Friends,

I am pleased to join the Access Strategies Fund as the new Executive Director. It has been my long-standing passion to work in settings where I can bring leadership and ideas to a movement committed to building the civic power of marginalized communities.

Growing up in New York City in a low-income neighborhood of Blacks, Latinos, and Jewish families, I experienced and witnessed the profound social impacts of poverty, racism and inequality. My mother was a single parent without adequate social and economic supports. We did not have a systemic analysis to understand that our plight was not our fault. We tried to survive each day, to get by like so many families and people in our neighborhoods, cities, and towns. 

The last thing we had on our mind was whether to vote, call our elected official, or attend a community meeting, but that was exactly what we needed to do. Systemic problems require systemic solutions. If we had combined our concerns with that of others, we could have realized that we were not alone, and fought for systemic reforms and civic accountability that would benefit our whole community.

It has been many years since I left my neighborhood in New York City, but I have never forgotten my roots and the powerful lesson that if we don’t stand up together and participate in our democracy, we are invisible. Invisible people are invisible to policymakers and that must change.

To shift power in our democracy to those most affected by poverty and inequality, I became an organizer for young students, went to law school to study civil rights, led nonprofit advocacy organizations, and consulted to social change groups around the country. And now, I have the wonderful opportunity to work in philanthropy to raise dollars and consciousness for diverse communities ready for what my family was not able to do.  

I look forward to working with the Jobin-Leeds family that started Access Strategies Fund, our board, staff, grantees, and funding partners to amplify the voices of the invisible and to offer a bold vision for civic engagement funding in this state and beyond.

It is an honor to serve the community in this role. I welcome your support, ideas, and collaboration. Our doors are open to you. Don’t forget to vote and participate in elections this year. Be visible and be counted.

Sincerely,

Kelly Bates
Executive Director

Full biography: www.accessstrategies.org/whoweare.html