Maryland Philanthropy Network’s (MPN) School-Centered Neighborhood Investment Initiative (SCNII) funded a research team to conduct an initial analysis that sought to document the 21CSBP’s implementation process, understand the complex relationships among responsible agencies, and explore the implementation and emerging outcomes of the program in three neighborhoods. Their recent report attempts to answer the question what is – and what should be – the role of a “community school?"

The philanthropic sector is an ecosystem: a web of interdependent actors, infinitely variable, striving constantly to build something greater than the sum of its parts. Philanthropy is also getting organized and reorganized. Funding collaboratives, unionized labor, new governance structures — individual actors are making moves, coming together to cause change on a broader scale. As ideas and methods gain attention, they introduce yet more dynamism to the environment. Today, we see this push-pull at work. In 2023 and beyond, we’ll see how it plays out. Check out the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy's 11 Trends in Philanthropy for 2023 Report to help you anticipate and embrace what’s next.