Grants talk:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/General Support Fund/Black Lunch Table Into The Movement's Future 2025

Regional Committee feedback and questions

Hello Raggachampiongirl, and apologies for the delays in preparing feedback for your proposal. The Regional Fund Committee has completed an initial review of the proposal, and has the following feedback, questions, and comments to help support their review:

• How do you set compensation for your positions? What general practices or policies are used to determine compensation rates?
• The last dashboard linked to from your website is from 2020. Can you please provide an updated dashboard or some other metrics that illustrate your activities since then in a similar way to the dashboard data?
• Could you share more details about your upcoming strategic planning, such as your goals, and how this process will work?

Please let us know if you have any questions or needs for clarity around the committee's feedback. To support the Regional Fund Committee's review, please respond to committee feedback and complete any needed proposal revisions by Monday, December 2nd. With thanks, I JethroBT (WMF) (talk) 17:39, 22 November 2024 (UTC)

Hello Committee and I JethroBT (WMF),

Thank you for the opportunity to address your questions on BLT’s grant submission. I have provided detailed responses to the inquiries below and I hope they provide the clarity needed. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there are any additional clarifications I can offer or further information that would be helpful. Raggachampiongirl (talk) 01:19, 2 December 2024 (UTC)

How do you set compensation for your positions?
At BLT, we are committed to compensating workers at or above industry and market standards. Compensation decisions are guided by comprehensive market research, salary surveys, and data from nonprofit-specific resources such as the National Council of Nonprofits and Candid. Additionally, we account for regional cost-of-living factors to ensure compensation reflects the local economic landscape of where employees reside. This research is carefully compared against our internal pay bands and staff promotion frameworks to establish fair and equitable rates. These processes and principles are outlined in BLT’s Equity-Based Employee Compensation Policy.

Our compensation policy serves as a framework for establishing just and equitable practices. This includes adhering to clear, consistent guidelines for determining salaries, benefits, and raises; ensuring adherence to both internal and external pay equity principles; offering benefits that prioritize the long-term physical and mental well-being of staff; and fostering the professional and collective growth of our team through meaningful development opportunities.

When determining the salary range for our co-executive directorship, we conducted in-depth research into compensation trends for shared leadership roles within the nonprofit sector. This was coupled with a detailed budget analysis comparing the costs of hiring a single external executive director versus transitioning to a shared leadership model. The analysis revealed that co-leadership not only aligned with our innovative vision but also offered substantial financial benefits, resulting in cost savings of no less than $115,000 annually—savings that continue into successive years while supporting a more collaborative and equitable leadership structure.

Can you please provide an updated dashboard
Our updated dashboard for 2024 is best accessed HERE.

In 2024, BLT continues to build on its mission through diverse programming, including Photo Booths, Edit-a-thons, BLT Live conversations with artists on Instagram, and monthly online office hours.

Our Wiki programs feature expanded work with Regional Proxies in Ghana, Botswana, and Nigeria. These regional leaders play a critical role in addressing the knowledge gap around Black artists and cultural workers on Wikipedia. By hosting events such as Wikipedia edit-a-thons, pop-up photo studios, and contests, Regional Proxies foster local editorship and amplify cultural representation in their communities. For an example of this impactful work, see our collaboration with Tochi Precious during [History Month in Nigeria].

At BLT, we recognize that solving the knowledge gap on Wiki cannot rely on editing alone. The systemic lack of quality, citable sources about Black artists and creative workers remains a significant barrier to creating comprehensive Wikipedia pages. To address this, BLT’s collaboration with Sixty Inches From Center,Crowdsourcing The Canon, empowers emerging Black art critics and writers to produce critical essays on Black artists, with a particular focus on contemporary exhibitions. This initiative directly addresses the underrepresentation of Black artists in art criticism and general publishing, while simultaneously bridging the citation gap on Wikipedia. By increasing the quantity and quality of citations available, we make it possible to document the careers of notable Black artists and meet Wikipedia’s notability standards.

Once these essays are published, BLT can host edit-a-thon events to train new community members in editing practices and update artist pages. This dual approach—developing critical discourse and fostering active editorship—reflects our commitment to sustainable, systemic change both on and beyond the platform.

Could you share more details about your upcoming strategic planning?

Since incorporating in 2019, our organization has demonstrated resilience in navigating the Movement for Black Lives, the far-reaching impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and significant leadership transitions. These experiences have underscored the urgent need for stability, adaptability, and a clear, unified vision for our future. To address this, we are undertaking a comprehensive strategic planning process—a critical step to ensure we continue to grow, remain responsive to the communities we serve, and strengthen our long-term sustainability.

This process, led by our co-executive director of Archives + Strategy, reflects our commitment to thoughtful and intentional growth. By engaging staff, stakeholders, and community partners through interviews and surveys, we are gathering diverse perspectives to inform a five-year strategic plan that is inclusive, actionable, and forward-thinking. The questions we are asking our stakeholders include:

• How do you think we currently define success for the organization, both in terms of impact and organizational growth? Is there any room for improvement?
• What are the key strengths of the organization that we should leverage more effectively?
• What are the current gaps in our programs and services, and how can we fill them to better meet the needs of the communities we engage?

This initiative is more than a routine exercise—it is a pivotal investment in our future. Through this process, we will chart a course that aligns our mission, vision, and values with the evolving needs of our community and the challenges of a dynamic external environment. By May 2025, we will have a comprehensive roadmap to guide our activities, ensuring our organization is not only resilient but thriving, with a clear focus on delivering meaningful, lasting impact. Below you will find our top five priorities as identified by leadership and the timeline that we have undertaken.

Strategic Planning Goals and Context

1. Addressing Organizational Challenges or Crises
   1. Reason: To guide the organization through periods of change, crisis, or transition. A strategic plan equips the organization to navigate uncertainty, restructure effectively, and overcome challenges.
   2. Context: BLT has faced various challenges since its incorporation, and the current external environment presents new complexities that we must address to sustain and grow the organization.

1. Clarifying Organizational Vision and Mission
   1. Reason: To ensure the organization’s mission, values, and long-term vision are clearly defined and aligned with its activities. A strategic plan helps re-examine and refine these foundational elements to center all efforts around a unified purpose.
   2. Context: As BLT transitions from a longstanding artist project to a fully realized arts organization, with founders no longer involved in daily operations, it is essential to update and clarify the mission and vision. This will ensure they reflect the organization’s history, future aspirations, and the needs of the communities it serves.

1. Enhancing Fundraising and Financial Sustainability
   1. Reason: To increase fundraising efforts and strengthen financial stability. A strategic plan identifies funding priorities and creates a compelling case for support, helping to secure a diverse and sustainable financial base.
   2. Context: BLT seeks to establish a financial future that extends beyond reliance on grant cycles. This includes crafting a long-term plan to showcase the organization’s impact and viability while diversifying major donors and grantmakers.

1. Attracting and Engaging Stakeholders
   1. Reason: To strengthen relationships with key stakeholders, including board members, staff, donors, volunteers, and the communities served. A strategic plan serves as a unifying tool to align stakeholders around shared goals and inspire greater engagement.
   2. Context: BLT’s strategic planning process is focused on fostering deeper connections with donors and audiences by setting clear, measurable goals that enhance impact and sustainability.

1. Improving Organizational Performance and setting long term goals
   1. Reason: To enhance operational efficiency and effectiveness by identifying areas for improvement, such as streamlining processes, building staff capacity, and upgrading infrastructure.
   2. Context: BLT has reached its most stable and accomplished phase yet. To sustain this momentum, we aim to address any internal inefficiencies or resource gaps that could limit our ability to deliver on our mission.

Other goals that we are considering in our strategic planning process in addition to our five top priorities:

• Aligning Programs and Services with Community Needs
• Building Public Awareness and Advocacy
• Enhancing Communication and Transparency
• Fostering Collaboration and Partnerships
• Guiding Board and Staff Decision-Making
• Measuring Impact and Outcomes
• Responding to Changes in the External Environment

Strategic Planning Timeline

Phase 1: Preparation and Assessment

November 2024: Define Objectives

Deliverable Draft a clear statement of objectives for the strategic plan.

Activities Meet with key stakeholders to gather input on goals.

December 2024: Conduct Stakeholder Assessment

Deliverable Stakeholder mapping document.

Activities Identify and engage with artists, community members, board members, and donors for insights.

Phase 2: Research and Analysis

December 2024: Data Collection

Deliverable Data collection plan.

Activities Gather quantitative and qualitative data related to Black artists, audience engagement, wiki demographics, and archival practices.

December 2024: SOAR Analysis

Deliverable SOAR analysis report.

Activities Analyze strengths, opportunities, aspirations, and results based on collected data.

Phase 3: Visioning and Strategy Development

January 2025: Visioning Session

Deliverable Vision statement draft

Activities Facilitate a workshop with stakeholders to co-create a vision for the organization.

January 2025: Strategy Development

Deliverable Draft strategic goals and objectives.

Activities Outline specific strategies to achieve the vision based on the SOAR analysis and workshop insights.

Phase 4: Drafting the Strategic Plan

February 2025: Draft the Strategic Plan

Deliverable First draft of the strategic plan.

Activities Compile all components (vision, goals, strategies) into a coherent document.

March 2025: Review and Feedback

Deliverable Feedback summary.

Activities Share the draft with stakeholders for input and revise based on feedback.

Phase 5: Finalization

March 2025: Final Revisions

Deliverable Final strategic plan draft.

April 2025: Approval Process

Deliverable Approval from the board.

Phase 6: Implementation Planning and Communication

May 2025:Implementation Plan

Deliverable Implementation plan.

May 2025: Launch and Communication

Deliverable Communication strategy and launch (if decided).

General Support Fund proposal approved in the amount of 289,000 USD

@Raggachampiongirl: Congratulations! Your General Support Fund proposal is partially funded in the amount of 289,000 USD with a grant term starting 1 January 2025 and ending 31 December 2025

The committee is pleased to continue support Black Lunch Table’s continued programs that make improvements in the way Wikimedia projects represent Black artists, and more generally encourage the participation of Black communities in Wikimedia projects, both of which continue to be important needs with respect to movement strategy principles that emphasize the need to proactively engage and support marginalized and underrepresented communities in our movement for open knowledge. The committee BLT has been successful at sustaining some of its annual events and partnerships for multiple years now (such as with the PACE Gallery) while also exploring newer ones. We also want to acknowledge that while the notion of co-executive directorships in an affiliate context is uncommon, this leadership structure appears to be a supportive approach for your organization’s needs and values overall. Finally, Black Lunch Table has excelled at supporting its budget with external funding sources over the last three years, which demonstrates your organization’s prioritization towards sustainable growth.

The committee did not support full funding for a few reasons:

• The proposal does not describe concrete activities for Regional Proxies, nor specific expectations or expected outcomes from their work. While we understand there is an intention for these contractors to bring awareness around known gaps in Wikimedia projects, and to encourage communities to improve them, it is not clear to the community how this work would be done, or if past work has been especially effective. The evaluation plan and metrics also do not offer specific information that would illustrate the impact Regional Proxies have.
• The evaluation plan for the proposal is minimal for a proposal of this scope, and the kinds of impact that will be reported on feels limited. The proposal does not offer participation metrics, so it is not clear to what extent Black Lunch Table is attracting general participation to its events and programs. While participation metrics are by no means the only way to measure impact, no other metrics were offered outside of some aspects of on-wiki content improvements. The committee would like to see some participation metrics offered in the current proposal, and for BLT’s next proposal, a much broader set of evaluation practices in Black Lunch Table’s next proposal that map clearly onto its strategic goals that come out of its strategic planning process. If supportive, I (your program officer) can offer suggest and ideas for metrics and evaluation based on other affiliate practices and potential strategies BLT will pursue in the future.

We look forward to Black Lunch Table’s contributions and achievements over the next year. On behalf of the Regional Committee, I JethroBT (WMF) (talk) 07:09, 12 December 2024 (UTC)

We appreciate the recognition of our leadership structure and the committee's openness to accommodating unconventional user groups. A community is enriched by diverse approaches, and we are grateful to be part of one that values these differences.

While we acknowledge the feedback about our unique structure, we'd also like to note that Wikipedia is an integral component of a broader effort and part of why our organization looks as it does. Our work spans practices of archiving, community building, and artist engagement, all aimed at fostering a more comprehensive understanding of cultural history. In this context, we're excited to share updates on our Wikidata initiatives tied to the launch of our online archive in 2025. This archive houses over 250 hours of artist and community conversations, capturing authentic exchanges between artists of color and the communities where they work. Projects like ours support a vast network of insights that align directly with the movement strategy's goal of knowledge as a service and knowledge equity.

Looking ahead, BLT will work to better articulate our connections with regional proxies in future reports and proposals. Our work involves not only narrowing a knowledge gap but also acknowledging the complexities of diaspora experiences that have contributed to its creation. By cultivating year-over-year connections with other Wikimedians committed to this work, especially on the continent, we hope to expand both the editor base and approaches to narrowing knowledge gaps.

We also recognize the importance of formalizing our efforts and outcomes related to Wikipedia. In this spirit, we will engage with our program officer, (you!), to discuss evaluation expectations and ensure our existing practices— publishing an annual report and sharing strategic planning outcomes—are more effectively integrated into proposals and reports.

BLT remains deeply committed to this community's shared goals and look forward to working together to advance the Wikipedia platform and movement in meaningful ways. Thank you for this affirmation of our work and mission. Raggachampiongirl (talk) 19:41, 14 January 2025 (UTC)