Here’s what we hope to accomplish together in 2017:

GOAL 1: Go deeper for bigger wins.

  • Run advocacy campaigns and secure 1-2 significant education reform policy victories in each of our states.

  • Invest more in states where there are opportunities and resources available to build the foundations for securing bigger, transformational wins.

GOAL 2: Go wider by seeding, spreading and scaling a diverse network of advocacy campaigns.

  • Recruit, connect and support at least 20 diverse citizen advocates through our full-time and part-time training programs so that they can launch advocacy campaigns in their communities.

  • Invest in tool building to help scale effective advocacy campaigns at the state, city and neighborhood level; with at least one new tool or platform in use by all CANs by the end of 2017.

GOAL 3: Invest in our long-term sustainability.

  • Build up our organizational reserve over the next three years to at least six months of operating expenses: 3 months by December 2017, 4 months by December 2018 and 6 months by December 2019.

  • Raise at least $10.6 million against planned baseline expenditures of $10.1 million, increasing cash reserve by at least $500,000.

GOAL 4: Develop the leadership to achieve our goals.

  • Strengthen the national board by recruiting at least 2 additional members and ensure each state advisory board has a strong chair.

  • Invest in staff strength, engagement and retention by developing and implementing efforts to make 50CAN the top choice of the most talented and diverse people in our field.

GOAL 5: Create and implement a new three-year strategic plan.

  • Work with all team members through a strategic planning process in order to create shared ownership of our organizational vision.

  • Engage national board members in strategic planning process to ensure strong alignment and support.

  • Develop a new system for setting ambitious, research-backed policy visions grounded in strong theories of change in each state.