Sara Joseph joined the Board of Third Wave in the spring of 2012. She is originally from the Boston area and is currently pursuing her MBA at the University of Michigan.

Sara brings to the Board years of marketing and development experience with grassroots organizations reforming media policy, documenting the effects of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, and campaigning for investment in public water infrastructure. She recently returned to the United States after two years in Central America.

Sara holds a B.A. in International Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As a Robertson Scholar, Sara completed coursework at Duke University and interned with the Feminist Women’s Health Center in Atlanta. She also led cancer screening workshops in northern Argentina and organized safer sex information sessions for students in western Kenya. As an instructor with the Women’s Health Education Consultants, she taught medical students best practices in gynecological healthcare.

Sara has volunteered with a sea turtle conservation project in Costa Rica, organized a day camp for Jewish youth in Ukraine, and bicycled across the United States as a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity. In her spare time she enjoys hiking with her dog, Dino.

A native of Oakland, California, Dana Michael King currently lives in Washington DC, where she works as a Project Specialist for the Inter-American Development Bank. Since joining the Bank in 2008, she has focused on the design and implementation of projects to improve governance and public sector capacity in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Prior to joining the Bank, Ms. King was an Associate at Shearman & Sterling LLP in New York City.

Her professional experience also includes work around environmental justice, microfinance, and community economic development with community-based organizations in Mexico, Cameroon, and the United States.

Dana holds a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University in Pan-African Studies. She speaks English, Spanish, and French.

Terry is the Third Wave Foundation’s Office Manager. She is excited to join the Third Wave because of her firm belief in the importance of the voices of marginalized communities and the power of grassroots activism to create change. Previously, she was a retail manager at Babeland, a sex-positive, feminist-owned adult store, where she honed her feminist values and leadership skills. Terry has worked extensively in the animal rights movement, and has rehabilitated animals all over the country, including those displaced by Hurricane Katrina. She is also an organizer of the New York City Dyke March and a former member of the advisory group for Have Art Will Travel, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting gender justice

Kim Ford is excited to join Third Wave as External Relations Manager.  Along with her belief that everyone is a philanthropist, she brings extensive experience working with community-based and national nonprofit organizations.  She has served as Board Chair of the Audre Lorde Project, a panel member of the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice U.S. Grants, and recently founded Kitchen Table Giving Circle: A Black/African Descent Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender & Queer Women Philanthropic Initiative.

Kim has worked with Stonewall Community Foundation on their Racial Equity Initiative and with Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues as Operations Manager. Previously she served on the board of African Ancestral Lesbians United for Societal Change as board member, board chair and first salaried Executive Director, and as the Development Officer/Event Manager at Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice.

Kim’s experience with grassroots organizations includes: NYC’s annual LGBTST Kwanzaa celebration; NYC’s first Black Pride; Arms Akimbo: NYC’s first-ever Lesbian, Bisexual, Two-Spirit and Transgender Women of Color Organizing Institute; NYC’s People of Color Pride Weekends; as well as working in coalition with Las Buenas Amigas and The Lesbian Avengers.  She has facilitated workshops; moderated and spoken at various events, panels and readings; and presented on various topics including organizing in the LGBTST POC communities, racism within LGBTST communities, women’s health and wellness, and sexuality.

Amidst intensified attacks on women’s rights this election year, Third Wave Foundation is partnering with 25 women’s funds from across the country to increase attention to the issues affecting women and girls nationwide.

With politicians openly supporting a reversal of women’s rights – from attempts to deny them access to contraception to deeming them unfit for military combat – the “Calling All Women: Send a Message of Strength” campaign is raising awareness of the inequality that exists and highlighting the change that local and national women’s funds are advancing in communities around the country.

Throughout the month of March – Women’s History Month – the campaign is using mobile-giving technology and a multi-pronged social mobilization approach to spread the message that women must unite for change. By texting WOMEN to 50555, supporters can donate $10, which will be distributed to participating women’s funds.

The campaign features a video demonstrating the impact of inequality on women’s lives. With women still earning only 77 percent of men’s pay – and disparities in access to health care and education pervasive, women continue to lag behind men in many social indicators.

Women’s funds across the U.S. work every day to make positive change by supporting women on a broad range of issues, including living-wage jobs and workplace supports for mothers. By building leadership, skills and connections, these funds also help combat the underrepresentation of women in public office and higher-earning career fields, like science and technology.

As a feminist, activist foundation that works nationally to support young women and transgender youth ages 15 to 30, Third Wave Foundation is committed to growing the women’s movement by supporting new and innovative approaches to pursuing gender, racial, social and economic justice.

For more information about the “Calling All Women: Send a Message of Strength” campaign, please visit callingallwomen2012.com.

Sonya Shields was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in Great Neck, Long Island.  She is a graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC, where she received a degree in Public Relations.  Sonya is a long-time social justice activist and seasoned development and marketing professional who has raised over $25 million to support various progressive nonprofit organizations. She is currently working as the Director of Marketing and Communications with Brooklyn Community Services.  Sonya has also worked as the Director of Development for National Advocates for Pregnant Women, Keep A Child Alive, Astraea Foundation, New York City Anti-violence Project and National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.  She has also provided consulting services for the National Black Justice Coalition, Freedom to Marry, Queers for Economic Justice, Afropop Worldwide, African Refuge and many other organizations.  Sonya is a founder of the National Black Justice Coalition; and served on the board of the organization.  She has served on the Board of Directors of the Astraea Foundation, Mautner Project, National Black Leadership Forum, Dance Institute of Washington, DC, and the HIV/AIDS Council for the Mayor’s Office of Washington, DC.  When Sonya is not working for various charities, she enjoys writing, photography, and DJing.  

Thank You! This report shows the ways everyone in our community came together to make this work possible. Because of your energy, commitment and partnership Third Wave was able to:
● Fund 23 feminist youth-led organizations that are developing leaders and organizing young people to transform their communities.
● Support the collaboration of 20 reproductive justice organizations to identify the issues that are immediate threats to the well-being of their communities, and the strategies to confront those threats.
● Provide trainings in financial planning during tough economic times to 25 organizations and blogging for social justice to five grant partner organizations.
● Give funding for emergency abortions to more than 500 young people in need across the United States and Puerto Rico.

Download the annual report here.

Part of our feminist, activist work is taking the time to celebrate our successes and share them with one another. In the spirit of the holiday season, we’re looking back at 2011 and all of the amazing accomplishments Third Wave and its grant partners have made this year.

Brown Boi Project – published the BBP Health Guide, Freeing Ourselves: A Guide to Health and Self-Love for Brown Bois, a vital tool for masculine-of-center people of color.

Chicago Abortion Fund – succeeded in removing anti-choice billboards that targeted women of color in Chicago.

Choice USA – hosted Destination 2012, a grassroots organizing and leadership development conference for young reproductive justice activists. The conference included presentations from Loretta Ross of Sistersong, Gloria Steinem, and Shelby Knox.

COLOR (Colorado Organization for Opportunity and Reproductive Justice) – held their sixth annual Latina Health Summit, educating 150 young Latinas and their families about reproductive health and justice.

Colorado Anti-Violence Project – is celebrating 25 years of envisioning queer liberation this year; their youth project, Branching Seedz, also co-organized the second Trans & Queer Youth Media Track at the Allied Media Conference this year.

Gender Just – created the Fellowship for Gender JUST Youth Leadership and Organizers, which brought four young activists together to creatively engage their communities around gender justice.

JASMYN (Jacksonville Area Sexual Minority Youth Network) – threw their fifth annual Coming Out Day Breakfast, which hosted community members, small business owners, and corporate partners dedicated to LGBTQ youth.

Justice Now – premiered the first video in their new series on the history of sterilization in prisons (check it out here).

Kalpulli Izkalli – celebrated fifteen years of holistic, natural healing with their fifth annual Anniversary Celebration and Community Healing event.

Khmer Girls in Action – launched their new Youth at the C.O.R.E. (Creating Opportunities and Resources for Empowerment) Campaign, which centers young people’s wellness in community decision-making.

Media Literacy Project – spread the word about media justice and wireless policy as LGBTQ issues at the National Conference on Media Reform.

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health – mobilized hundreds of people during their second Latina Week of Action for Reproductive Justice through a blog carnival, internet activism, and an auction.

New Voices Pittsburgh – won the 2011 YWCA Racial Justice Award for Community Engagement for their active work around reproductive justice for women of color.

Power U – held their first community forum to address the Schoolhouse to Jailhouse Pipeline and prevent the racialized incarceration of youth of color.

SPARK Reproductive Justice Now – lobbied the Georgia state legislature and defeated an anti-choice “Right to Life” bill that disproportionately targeted women of color.

St. James Infirmary – kicked off a new media campaign, raising public awareness about sex workers’ rights and fighting the stigma attached to sex work.

Sylvia Rivera Law Project – educated the public about trans* issues through their various events, including a Coffee Talk series, a Summer Health Series, and teach-ins at Occupy Wall Street.

Women with a Vision – won a victory for sex workers’ rights through a legislative action that ended the “Scarlet Letter law,” which required sex workers to register as sex offenders in Louisiana.

Young Women’s Empowerment Project – led a march through Chicago to protest the city’s treatment of homeless, homefree, and street-based youth. The march was part of a broad campaign including a self-care guide, a Street Youth Bill of Rights, and posters.

Young Women United – defeated five anti-choice bills in New Mexico that threatened the reproductive health and freedom of women and families.

Young Women of Color HIV/AIDS Coalition – celebrated seven leaders in philanthropy, the third sector, and the corporate world who are supporting leadership development and HIV prevention for young women of color.

Third Wave is proud to have been able to support the incredible activists within the organizations above do work to fight to end discrimination in their communities. We are excited to continue to uplift young feminist voices working towards gender justice  in the year ahead.

Manifesta wasn’t only my feminist “click” moment; it was also my first introduction to the Third Wave Foundation. I started checking Third Wave’s website, looking for internships, volunteer positions – anything I could find that would involve me Third Wave’s awesome activist community. After four years of keeping up with the foundation’s work, I finally had an opportunity to join this incredible team of feminists as an intern in the External Relations department. I came to Third Wave through NYU’s Social and Cultural Analysis department, which asks all of its students to spend a semester serving the community through an internship with a non-profit or government agency. When I saw Third Wave on the list of approved organizations, I knew immediately that’s where I wanted to be.

Being at Third Wave has been an amazing experience. After three years of classroom discussions about fighting gender, sexual, racial, and class oppression, I was able to see this activism in action. Every day, Third Wave’s fierce social justice crew brings these critical theories and personal lived experience together as they work with young women, transgender, and gender non-conforming activists to transform their communities. For instance, this year Third Wave grant partner Women with a Vision helped pass legislation that ended the criminalization of sex workers as sex offenders in New Orleans. This amazing victory was built on both the material realities of sex workers in Louisiana and a critical understanding of the ways race, gender, class, and sexuality interact.

Through these past three months, I have been constantly inspired by everyone at Third Wave and in the Third Wave community. As the External Relations intern, I’ve seen the various aspects of keeping Third Wave going. I learned that everything from creating a manual on how to best utilize our database to preparing our annual appeal letter is vital to sustaining this movement. I also get to manage the foundation’s Twitter and Facebook pages, which highlight all of the amazing, transformative work that the Third Wave community is doing. These social media pages are just another example of the ways Third Wave involves itself in the feminist, reproductive and gender justice world. Third Wave is part of the movement, both online and on the ground: it provides crucial support to help grant partners maximize the effects of their work, has created a network of like-minded social justice organizations nationwide, and promotes community-building through events like the Reproductive Health and Justice Network Convening.

In the context of Third Wave’s fifteen years of activism, my three month internship might seem like a blip, but the organization has made a huge impact on me. Third Wave has shown me that personal experiences, humor, and story-telling are just as important as theory; that the voices of traditionally marginalized folks matter and can make change; and that a different, more just world is possible.

Position Overview
Working under the supervision of the Executive Director, the Office Manager is responsible for managing Third Wave’s day to day financial management, human resources, and operations work. The Office Manager is also responsible for supporting other departments through database management, budget management, event planning, and scheduling support.

Essential Job Functions
Operations

• Manages and executes the administrative work of the foundation, including (but not limited to) answering phones, assisting with photocopying and large mailings, answering general email inquiries, ordering supplies, and sorting mail.
• Liaises with outside vendors to order products and services, troubleshoot when problems arise, and maintain those relationships to ensure smooth operating of office systems.
• Plans and executes logistics of quarterly board meetings and other meetings and events where administrative support is needed, including travel, lodging, food, venue, and materials.

Financial Management

• Under direction of the Executive Director, manages and executes the daily financial operations of the organization, including financial record-keeping, basic bookkeeping duties (paying bills, coding expenses and deposits, making basic entries to QuickBooks), depositing checks, and collecting receipts.
• Serves as the key liaison to the external accountant in order to ensure proper management of finances and reporting.
• Monitors the annual budget with the Executive Director and works with accountant to create budget reports.
• Coordinates the annual audit process with the Executive Director and auditors and assists with requests for financial records and information.
• Works with the Executive Director and the Finance Committee of the Board to create the annual budget.

Human Resources

• Manages administration of the 401(k) plan, health insurance, and other employee benefits.
• Tracks employee vacation, personal, and sick days.
• Assists Program and Fundraising departments with recruitment of interns.

Database Management

• Assists the External Relations Director in maintaining contact relationship management database, including data entry, clean up, and reporting.

Fundraising and Development

• As needed, provides support to the External Relations Director in institutional and individual donor communications and follow-up, including maintaining updated records in the organizational database, supporting with mailings, preparing reports, and acknowledging receipt of awards.
• Assists with event, meeting, and travel logistics for donor meetings.

Principal Relationships
Internal Contacts

• Maintains frequent contact with staff and interns in other departments in order to integrate work activities. Also maintains contact with supervisor and interns within department in order to complete work assignments and to collaborate to produce work.

Organizational Communications and External Contacts

• Develops and maintains relationships with outside vendors.
• Maintains regular contact with board members.

Requirements (Experience and Education)

• Minimum 2 years experience in administrative/operational work and financial management, including bookkeeping, budgeting, and/or financial reporting.
• 1 or more years experience with databases strongly preferred.
• Strong writing, editing, and proofreading skills preferred.
• Experience in assisting or supporting director or executive-level management preferred.
• Some experience in social justice work and/or an understanding of the youth organizing landscape nationally preferred, including experience in one or more of the following fields: gender justice, reproductive health and justice, racial justice, leadership development, LGBTQ liberation, education, labor, and safety/anti-violence.
• Strong creative, problem-solving and critical thinking skills.
• The ability to balance consideration of Third Wave’s strategic plan with detail-oriented work.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, including effective and professional verbal and written communications with a diverse range of people.
• Self-motivated and a team player. A sense of humor and a constructive outlook are a plus.
• Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook.
• Basic accounting skills and familiarity with QuickBooks a plus.

NOTE: This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive. Employee may perform other related duties as negotiated to meet the ongoing needs of the organization.

Third Wave is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applications from women, transgender and gender non-conforming individuals, people of color, queer, lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals, and people with disabilities.

Interested applicants should send a resume, cover letter, and writing sample of no more than 3 pages to tara@thirdwavefoundation.org. This position will remain open until filled; early applications are strongly encouraged.