The Alliance for Advocacy and Philanthropy

Community Foundation Tampa Bay and Stetson University College of Law formed a strategic partnership in 2019 to align the power of advocacy with the heart of philanthropy. The Alliance for Advocacy and Philanthropy is a collaborative partnership, which makes a strong case for creating positive change through the lens of activism and the spirit of giving.

About the Alliance

This alliance reflects both organizations’ longstanding commitment to addressing important issues for an even more vibrant community. The Alliance is a unique initiative to engage the community and spark deep discussion through:

1. Connection by building partnerships and leveraging resources to enhance the common good.
2. Education by developing self-advocacy and institutional capacity through access to experts and educational opportunities.
3. Collaboration by providing pathways for members of the community as well as students to become actively involved.

Community Fellows

Since Spring 2020, the Alliance has paid fellowships each semester for Stetson College of Law students. Students gain an in-depth understanding of community philanthropy and have hands-on opportunities to work with nonprofit organizations. They are also introduced to nonprofit board governance, the grantmaking process, donor development, funding agreements, and more. Students receive considerable exposure to how grants are evaluated and sustained including analyzing data to support nonprofit organizational needs and to assess programmatic outcomes.

Community Associates Program

In order to graduate from Stetson Law School, students are required to certify that they have completed 60 hours of pro bono work. Thirty of those hours must be legal pro bono work and the remainder of their volunteer hours can be provided to community organizations.

The Alliance for Advocacy and Philanthropy, in collaboration with local nonprofit organizations, is seeking student pro bono interns to work virtually with us on a variety of projects involving nonprofit programs in the Tampa Bay area.

Students who sign up for this particular pro bono program have been requested to commit to working at least three to five hours per week for up to 6 weeks during the term.

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Student volunteers have opportunities such as:

• Learning about the nonprofit grantmaking process
• Be included in virtual networking opportunities with nonprofit executives
• Collaborating with a wide variety of business executives, lawyers, and philanthropists
• Attending virtual community meetings
• Analyzing socio-economic data
• Assisting in evaluating programmatic outcomes
• Conducting legal and nonlegal research and writing.

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