Our Members

Changing the way philanthropy works in North Minneapolis

Northside Funders Group is a funder collaborative that partners to bring resources and investments to learn, leverage, influence, and invest in opportunities to advance social, educational, and economic opportunities in North Minneapolis. Collectively we have learned that, for any place-based philanthropic initiative to be successful, it has to address a full spectrum of issues. So we embrace individual funder’s approaches and align them with collective impact strategies that allow us to scale what works. 

One of the first steps toward improved outcomes is changing the way funders work. Together we can achieve more than any one of us can alone.

Our members bring a depth of experience and commitment to North Minneapolis, a willingness to go beyond the grant, and a belief that North Minneapolis has the capacity to thrive through our collective impact agenda. These assets, leveraged by those of our partners, position us to achieve the vision of North Minneapolis as a thriving, vibrant community.

  • Thrivent

  • Phillips Family Foundation

  • Mortenson Family Foundation

  • Minneapolis Foundation

  • Best Buy Foundation

  • Hennepin County

  • Target Foundation

  • LISC Twin Cities

  • GHR Foundation

  • Old National Bank

  • Graves Foundation

  • Wells Fargo

  • Minneapolis Parks Foundation

Investment Strategy

We apply a three-pronged investment strategy to catalyze comprehensive and sustainable change in our two Priority Focus Areas. Funders may pursue different investment entry points toward a mutual goal.

  • Northside Funders Group members deliberately, but independently make a grant to the same program, project or organization. While this approach is fragmented, it provides investments that are responsive to emergent community opportunities and needs.

  • Multiple Northside Funders Group members intentionally support a specific strategy or organization in pursuit of a common goal through fiscal or human capital investments. We consider investments that advance strategies and priorities identified by our Workgroups and Priority Focus Area Network.

  • Through the Opportunity Fund, Northside Funders Group invests in emergent opportunities that demonstrate potential to catalyze comprehensive, sustainable change in North Minneapolis. We actively seek out innovative ways for community partners to come together collaboratively around work that has potential for high impact benefits for people and place.

Our Leadership

Joannette Cintrón

Joannette Cintrón is the Community Development and Outreach Manager at Old National Bank

Co-Chair, Economic Development Strategies

DeSeandra Sheppheard

DeSeandra serves as the Vice President, COO of the Foundation, overseeing the foundation’s day-to-day operations and staff management. DeSeandra also leads the foundation’s grantmaking work, advancing the foundation’s giving strategy and assessing its impact.

For more than fifteen years, DeSeandra worked in Organizational Leadership, focusing on Human Resource Management, in nonprofit organizations. DeSeandra is passionate about her family, career, and personal efforts to celebrate and uplift leaders in community.

Co-Chair, Youth Development Strategies
Managing Consultant

E. Coco

A transplant from Velletri, Italy, Elizabeth Coco (Coco) brings a global perspective to all aspects of her work. She is a skilled program developer and manager, facilitator and grantmaker with over a decade of experience in the nonprofit and philanthropic sector. Before launching her consulting practice, Coco led strategy development and grantmaking in the sphere of racial and economic justice on behalf of The Jay and Rose Phillips Family Foundation of Minnesota. Coco also served on the board of directors of the Headwaters Foundation For Justice and Partnership in Property Commercial Land Trust, an organization she helped launch.