Nancy Rodriguez Warns of Gatekeepers and the Non-Profit Industrial Complex

Nancy Rodriguez is a social worker, parent volunteer, and special education advocate who ran for a seat on the Dallas ISD school board in November of 2020 where she received the highest number of votes, but not enough to receive the majority over her two opponents. That led to a runoff election with Dustin Marshall, the incumbent. His campaign spent more than $500,000 resulting in his re-election on December 8, 2020. His endorsements came from a web of political “gatekeepers” in Dallas. They are part of theDallas patronage networkthat includes PACs, chamber organizations, politicians, social impact investors, and non-profit leaders.

A key player in the local social impact scene is Dallas Social Venture Partners. They host luncheons and conferences to engage Dallas leaders wanting to learn more about their for-profit lens applied to solving social issues. Most people see this tidal wave of impact investing as a way to galvanize support around critical issues and a way to bring change. Doing good while making money could be a good thing, right? But are there unintended consequences to tracking people in a for-profit model that commodifies poverty, homelessness, or early childhood?

More information about Nancy Rodriguez can be found at https://nancy4disd.com. 

Lynn Davenport is an education researcher and advocate for parental rights regarding education technology, data privacy and predatory impact investing schemes. She can be reached at ldaven@me.com.

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