Maddie Hamb
Associate Director - We Are RALLY
Candidate Responses:
Please summarize the reasons you are submitting this nomination
At a moment when federal funding is incredibly unpredictable or misaligned with community needs and with added pressures around language and focus threatening the essential support so many organizations provide, the work of the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence–and the diverse coalition of organizations it represents–is more important than ever. I’m nominating myself to join the Board because I believe my background and skillset can help the organization both navigate challenges and grow. As a communications professional with over a decade of experience in advocacy and narrative strategy, I see a pressing need to continue shifting the way we talk about domestic violence–moving beyond awareness to stories that center survivor voices, solutions, and systems change. I’ve worked closely with the Partnership in past communications campaigns and have long admired its commitment to equity, coalition-building, and centering the voices of those most impacted. I bring a deep belief in the power of strategic storytelling to drive change and a strong desire to continue to support the Partnership’s vision. It would be an honor to contribute in this new capacity and help support the organization’s continued success.
How does this person’s values align with the Partnership, including centering underrepresented voices? As an Associate Director at RALLY, an issues advocacy agency, I work to drive progress on causes I’m deeply passionate about through strategic storytelling, narrative change, and messaging. The issue spaces I’ve worked across are vast and have focused on education, racial justice, healthcare, and domestic violence prevention. The throughline across it all has been a focus on equity and centering the voices of those who are most impacted by the issue. Centering equity in storytelling and messaging requires changing the way we think about problems and solutions. It means solving for communications barriers and gaps in access to information. And, it means following the lead and centering the voices of those who aren’t always heard or represented. In my work in education, that might look like ensuring students are centered, not policymakers, and making sure that the solutions that are being elevated reflect their experiences. In my previous work with the Partnership on a campaign around GVROs, that included incorporating survivor voices into messaging review and campaign development and elevating advocates voices in op-eds and external materials–letting their voices do the talking. My values of justice, equity, and empowerment align deeply with the Partnership’s mission and I am committed to carrying that vision forward in a meaningful way.
Describe your participation in the Partnership’s regional networks, policy committees, peer learning circles and other components of our Membership community.
While I am new to the Membership community, I’ve had the
privilege of working with the Partnership on a communications and
narrative campaign to raise awareness around gun violence
restraining orders, particularly among Black and
Indigenous/Native communities, people from rural areas, and
LGBTQIA+ people. Through this campaign, I worked closely with the
Partnership’s GVRO Stakeholder Group, partnering with leaders
across the field to better understand how to effectively
communicate to these audiences. These conversations helped inform
solutions-centered messaging that we then turned into community
guides that organizations could distribute to their own
communities around domestic and gun violence and the resources
available in unsafe situations. We also worked closely
with a handful of organizations in the stakeholder group on a
series of op-eds that centered personal experiences and called on
California to continue expanding access to culturally responsive
resources, detailing how we can all be better allies to survivors
of violence. Throughout this project, I also had the opportunity
to partner
directly with a number of survivors and advocates. Their
perspective was invaluable throughout the entire campaign and we
made sure that their voices and experiences influenced the
messaging we were sharing with the broader field.
Describe your skills, experience or interests that can benefit, strengthen or increase capacity of the Board.
I have extensive experience in strategic communications,
narrative change, and campaign development for a variety of issue
spaces, including education, racial equity, health equity, and
domestic violence prevention. I know that a powerful message
delivered by the right messenger and through the right channels
has the power to make meaningful change and shift hearts and
minds. It’s a critical and tumultuous moment for the Partnership
and domestic violence organizations across the state and the
nation, with funding support, grants, and essential data
disappearing or up in the air. I know fundraising is going to be
that much more important to carrying forth the Partnership’s
mission. Effective communication and a deep understanding of what
potential donors need to hear is crucial. Through my professional
experience, I’ve worked with a number of different clients to
develop and execute on targeted communications strategies
designed to do just that: reach and bring a new (and at times,
unexpected) donor set into the fold. I look forward to helping do
the same as part of the Board.
What does leadership mean to you? How do you demonstrate leadership?
To me, one of the cornerstones of effective leadership is
aligning the collective while ensuring multiple viewpoints get
heard. Being a strong leader isn’t about being the loudest
voice in the room-it’s about structuring conversations to
ensure everyone’s voice gets heard and setting the tone for a
respectful and thoughtful
conversation, even when there’s points of disagreement. I also
think that leadership means being comfortable with courageous
and candid conversations and guiding a group towards the right
outcome, even if it’s a difficult decision that might cause
challenges in the short term. As part of my role as an
Associate Director at RALLY, I lead up to five different teams
at a time, each focused on a different client and area of
expertise. As a team leader, my goal is not to be the
sole “face of the team” but rather help guide my team on
strategy and work prioritization. I use our meetings as an
opportunity for all team members to elevate challenges they’re
solving for, ideas, or insights that have come to light through
the work and help problem solve, make adjustments, and ensure
their perspective is reflected in our strategy. I view it as my
responsibility to take what I hear and help guide the client in
a certain direction or serve as a critical backstop for my team
to do the same.
Describe how your relationships can enhance the work of the Partnership and the Board (for example, with policy-makers, media outlets, culturally specific communities, and the broader community). Tell us how you intend to cultivate those relationships on behalf of the Partnership.
Through my work in strategic communications, I’ve had the
opportunity to work closely with a number of media
outlets–including regional newspapers like the San Francisco
Chronicle and the Sacramento Bee and national outlets focused on
philanthropy and advocacy. As part of my ongoing communications
with reporters and editors, I’ll ensure they are kept up to date
on the work of the Partnership and key narrative priorities. I’ll
also ensure I understand the topics they’re interested in
covering and what they’re learning through reporting and bubble
up those insights to the Board and the Partnership as a whole. I
also work closely with other advocacy organizations across a
range of issue spaces. I think there’s a real opportunity to
continue finding points of connection and where the work of
the
Partnership and the work of those organizations might intersect.
This could help bring awareness and understanding of the
Partnership’s work into new circles and potentially help draw in
additional donors who may be interested, but just unaware.
Lastly, I’m committed to using my broader professional and
personal network to educate, engage, and activate more audiences
around the important work of the Partnership.
