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FY24
Impact Report

LETTERS
FROM THE
CO DIRECTORS
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Kaysone Syonesa Schneider
Co Director, Partnerships and Development
To our dearest community, thank you for walking in this journey with us over the many years of SEAD. I’ve crossed paths with SEAD upon taking the Lao language class back in 2017. Since then, I’ve never looked back. I’ve been involved with SEAD in multiple capacities, and 7 years later, as one of the Executive Directors to lead the direction for SEAD. 
 
The past year has been a continuous growth as we looked for a new home that could give space to our growing team. We’ve continued to engage communities through storytelling, arts, language, and heritage. We’ve cultivated a great amount of partnership work to increase our impact with other organizations that align with our mission and values. While our work may grow, we also remember to pause and listen with community, who continues to be our north star in where SEAD goes next.

We are on a long journey with the work that we do, but I believe that all of us – our staff, partners, and supporters – are committed to this heart work together. I’m constantly inspired and grateful to every single person who has been a part of our journey. Your energy, generosity, dedication, and enthusiasm to our work are the reasons why we sustain and believe in the work that we do. Alongside your support, I know we are creating a blueprint for more innovative, creative, and transformative solutions. So thank you to our community of supporters, your hope and belief will continue to inspire and sustain us in the years to come.
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Jessica Eckerstorfer
Co Director, Programs and Operations
Year One was for understanding. Year Two was for getting settled. Year Three was for growth. 
 
As Kay and I reach our three year anniversary as co-directors, we’ve seen our SEAD grow. We’ve grown our national reach, our partnerships, our community, and our team has even outgrown our office space. But even as we grow, we continue to bring all of our traditions, cultural knowledge, and history with us. SEAD will always be for community, by community. 
 
In our fiscal year 2024, SEAD was fortunate to reconnect in person and talk directly with our community. We worked with family units, helping younger members of families interview their elders for our second story anthology, “Planting SEADS, Knowing Our Joy.” We spoke to over 100+ individuals about their hopes for the future and their concerns in the present. With all of these conversations, we know that our communities are looking for continued equitable growth in everything from mental health, to housing and financial stability, and educational access. SEAD will never be a sole expert in these topics, but we plan on working together with our constituency to find solutions and support one another. 
 
From this Winter’s SEA Change Lab cohort–“Honestly, I loved the sessions that allowed me to be more in touch with my own humanity, learning about community building in a more emotional and spiritual sense.” This is our goal.. We will continue to consciously grow, while looking out for one another, continuing to make spaces like this for our community.
HIGHLIGHTS
FROM THE YEAR

SEA Roots
Heritage + Culture

Sharing languages and cultural literacy with community

SEAD is one of the few organizations that offer affordable and accessible Hmong, Khmer, Lao, and Vietnamese language classes to anyone, anywhere, creating the necessary space for learning and bridging our communities rooted in our storytelling.

STATS

74 students in Fall 2023 & Spring 2024 Classes

29 students received a SEADs of Love Scholarship

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STORYTELLING: PLANTING SEADS

Planting SEADS 2nd Anthology: Knowing Our Joy

Throughout the summer of 2023, community members came together to process and use the power of story collection. Each cohort member interviewed an elder, using their stories and conversations to create the 2nd published anthology. The stories go beyond trauma, war and struggles. Instead, the collection focuses on our holistic personhood, with our elders sharing their strength, inner peace, and joy. ​Stories were illustrated by our community’s emerging artists.

STATS

30 story collectors

32 elders

18 published stories

50 book launch attendees

SEA CHANGE LAB

Growing creative leaders at the intersection of arts and advocacy

26 young creatives applied for our 2023 winter cohort! The final 10 Changemakers were from New York, Texas, California, Wisconsin, and here in Minnesota.


Our Changemakers: Sean Lim, Alana Giarrano, Vannida Kol, Troi Tran, Alivia Lor, Britney Vongdara, Cassandra Xiong, H’Abigail Mlo, Anna Vongkaysone, and Hannah Chea

TESTIMONIALS

​Here's what some of our Changemakers shared about how SEA Change Lab impacted them:

“This program was powerful. It sparked courage for me to apply for grants, residencies, and shows. The teaching artists were wonderful and the program manager was knowledgeable and supportive. The cohort was one of my favorite parts. We lived in different places, had different artistic practices, and twice a week we shared space to help nurture one another and learn together. I learned so much from each person and felt connected at the end; the final presentation was incredibly special and cemented how meaningful this entire journey was. Additionally, this experience helped me feel like there was space in the SEA community for a mixed, multicultural person like me.”

“The SEAD Project was the opportunity I needed to better understand my passion and role as an emerging artist. Moreover, it helped me see that there is a life for me as an artist and that I won’t be alone in my pursuit.”

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Cultural Organizing

Equipping and building SEA-origin diaspora communities towards informed, meaningful self-advocacy

Brave Harbors set sail this year to gather community input. The surveys and listening sessions inquired knowledge and understanding of social issues that affect our communities, which helped to inform our work.

STATS

54 completed surveys

2 community listening sessions hosted

23 participants at Aug 2023 session

20 participants at Nov 2023 session

Community events, Workshops, & Partnerships

SEAD increases our organizational capacity and community impact by strengthening our community engagement, partnerships, and solidarity work.

STATS

15 community events

874 connections made

Community Partnerships & Events

Little Asia Market

Peoplefest

Uplifting Voices

Macalester Student Fair

Cambodian Student Association of Minnesota New Year

U of MN, Northrop's 10,000 Dreams Panel + Community Exhibition

Cooper High School

Metro Asian Celebration

Legacies of War

Celebrate Hmong

SpringPop!

Wedge Co-Op

Celebrate Little Mekong

Knowing Our Joy Book Launch

Raise Our Roots: Ground Joy Gala

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FINANCIALS

REVENUE - $527,622

Foundation Grants

83%

$439,718

Government Grants

6%

$33,250

Other Income

5%

$27,864

Registration Fees

3%

$15,257

Contract Fees

1%

Individual Contributions

1%

$7,700

$3,832

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EXPENSES - $535,868

Management & General

20%

Storytelling

19%

Cultural Organizing

17%

$109,005

$102,089

$92,860

Fundraising

13%

$70,222

SEA Roots

11%

SEA Change

10%

SOON Enterprise

10%

$58,606

$51,612

$51,473

OUR GRATITUDE

Thank you to all our staff, board, community, donors, supporters, language teachers, contractors, and volunteers who made our work possible.

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FUNDERS

Asian American Advancing Justice

Asian American Futures

Best Buy Foundation

Carlson Family Foundation

ECMC Go! Foundation

F.R. Bigelow Foundation

Headwaters Foundation for Justice 

Marbrook Foundation

McKnight Foundation

Minneapolis Foundation

Minnesota Humanities Center*

*This work is funded in part by the Minnesota Humanities Center with money from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund that was created with the vote of the people in Minnesota on November 4, 2008.

Minnesota State Arts Board**

**This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Otto Bremer Trust

Propel Nonprofit

St. Paul & Minnesota Foundation

Wells Fargo Foundation

Women’s Foundation of MN

REACH US

hi@theseadproject.org
(612) 655-8692

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1624 Harmon Place, Suite 305

Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55403

Monday - Friday | 9am - 5:30pm

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