capacity building

CACF builds the capacity of organizations to better serve Asian Pacific American children, youth and families.

2010 capacity building project

CACF was recently awarded a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human services through the Compassion Capital Fund Demonstration Program.

This project aims to increase the capacity of Asian led and serving organizations in New York City. As 1 of the 35 grantees nationally, CACF will provide training and will regrant $280,000 oranizations to build their capacity around the following areas: Leadership Development, Organizational Development, Program Development and Community Engagement.

Throughout 2010 CACF will be hosting a series of FREE capacity building workshops and will be hosting the Inaugural Asian Pacific American Children and Families Conference in New York City in September of 2010.

Through this capacity building project, CACF hopes organizations will be able to:

Increase effectiveness & sustainability
Enhance organizational ability to provide better services
Diversify funding sources for your organization
Create collaborations to better serve vulnerable communities

By building the capacity of Asian led and serving organizations, we can become better advocates and together we can strengthen our coaltion and bring about systsemic change for our community.

Please view our Capacity Building Project FAQ's.

Please click here for important dates regarding the capacity building project.

Project PACT (Promoting Assets and Capacity Together)

Because of the limited resources for Asian Pacific American organizations and the increasing demand for their services, CACF is collaborating with Filipino American Human Services Inc (FAHSI), Korean American Family Service Center (KAFSC), South Asian Youth Action (SAYA!) and The Sikh Coalition to improve our capacity to serve youth and families. In 2006, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a three-year, $750,000 grant to launch Project PACT. By focusing on capacity building, these Asian Pacific American organizations acquired and maintained more resources, skills, strategic plans and networks. As the three-year grant ended, CACF started Phase II of Project PACT through Americorps*VISTA, a national service program designed specifically to fight poverty. Partners in Project PACT have received ten Americorps VISTA members and one VISTA leader to create, strengthen and expand programs designed to bring individuals and communities out of poverty. You can learn more about each of the Americorps VISTA members below.

COALITION FOR ASIAN AMERICAN CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

Kim (KJ) Jackson
Americorps* VISTA Leader
Click here for KJ's biography

FILIPINO AMERICAN HUMAN SERVICES, INC. (FAHSI)

KOREAN AMERICAN FAMILY SERVICE CENTER (KAFSC)

Angel Lin
Development Associate

Angel Lin joined the KAFSC as an Americorps*VISTA development associate in September 2009. In her time at the KAFSC, Ms. Lin has organized a benefit concert for the center that attracted over 350 guests and assisted the development coordinator in a recent benefit golf tournament that raised over $12,000. In addition to fundraising, Angel will be responsible for the monthly newsletters, and maintaining social networks. Angel graduated in 2009 from the Curtis Institute of Music with a BA in harp performance. She still practices regularly.

Anna E. Mathewes
Program Associate

Anna joined the KAFSC in August 2009 as an Americorps*VISTA. As the program associate, she is helping to increase program participation in the Unni-Hyung Mentoring Program, reviewing policies to improve the goals and objectives for both mentors and mentees. She is also responsible for creating and initiating ESL classes for the surrounding Korean American community, highlighting proficiency in grammar, reading, writing, and speaking English. She works directly with the Youth Counselor to develop more structured evaluation tools and effectiveness of KAFSC’s programs to improve social and life skills, leadership, and self confidence of participants. Her overall goal in the year of service to KAFSC is to enhance the program curricula and strive to end poverty for the years to come, helping to ensure Asian Pacific Americans equality and success at home, in the work place, and in the community. Anna is originally from Charleston, South Carolina, and attended North Carolina’s Public Liberal Arts University at UNC Asheville, graduating with a BS in Political Science.

THE SIKH COALITION

Janice Lee
Program Associate

Janice joined The Sikh Coalition as an AmeriCorps*VISTA member in August 2009 and will be serving until August 2010. She assists the Development Director with maintaining relations with donors and supporters, overseeing communications tasks and other development efforts. She is also responsible for updating the Sikh Coalition’s website and taking a prominent role in planning fundraising events. During her undergraduate years, Janice helped to raise mental health awareness within the Asian and Asian American communities, and got involved in theater. She also served as a Co-Facilitator for Intergroup Dialogue, an on-campus group dedicated to creating safe spaces for students to engage in dialogue on social justice issues. Some of Janice’s interests include attending performances in the arts as well as using writing/playwriting as a way of expressing her overall concerns with social justice and humanity at large. Janice earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Mount Holyoke College in English, with a minor in Theatre Arts and is currently applying to graduate school for Fall 2010.

SOUTH ASIAN YOUTH ACTION (SAYA!)

Arshbir Ghuman
Program Associate

Arshbir joined SAYA! as an AmeriCorps*VISTA member in August 2009. As part of the overall VISTA mission of eradicating poverty through capacity-building, she currently works as the program associate. Arshbir is responsible for improving program curriculum, increasing program participation, evaluating program effectiveness, and updating and managing the volunteer process. She also helps plan youth-oriented events and supports policy coordinating efforts. Additionally, she recently organized a very successful city council candidate’s forum in District 25, which includes parts of Corona, Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, Rego Park and Woodside, for the South Asian community. Prior to joining SAYA! as a VISTA member, Arshbir worked in the legal recruiting department at a New York City law firm while pursuing her studies at NYU. Arshbir holds a BA and an MA from New York University in Politics and International Relations.

Asim Khan
Development Associate

Asim joined SAYA! as an AmeriCorps*VISTA member in July 2009. As a development associate, Asim duties include grant writing, event planning, donor cultivation, tracking income sources, and intern management. As part of VISTA’s mission to improve capacity building at community-based organizations, Asim has taken the lead in managing SAYA! contacts database, and is continually finding ways to make the grant research and writing process more efficient. Asim wrote a successful proposal to the Department of Youth and Community Development, and was recently an organizer for a voter education project and city council candidates forum for the South Asian community. Prior to joining SAYA!, Asim was a contract attorney at various law firms. Asim holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and a JD from Rutgers University-Newark School of Law. Asim enjoys studying music and playing guitar as a hobby.