Renew Democracy Foundation

“Anais Carmona, Winta Mengis, and Courtney Lee-Ashley work at companies where John Michael Gonzalez works as a consultant. John Michael Gonzalez has worked professionally with each of these Board Members in this capacity. Also, Kimberly Afoakwah works at a company where Mary Beth Stanton works as a consultant - Mary Beth has worked professionally with this Board Member in this capacity.”

“The Interim Executive Director oversees the initial draft of Form 990, shares with the Executive Committee (Board President and Treasurer) for feedback, then shares with the full board before filing.”

“The Board researched proper compensation for startup costs for similarly situated organizations using the GuideStar Compensation Report from September 2023 and determined $15,000 for 225 hours of work would be reasonable for work performed. The Board then unanimously passed a resolution approving the compensation, where Mr. Henson abstained due to conflict of interest.”

“No other documents available to the public.”

“The ReNew Democracy Foundation seeks to open doors for new voices from across the country who want to make a difference in pragmatic, solutions-oriented, center-left congressional offices by supporting these future leaders with educational development opportunities, mentorship and professional networking through the ReNew Democracy Fellowship, a nine-month paid fellowship in a solutions-oriented pragmatic congressional office. The Foundation seeks to support the development of future civic leaders with mentorship, education and policymaking experience so they in turn can benefit their communities. During the initial founding year, the ReNew Democracy Foundation designed the application process and recruited applicants from communities underrepresented among Congressional staff, including first-generation college graduates and first generation Americans for nine-month paid fellowships with the U.S. House of Representatives. During the initial founding year, the Foundation raised awareness of the new fellowship program and its mission among key stakeholders to set the stage for success for its initial cohort.”

“The future of our democracy and the economy it shapes depends on enacting bold policies that reflect the input and perspective of the diversity of our communities. Unfortunately, too many qualified, potential leaders are blocked by systemic barriers from ever having the chance to work in the halls of Congress. The ReNew Democracy Foundation seeks to open doors for new underrepresented voices from across the country who want to learn about democracy, Congress, pragmatic policy-making and ensuring their communities interests are heard.”

“During the Foundation's second year, we placed our inaugural cohort of fellows in five different center-left congressional offices for their nine month fellowship starting in September 2024, providing them with a detailed orientation and weekly wraparound professional development during their first two months. The Foundation also supported host offices and fellows with monthly check-ins to ensure fellows were provided with adequate duties and support to fulfill their working education and offices were provided with support to provide an enriching environment for the fellows. Throughout the course of the year, the Foundation continued providing skill-building, professional development, social opportunities, and mentorship to the fellows, including educational programming on issues of interest to them and their offices, and frequent networking opportunities to better understand and explore the center-left policymaking space. Foundation staff supported the development of each fellow's capstone project, which contributed to pragmatic policymaking, advanced the interest of the host office, and created a work product for fellows to use for continued career development. At the end of the fiscal year, we celebrated the graduation of the fellows from their offices, and are incredibly proud that three out of the five of the fellows had successfully found permanent job placement, including one in a center-left congressional office.”

“Shiso LLC 55,365”