This is Third Wave Foundation’s second year of gender justice grantmaking and this docket represents the embodiment of our movement building funding that supports youth-led organizing across multiple issues.

Since its founding, Third Wave has invested more than 3 million dollars in over 180 organizations.  In 2012, thanks to your generosity, we were able to provide grants to 14 organizations that reach and connect with over 22,000 individuals across the country.

It is with the support and commitment of our donor community that we were able to provide our grant partners with the necessary resources to continue to build stronger social justice movements inclusive of gender, racial and economic justice.

Download it:  2012 Gender Justice Grant Docket

The Board of the Third Wave Foundation is pleased to announce that Rosalba Messina has been named Interim Executive Director, effective September 1, 2012.

Messina is Principal and Founder of Messina Consulting Group, LLC, a management consulting firm that assists national and international non-profit organizations in fulfilling their mission by improving human and organizational capacity. Messina’s firm specializes in change management and human capital development, and their services include comprehensive organizational assessments, leadership transitions, and board and staff development.  Messina’s clients have included social service, advocacy and philanthropic organizations such as The Center for Constitutional Rights, The Funding Exchange, and Women In Need.  In her roles as CEO, COO and consultant, Messina has successfully addressed the needs of organizations going through an executive transition.

“As Third Wave prepares for an important transition, we are delighted to have Rosalba Messina join us as interim Executive Director.  Messina brings more than 25 years of experience as an effective transformational leader, manager and coach to the new position.  She is Principal and Founder of Messina Consulting Group – a management consulting firm that provides organizational assessments, leadership transitions, and board and staff development. Messina has extensive experience developing working partnerships among board, staff, community members, NGOs, government agencies and donors worldwide and successfully addressing the needs of organizations going through an executive transition. Her skills and experience will undoubtedly help us to move forward seamlessly,” said Mia Kim Sullivan, the co-chair of Third Wave’s board of directors.

Before launching her own consulting firm, Messina held executive-level positions for numerous nonprofit organizations and corporations. Her leadership in the LGBT community has been instrumental in facilitating educational programs on breast cancer and HIV/AIDS and securing funding for those programs. Professionally and personally, she has made a life-long commitment to advance reproductive justice and lesbian, gay and transgender rights. “Third Wave is an important organization with a rich history of supporting young feminist activists and movement building. I’m absolutely honored to provide my skills, knowledge, and experience during this time of change,” Messina said.

Ms. Messina will replace Mia Herndon, who led Third Wave’s successful programmatic and financial growth from 2009 until August 2012.

Third Wave Foundation is a feminist, activist foundation that works nationally to support the vision and voices of young women, transgender and gender nonconforming youth ages 15 to 30. Third Wave’s purpose is to support and strengthen these young activists and their allies who work for gender, racial, social, and economic justice.

For more information please contact:
Terry Ferreira
212-228-8311

For more information on how to be a part of the dialogue surrounding sex education, click HERE

Interim Executive Director

Rosalba M. Messina is the Interim Executive Director of Third Wave Foundation. Principal and Founder of MCG, Messina has more than 25 years experience as an effective transformational leader, manager and coach. Messina has successfully led organizations to effect positive change by creating accountability in a collaborative, inclusive, trusting and creative work environment. She is experienced in developing working partnerships among board, staff, community members, NGOs, government agencies and donors worldwide. With each assignment, her goal is to increase the effectiveness of individuals and organizations – leading to greater institutional power and impact in the world.

Prior to launching her own consulting practice, Messina held executive level positions for various organizations in both non-profit and corporate environments. She is an affiliate consultant for the Support Center for Non Profit Management and Adelphi University’s Center for Non Profit Leadership. She is a current member of Citigroup’s Women and Company and the Society for Human Resource Management and a past member of the National Advisory Council for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Messina is a guest lecturer and conducts workshop trainings on various topics in management.

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.

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

Rye Young is Third Wave Foundation’s Interim Program Officer. He joined Third Wave as an intern running their Emergency Abortion Fund right after he graduated from Bard College. At Bard, Rye became interested in social justice work, but knew little about philanthropy and thought he would be an organizer for life.

Third Wave Foundation opened his eyes to the world of social justice philanthropy and its efforts to transform the conditions of inequity. In his role as Program Officer, Rye is interested in building the capacity, visibility, and strength of organizations that serve their communities by creating opportunities to lead social change efforts.

In addition to working at Third Wave, Rye is a trainer and mentor with Flip the Table: Youth Food Council – an organization dedicated to building the leadership of young food justice activists in New York City. He is also an organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice working on their Shalom Bayit domestic worker justice campaign.

Caterina Gironda is excited to join the Third Wave family this autumn as a Program Intern. A lifelong feminist, poet and activist, and a proud CUNY student, Cat received her undergraduate degree in Women’s Studies from Brooklyn College. She is currently pursuing her Master’s in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality at the CUNY Graduate Center in their Liberal Studies program. Her thesis explores the social construction of monogamy and the impact this may have on cultural relationships towards sex and sexuality. Cat passionately supports The Third Wave Foundation’s work blending philanthropy and activism, and believes their gender justice framework makes leaps forward towards a truly intersectional approach to activism.

Jenn is excited to join the Third Wave Foundation as the External Relations Intern because of her interest in issues of race and gender. She has also worked as Membership Co-chair for Women In Film and Media Pittsburgh and as a Development and Membership intern with WQED. She received a BA in Communications and Cultural Studies from Chatham University in 2012 and is currently pursuing an MA in Media Studies at The New School for Public Engagement. Her interests lie specifically in the ways that stereotypes function in the media to create certain narratives that are blindly consumed and continually reproduced. She strongly advocates media literacy. Jenn looks forward to bringing her skills to Third Wave and learning many more along the way.

The F.I.R.E. Award was presented by the New Mexico Education Equity Alliance (NMEEA), a collective of youth, community members, educators, and allies that believes that every child has a right to a high quality, equitably funded, public education. Similar to MLP, NMEEA supports campaigns to get more voices of educators, students, and community into the public discussion of school policies. MLP recently participated  in an initiative with Families United for Education to give families more say in the Albuquerque Public Schools Family.