Partnering for Equity San Bernardino: Reimagining Education & Justice

The Inland Empire Funders Alliance is excited to announce Partnering for Equity: San Bernardino County — Reimagining Education and Justice.

This is the first in a series of two-day immersive co-learning experiences for grantmakers and leaders in the philanthropic, corporate, and public sectors.

The program offers the opportunity to experience firsthand the operating conditions and real stories on the ground in disinvested and marginalized communities — and the opportunities to partner with community-based nonprofits for greater impact through increased strategic investment and action.

Reimagining Education and Justice:

Restorative, redemptive, and responsive community-driven solutions

This learning tour will highlight critical issues facing San Bernardino County and the entire Inland Empire by engaging funders in an immersive co-learning experience with community leaders and public partners.

Day 1: Education Justice

Join us for a transformative exploration of education justice in the Inland Empire, centering on the voices and experiences of young people. This tour aims to shift the narrative, allowing youth to lead the conversation about what matters most and what they envision for their education and future. We will delve into the disparities within institutional schooling systems, examining how they are rooted in white supremacy and the need for culturally rooted education and youth development work. We will explore opportunities for partnership and impact, including:

Community-based education and healing, recognizing that institutions alone cannot provide all the necessary resources.

Mental health support for young people, and the critical role of nonprofit organizations in filling gaps and providing essential services in schools.

The Black Education Agenda, highlighting efforts of young organizers dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline and giving meaning to San Bernardino County's groundbreaking declaration of racism as a public health emergency.

Day 2: Justice Reinvestment

After a day of delving deeper into understanding the education justice landscape in San Bernardino, day 2 of the learning tour will take participants further down the school-to-prison-to-deportation pipeline. Grounded in the under-resourced but vibrant High Desert region, we will explore the ways in which the criminal legal and immigration systems impact communities across the county and efforts to dismantle carceral systems, heal from their impacts, and build new alternatives. This will address:

Historical and current harms the criminal legal and immigration systems have had on BIPOC communities through over policing, overcriminalizing and overpunishing.

Community-based solutions and alternatives to systems of punishment, including the work of juvenile justice and immigrant justice partners reframing narratives around public safety.

The immigrant justice movement addressing systems of "crimmigration" by advocating for the closure of the Adelanto ICE Detention Center and imagining more inclusive alternative models of community development.

The two sessions in the series will each focus on distinct countywide topics, grounded in the context of specific communities and subregions. Please note, this registration link only secures your spot for part 1.

Part 1: April 11-12: Reimagining Education & Justice: Restorative, Redemptive & Responsive Community-Driven Solutions — Focusing on the West End and High Desert Communities

Part 2: June 26-27: Inclusive Community Development and Health Systems in Indigenous Communities, focusing on the City of San Bernardino and the Morongo Basin

What you will receive

Over the course of each two-day overnight learning visit, you will have the opportunity to:

• Foster meaningful relationships with community leaders, cultural workers, and experts who are working and advocating for constructive change on these topics.
• Deepen your understanding your role as a funder or public leader, building trust and empathy to shift power relationships and activate more equitable philanthropic practices.

• Learn about your peers’ funding priorities and activities, enabling you to better coordinate your grantmaking for deeper and broader impact.
• Reduce the burden on community partners by participating in a shared learning experience alongside other funders.

About San Bernardino County and the Inland Empire

Southern California’s Inland Empire region comprise San Bernardino and Riverside counties, one of the fastest-growing population centers in the United States. Located 40 miles east of Los Angeles, the IE is rich in diversity, culture, history and economic opportunity. It is also home to innovative, resourceful, mission-driven nonprofit organizations working in partnership to transform lives, communities and the region as a whole.

San Bernardino County is the largest county in the United States and home to 2.2 million people. This vast and varied area serves as a microcosm and bellwether for the IE and the future of California as a whole.