Anchor Institution Community Partnerships
Home > Initiatives > Anchor Institution Community Partnerships
Newark Anchor Collaborative (NAC)
Marga Incorporated has been serving as a learning partner to the Newark Anchor Collaborative (NAC), an initiative of the Newark Alliance. NAC is a community of practice among local anchor institutions representing different fields and industries, working to expand and enhance community and economic development equitably and inclusively in Newark. Marga has helped NAC develop its’s programming and structure and has conducted focus groups and engaged in discussions to inform NAC’s strategic plan around racial equity.
Read the case study titled Newark Anchor Collaborative: Promoting Racial Equity and Equitable Growth to learn more about NAC.
Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg
Marga Incorporated is working with the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg to explore the development of an anchor institution partnership that would significantly engage local anchor institutions in closing the racial equity gap and influence social indicators such as wealth, health, and life expectancy in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Local Strategic Dialogues
Through AITF Marga Incorporated has employed a local strategic dialogue approach to help anchor institutions across sectors clarify strategies to intervene on particular local issues of concern. For example, Marga worked with anchor institutions in San Diego to begin a dialogue on the availability of moderate-income housing.
AITF Anchor Partnerships Database
Anchor institutions are uniquely positioned to address local challenges and opportunities through strategic cooperation. The field of anchor work continues to evolve from early efforts by individual institutions to incorporate a mission of place-based work to an increasing number of sustained, mutually transformative partnerships between multiple anchor institutions. These include organizations from various sectors seeking to leverage their resources to support their local communities.
The advancement of democratic anchor partnerships aligns with AITF’s strategic priorities. As a facilitator to anchor collaboration, AITF is conducting research to identify anchor partnerships, taking note of their location, partners involved, core programming as well as other key information. AITF has compiled this data to create the Anchor Partnerships Database, the preeminent source of data on anchor partnerships. This initiative represents the latest AITF effort to expand knowledge of and among anchor partnerships, while providing new opportunities for practitioners to connect with one another.