This has been an incredibly exciting three weeks on the job! I am writing my first note to you as President & CEO and wanted to share some exciting news and to introduce myself.

I’d like to start with the exciting news. I am honored to share with you that we received a $5 million-dollar donation from MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett. We are humbled to be included among the 286 organizations they consider to be driving change and addressing long-term systemic inequities. We are excited about the opportunity to partner with you to achieve further community and social impact. I am thrilled that this donation is a wonderful way to celebrate the rich 35-year history and impact of Equal Measure under the leadership of former President Meg Long and founding President Gerri Spilka.

While only three weeks in, I am impressed daily by the knowledge, achievements, passion, and genuine warmth of the Equal Measure family. It is very clear that our team is committed to helping our clients shift systems, policies, and practices to make communities stronger, healthier, more equitable, and more inclusive. I am so grateful to have this opportunity to guide Equal Measure, and I look forward to collaborating with you to write the next chapter of Equal Measure’s story.

I would also like to briefly introduce myself by speaking to the moment I believe we are in. What a year it has been for all of us. First off, with more than 33 million cases and 600,000 deaths, the coronavirus pandemic has affected every community across this country. All the successful efforts to advocate for federal and state governments to collect data disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and gender to understand the true impact of COVID-19 on communities of color have reinforced what we already know: race is the strongest predictor of one’s success in this country. From infant mortality to life expectancy—you just have to look at the data.

In fact, the legacy of institutional and structural racism has had disparate impact on Black, Indigenous, Hispanic/Latin, Asian, and other Communities of Color in “normal” times which is exacerbated in times of crisis. These inequities will continue until we center racial equity in all recovery and resilience efforts. Policies, practices, and procedures must work to ensure all communities can thrive regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, and class.

Along with the pandemic, the past year has been one of protest—not just about George Floyd, but about Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Walter Wallace, and other acts of murder and hate that have gained (or not gained) national attention. Many believe this is an inflection point in our history. I believe we have a unique opportunity to engage with communities on racial equity issues and make smart policy and system decisions that can reduce racial inequities across all institutions.

It is precisely this moment that I believe can catalyze the next phase of Equal Measure’s growth into an even more impactful mission-driven organization. Drawing on the strengths of our team, and always adhering to our core values, we have an exciting opportunity to bring new thinking, approaches, and strategies to help our clients advance social change—in fields such as economic mobility, opportunity youth, cradle-to-career education, and public health. We will continue to build out our service lines—exploring and investing in ways to enhance how we provide evaluation, strategy, capacity building, technical assistance, and communications services. And we will deepen and sustain our commitment to advancing racial equity in all aspects of our organization.

We are thrilled by the opportunity offered by MacKenzie and Dan to invest in this important work, and as we step into the future—building on a rock-solid foundation—we are inspired to continue to “do even better” to help our clients and partners drive change in their communities.

 

Leon T. Andrews, Jr.
President & CEO