Application Deadline Friday, September 1 @ 11:59pm EST
Become the white* anti-racist leader your organization and communities need.
Just Roots is proud to present our unique 8-week intensive cohort program specifically designed for white* (bodied or passing) non-profit leaders. We'll prepare you to overcome the challenges of dismantling white supremacy culture in your organization, and welcome you into a growing community of peers committed to transformative anti-racist leadership and accountability in the sector.
2024 COHORT
Open to white* (bodied/passing) non-profit legal services executive directors
January 8 - March 1, 20234
Application Deadline Friday, September 1 @ 11:59pm EST
Who needs this program?
All white people in the U.S. are conditioned into a mindset, embodiment, and culture of white supremacy.
As a white* (bodied or passing) non-profit executive, you have no shortage of ambition and compassion. But you're tired of spinning your wheels alone. You long to roll with highs and lows of working toward race equity with grace and humility. And most importantly, you're ready to belong to a community of people who are just as committed as you are to embodying actionable and accountable anti-racism.
Our past cohort participants have included:
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Seasoned executive directors who served their organizations for decades, shepherded a lot of change over the years, and know that more work must be done to make it more racially equitable
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Newer executives who value DEI and race equity in theory, but aren't sure sure how to lead on these issues equitably and yearn for mentorship and support
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Directors with strong anti-racist values and principles who need guidance about where to start and how to keep up a sustained, accountable effort
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Leaders who need support letting go of perfectionism and overcoming fear of failure and ridicule to become confident in their anti-racism work.
If this sounds like you, keep reading. Below we tell you exactly how Beyond Good gives you the tools, inspiration, and unparalleled support on your journey to becoming the white anti-racist leader your organization and communities need.
* White includes people of European descent and/or those who are biracial and experience privilege as a result of perceived whiteness.
Why a Program for White* Executives and Directors?
For years we have worked with non-profit organizations along their anti-racism journeys. Time and time again, white* organizational leaders wish for space created especially for them to be open and vulnerable, express their fears, own mistakes, and openly imagine what this work must look like for them. We heard you, and we made this course just for you.
Beyond Good offers historical grounding in white supremacy and racial capitalism, as well as opportunities for critical self-reflection, racial identity embodiment, development of practical anti-racist leadership skills, and commitment to building radical accountability relationships.
Built Just for You
We have designed this course based on years of experience serving white dominant non-profit organizations and on the wisdom of anti-racism thought leaders.
Beyond Good is...
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Entirely virtual using Zoom and other e-learning platforms to make it accessible to anyone, anywhere
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Live with real-time class sessions, guest lectures, and recitations (live Q+A sessions)
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Intimate with a max of 12 participants
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Experiential with focus on paired and small group exercises and somatic reflection and embodiment
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Practical with emphasis on application of anti-racist principles within your own life, and at your organization by extension
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Our Unique Curriculum
Each week focuses on specific themes that incorporate:
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An historically based reflection on white supremacy and participants' white racial identity (e.g., history of US settler colonialism and racial capitalism, the non-profit industrial complex, white dominant culture norms and fears, anti-racist white leadership, leveraging positional power, and transformative accountability)
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A core competency of white anti-racist leadership (e.g., humility, curiosity + acceptance, abundance + nurturance, resilience + tolerance, racial embodiment, integrity, trustworthiness, and accountability), and
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Application to executive leadership in non-profits especially (e.g., preparing for an organizational shift, white anti-racist organizing, personnel matters, transparency + accountability, dispute resolution, redefining + measuring success)
introducing our Inaugural
BIPOC Advisory Circle
We believe that white people have an essential role to play in the work of dismantling white supremacy and creating space for something new to emerge in its place. To do this, white people must follow leadership of Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) in movements toward our collective liberation. We can and must learn from BIPOC leaders and ourselves and each other as white people. In creating this intensive anti-racism program by and for white people, we sought counsel, guidance, and accountability from women of color who are visionaries in this work. These incredible people agreed to serve as our BIPOC Advisory Circle for the first cohorts of this program, and we owe them deep thanks for pushing us to make it what it is today.
ada shen-jaffe (she/her)
Lead faculty, JustLead Washington’s Leadership Academy, former ED of Columbia Legal Services;
equity and justice organizational leader, teacher, trainer, and coach
Kimberly Jones Merchant (she/her)
Former Director, Racial Justice Institute & Network, Shriver’s Center on Poverty Law
Elizabeth Nicolas (she/her)
CEO, Black Amethyst, LLC
Consultant, coach, anti-racism trainer,
yoga instructor, and attorney
Tanya Douglas (she/her)
Director of Disability Advocacy Project, Manhattan Legal Services; diversity equity and inclusion consultant for public interest programs
Whitney Knox Lee (she/her)
Civil rights attorney and anti-racist consultant; creator of the Impostrix Podcast
Cost + Value
$5,000 per student
price may vary for future cohorts
You'll receive:
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30+ hours of live instruction from expert faculty ($15,000 value)
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12-months access to our online course Fostering Equity for yourself ($100 value), plus an exclusive 25% off discount if you purchase it for your whole organization (savings starting at $625 for 100+ employees)
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A customized Welcome Box mailed to you, including books, a journal, and other materials you will need for the course ($200 value)
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Two (2) executive coaching check-ins ($600 value)
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Exclusive discounts on other Just Roots programs and services
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Practical skills you can use immediately and accountabilibuddies you can depend on for a lifetime
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Membership to a growing cadre (specially trained community) of other white* organizational leaders committed to anti-racism
Our Expectations of Participants
Energy Commitment
In addition to the time commitment outlined below, we expect participants to be fully energetically and emotionally present for this cohort. We know you are busy and have a lot on your mind -- you wouldn't be an effective leader if you that wasn't true. And, we also know that whiteness compels white* people to consider anti-racism work as voluntary, charitable, or an undertaking to attempt only once the luxury of "enough" time and resources are available to devote to it.
We ask you to resist this narrative, to approach this work as critically necessary to our collective liberation and survival, and as equally worthy of your energy as anything else on your plate. We guarantee that everyone in the cohort will benefit from our collective intentional channeling of energy.
Time Commitment
To get the most out of this course, we expect all students to commit an average of 7-9 hours per week (~40 hours total), as well as completion of all prerequisites. Here's the breakdown:
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Prerequisites:
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Complete our self-paced online course Fostering Equity (intro to implicit bias, microaggressions, intersectionality, and interrupting bias in the workplace)
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Read excerpts from two books on white supremacy and anti-racism
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Complete our Anti-Racism Self-Assessment Tool
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Attendance at all live sessions (4-6 hrs / week)
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Completion of all assigned homework (2-3 hrs/week)
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Maintain a journal throughout the course (1 hr/week)
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Active participation in all class exercises and discussions, including somatic reflection practice
Testimonials
from previous cohort participants
Erin Lovell
Executive Director
Legal Counsel for Youth & Children
You're not going to get a list, but don't worry. You're going to be uncomfortable, and that's a good thing. This program - if you invest your time and energy - will put you in a better position to act in furtherance of your commitment to anti-racism.
This is an ongoing journey, welcome!"
Nikole Nelson
Executive Director
Alaska Legal Services Corp.
As a white person who has spent her entire legal career in legal aid and who is now in a leadership position, I have spent a great deal of time over the last few years wondering where I belong and how best to use my access to privilege and power in the fight for racial equity specifically as it applies to the delivery of legal aid. This cohort experience, gave me the opportunity to explore that very issue with others who are similarly situated with the helpful guidance of an all star team of highly experienced anti-racist coaches. It is transformative and well worth the time and expense. If you are on the fence, just do it! You won't regret it."
Dennis Kaufman
Executive Director
Legal Services of Central New York
For civil legal services organizations, especially those historically white majority, white-led, and white dominant, committing to do the work to dismantle the systems within and without is a daunting challenge. Our organizations are in various points along the spectrum of moving to race equity. The role of the leader in the journey is demanding. Beyond Good creates a space where leaders can learn from and support each other while facing the process of real organizational change."
Why Choose Just Roots?
Personal. Engaging. Dynamic. Inspiring.
Just Roots Consulting, LLC is a Certified LGBT Business Enterprise that helps organizations be industry leaders in workplace equity, inclusion, and diversity.
As a social enterprise, we proudly boast a triple bottom-line:
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We are a for-profit enterprise that pays all our consultants and contributors competitive and above-market rates for their expertise and emotional labor.
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We are committed to preserving natural resources, reducing our carbon footprint, and supporting like-minded businesses in our choice of vendors and contractors.
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We dedicate a portion of our profits (including 30% of profits from this program!) to support leadership and entrepreneurship for LGBTQ+ communities of color.
Our expert team of consultants and facilitators is hand-picked for each project and program, always including LGBTQ+ people, people of color, and/or people with disabilities. We are committed to modeling radical transparency and accountability in our policies and practices -- something we ask our students to do, too.
Our Influence
We are incredibly proud to have worked with over 30 organizations since 2018, offering transformative services from training to comprehensive consulting. Here are a few.
