Rooted Strategy Community Lab

A six-month guided learning and practice program for leaders of equity- and justice-centered organizations to build strategic plans that center community power, transform data into insights, and drive meaningful impact

Register for Summer 2026

Strategic planning processes are often either too generic, too expensive, too disconnected from community, or too heavy for staff to execute alone.

INTRODUCING

Rooted Strategy Community Lab:

a cohort model grounded in shared learning, practical tools, community grounding, and a strategic plan you actually can implement.

If your organization…

Has a big vision but needs support translating it into direction and action

Wants to build internal planning capacity instead of outsourcing it entirely

Wants a strategic plan that reflects your community, values, and lived realities

This program is designed for you.

OVERVIEW

Sign up for the Summer 2026 Rooted Strategy Community Lab!

Summer 2026 Details

July 8 – December 16

Cohort Dates

Starting at $2,500 — See Pricing & Access for Details

Time

10:00 AM to 11:30 AM PT

Pricing

Register
Contact Us

Rooted Strategy Design Principles

This six-month guided cohort program is designed for organizations who want a strategic planning process that is:

Equity-Centered
Rooted in community voice, shared power, and intentional reflection

Highly-Participatory
Engages staff, partners, and stakeholders in meaningful ways

Data-Grounded
Uses qualitative and quantitative insights to guide direction

Action-Oriented
Turns concepts into clear goals and objectives that will actually get used

Who This Program is For

Rooted Strategy Community Lab is open to any organizational leader ready to approach strategic planning differently. While the program is broadly accessible for all organizations of various sizes and stages, it is especially supportive for:

Small- to mid-sized organizations (often under ~$5M)

Organizations that need a structured, equity-centered roadmap but lack internal capacity or facilitation support

Organizations advancing social, economic, or racial justice

Organizations that want a strategic plan aligned with their values, not just a compliance document

Leaders who are actively doing the work with limited time

Organizations that want a process that feels scaffolding, not burdensome

What You Will Learn & Build

A Clear Purpose & Structure

The journey begins with each participant outlining a clear purpose and structure to guide your strategic planning process, establish supportive guardrails, and build stakeholder alignment from the onset.

A Community-Led Vision

Each session considers who needs to at the center of your organizational strategy and supports participants in building an approach that is rooted in community, equity, and justice.

An Assessment and Analysis

Each participant will be guided through the creation of a current state assessment, with data collection and findings analysis that moves from “what” to “so what” to “now what.”

A Draft & Final Strategic Plan

This six-month program culminates in a draft and final strategic plan, aligned to your values and strengthened by feedback from staff, community, and collaborators.

What You Will Receive

12 Live Sessions

Two 90-minute sessions per month for six months that take you step-by-step through designing and leading your strategic planning process

Supportive Peer Community

A cohort of leaders navigating similar opportunities, challenges, and equity commitments for robust idea-sharing and problem-solving

3 Consultation Sessions

Three 1-hour 1:1 consultations with Joyce that can be used throughout the six months for tailored guidance, feedback, and thought partnership

Light Accountability Structures

Program structure to help you sustain realistic momentum without pressure — so your plan moves forward even when capacity is tight

Templates and Guides

Sample materials with guidance on adapting them to your organization — including assessment tools, planning outlines, and draft plan structures

Optional Advisory Add-Ons*

Customizable services for organizations that want more hands-on support with specific components of the strategic planning process

*Cohort participants receive discounted pricing for these deeper advisory services.

A Six-Month Guided Strategic Planning Journey

Rooted Strategy Community Lab guides participants through strategic planning from start to finish — beginning with a clear approach all the way through a final organizational strategic plan. Each session explores a core component of equity-centered strategic planning and how it can be applied to your organization.

Part 1 | Getting Started

Strategic Planning Project Set-Up

Prepare your organization to embark on the strategic planning process, and design an approach that fits your organizational needs and context

JULY

Month 1 — Grounding and Preparing

Session 01 | July xx

Grounding Your Strategic Plan Purpose & Approach

We clarify the purpose, structure, and scope of your strategic plan, and we design core activities for this process to support your organizational objectives.

Session 02 | July xx

Designing Equitable Community Engagement

We explore the power dynamics and barriers to access that often prevent strategic plans from being informed and built by community, and we develop an approach to engaging the people most impacted by your work in a way that invites shared ownership.

Part 2 | The Story of Today

Current State Assessment

Explore organizational needs, outcomes, gaps, and opportunity areas to build a clear picture of your current organizational context to inform future priorities

AUGUST-SEPTEMBER

Month 2 — Understanding the Story of Today

Session 03 | August xx

Document Reviews, Surveys, and Benchmarking Research

We explore how to collect meaningful data, from document reviews to surveys to benchmarking, that informs the Story of Today without overburdening staff or community members.

Session 04 | August xx

Interviews, Focus Groups, and Listening Sessions

We build your qualitative tools, practicing question design and facilitation techniques that honor lived experience and encourage open, honest input.

Month 3 — Turning Your Findings into Meaning

Session 05 | September xx

Analyzing Quantitative and Qualitative Data

We will discuss methods for analyzing data in ways that surface patterns, insights, and tensions across your engagement activities.

Session 06 | September xx

Turning Findings into Recommendations

You will practice translating your analysis from “What” to “So What” to “Now What” — to craft insights that are useful, strategic, and grounded in community realities.

Part 3 | The Story of Tomorrow

Future State
Visioning

Builds upon “The Story of Today” to develop a vision of what is possible through the work of your organization and outline future direction

OCTOBER

Month 4 — Visioning Towards the Future

Session 07 | October xx

Structuring an Equity-Centered Visioning Process

We review your visioning activities (e.g., retreats, town halls, etc.) to confirm that they align with your equity commitments, supports your community engagement aims, and builds upon your assessment findings.

Session 08 | October xx

Designing Participatory Visioning Sessions

We build agendas, facilitation approaches, and decision-making structures so participants can engage deeply and meaningfully.

Part 4 | The Path to Tomorrow

Strategic Plan Development

Charts a path to actualize “The Story of Tomorrow” by gathering community feedback to refine, add detail to, and ultimately finalize the Strategic Plan

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER

Month 5 — Drafting Your Strategic Plan

Session 09 | November xx

Reviewing Your Visioning Outputs

We synthesize visioning outcomes and begin shaping your strategic directions and priorities.

Session 10 | November xx

Drafting Your Organizational Strategic Plan

You will draft organizational vision, mission, values, goals, and objectives, using your visioning outputs and supported by templates tailored to the needs and culture of your organization.

Month 6 — Refinement + Finalization

Session 11 | December xx

Gathering Feedback and Refining Your Draft Plan

We build feedback loops with staff, community, and stakeholders to help you refine your draft.

Session 12 | December xx

Finalizing Your Organizational Strategic Plan

We finalize your strategic plan with clarity, alignment, and community accountability, and we discuss implementation considerations.

Pricing & Access

Rooted Strategy Community Lab is a cohort-based strategy container designed for organizers, practitioners, and leaders doing equity- and justice-centered work. Pricing is structured by who is paying and what resources are available, with the intention of supporting collective access while sustaining the Lab.

Participants are encouraged to use their judgement to select the tier that best matches their access to financial resources, individual and organizational, at the time of registration. We trust you to choose what is right for you.

Community

$2,500

This rate is a solidarity rate, offered in recognition of structural inequities, not as charity. Seats at this rate are limited.

Register

This rate is for:

  • Individuals whose organizations are not formally sponsoring them but whose income reflects professional-level compensation

  • Participants with an organizational budget between $1M and $3M

Sustainer

$5,000

This rate reflects the true cost of the program and helps sustain the Lab while supporting community access.

Register

This rate is for:

  • Individuals doing equity, justice, or community-based work without institutional backing or professional development budgets

  • Organizers, educators, and nonprofit staff in under-resourced organizations (Organizational budget below $1M)

Institutional

$7,500

This rate reflects the scale of larger organizations, where strategy investments impact teams, programs, and systems.

Register

This rate is for:

  • Participants with an organizational budget above $3M

For Enterprise pricing and organizational training options, please get in touch via the Contact page.

  • This program is designed to support you as you lead your organization’s strategic planning process, so participants should expect a moderate commitment outside of sessions. Most weeks involve planning or preparation work that directly applies what you are learning to your organization’s real work. While capacity is needed, the program aims to streamline processes by providing tools and templates as starting points — so you can focus on executing your organizational strategic planning process.

  • No. Participants come with a wide range of experience, from first-time planning leads to seasoned leaders who want a more grounded, community-centered approach. The cohort is structured to meet people where they are, with practical tools and guided support at every step.

  • Strategic planning looks different for every organization. While the program is structured as a six-month learning and practice journey, participants are encouraged to adapt the scope, pace, and depth of their planning process to fit their organization’s needs. Some organizations may use the cohort to complete a focused, shorter-term plan, while others may use it to lay the foundation for a longer, more comprehensive process. The tools, frameworks, and guidance are designed to be flexible and reusable so you can right-size your approach and revisit it over time. To explore whether this program will fit the timeline needs of your organization, you can reach out to Joyce via the Contact page.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Many participants will leave with a draft or near-final strategic plan, depending on their organization’s scope and pace. More importantly, participants build the skills, frameworks, and confidence to lead strategic planning work thoughtfully—both now and in the future.

  • Participants have the option to add on deeper advisory or facilitation support for specific components of their strategic planning process, such as stakeholder engagement design, data synthesis, or draft review. Cohort participants receive preferred pricing for these add-ons and will work directly with Joyce as your consultant.

    Need a full-cycle strategic planning consultant? You can also reach out to Joyce via the Contact page to discuss a customized engagement.

  • I can’t join this cohort—will you offer future dates?