Description

📌 Registration is separate. Each Show-Me Philanthropy Conference week program requires its own registration: the Rural pre-conference, this Policy pre-conference, and the conference itself. Registering for one does not register you for the others.

Pre-conference programs are available in person and on Zoom, and they're open to any Missouri funder, even if you can't attend conference. (Free for PhilMO Full Members and conference registrants; see Pricing.)

Join PhilMO’s Public Policy & Advocacy Funder Network for dessert and a deep dive on the current policy landscape as we continue Show-Me Philanthropy Conference week!

Federal and state policy decisions continue to shape the conditions Missouri communities live in and the organizations funders support. These include changes to SNAP and Medicaid, pressure on the state budget, and early decisions shaping the 2030 Census. Whether your focus is health care, older adults, early childhood, education, nutrition and hunger, family support, economic mobility, the environment, the arts, or housing, in rural or urban communities, these shifts likely affect your grantmaking.

This non-partisan educational briefing and discussion is designed for funders at every level of policy experience. You don’t need to be a regular participant in the Public Policy & Advocacy Funder Network to join. We'll start with a plain-language overview of the policy landscape, including an update on Census 2030 and statewide funder coordination. Then we'll explore how Missouri funders are responding and where we might work together. 

At this gathering, you will have the opportunity to: 

✅ Connect with Missouri peers navigating the same policy shifts and learn who to call with questions

✅ Gain a clear, nonpartisan picture of the policy changes reaching Missouri communities, including Census 2030

✅ Explore how policy intersects with their grantmaking and philanthropic work including the practical roles funders can play

✅ Leave with a next step that fits their funding institution, with support from PhilMO and their peers.

Format & Confidentiality: 

Join us at the Delmar DivINe (expect tasty desserts!) or on Zoom. To support open discussion, this program will not be recorded, and we ask virtual participants to turn off AI notetakers. A summary of the briefing (not discussion), slides, and handouts will be made available afterward.

AGENDA

The policy landscape is changing quickly, so we'll adjust as needed. We currently plan to cover:

• Why This Matters Now: Framing & Peer Introductions
• Missouri Policy Landscape Briefing
• Census 2030 Update
• So What, Now What: Funder Conversation
• Next Steps & Close

🤝Statewide Cooperation: The Kansas City Census Philanthropy Roundtable has its quarterly virtual meeting immediately before this briefing (1:00 - 2:30 p.m.). We strongly encourage every funder investing in Greater Kansas City to participate. If you’re in St. Louis for conference, we’ll reserve space at the Delmar DivINe, at no cost, so you can join from the conference site. Just mark your interest when you register for this briefing.

AUDIENCE & REGISTRATION 

This program is for Missouri funders* only. It requires registration separate from the Show-Me Philanthropy Conference, and conference registration isn’t required to attend. 

How to register: 

>> PhilMO Full Members: Choose “Login Now” for fastest registration, or “Create New Account” if this is your first time on the PhilMO website. Registration is free for Members, regardless of conference participation.

>>Non-Member funders: Select the option that matches your conference registration status. If you are joining us for conference, your registration is free. If you’re not registered for conference, submit your $75 contribution with your registration. 

Not sure which applies to you? Contact info@philmo.org

*Eligible participants include community foundations, private and family foundations, donor-advised funds, health conversion foundations, corporate foundations and giving programs, public religious charities, tax-supported funders, and federated funds (e.g., United Way).

WHAT IS THE PUBLIC POLICY & ADVOCACY FUNDER NETWORK? 

PhilMO Networks are smaller groups of funders, within and beyond PhilMO membership, who meet at least twice a year over multiple years around a shared interest. Often a Network receives sponsorship to support speakers, staff time, etc. 

The MO Public Policy & Advocacy Funder Network is a table for grantmakers interested in how public policy and advocacy can advance a more equitable, thriving Missouri. The Network’s Learning & Action model lets every participant learn together while opting in or out of action efforts based on interest, capacity, and/or organizational structure. To learn more about or support the Network, contact Michelle Miller at michelle@philmo.org.