community.