Fiscal Sponsorship Spotlight: We the Conduits

We’re thrilled to put a spotlight on Dulce Caroline Torres, one of Mockingbird Analytics’ Fiscal Sponsor clients, and founder of We the Conduits! 

Mockingbird: What’s your professional background? 

Dulce: Well, I’m from Chicago, and when I had graduated from college, I started working in the corporate world as an insurance broker. I did that for about three years, and knew that it was important to someone – like clients, or corporations – but it wasn’t as meaningful to me because I wanted to help others, especially upcoming students who were first generation college students. I had that itch to help more, but couldn’t with this full time job that took up all of my time. When I got home from work, I’d be exhausted, because it was full overtime and just so busy. So, I eventually decided insurance wasn’t for me, and quit. Took a break. 

I was going to become a Spanish teacher for a year, but after an earthquake in Mexico City, came back to Chicago. I started volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, and the Girls Who Code, which is an incredible organization that helps any female-identifying person learn how to code and get into technology. I volunteered for about a year to figure out what to do next. I asked myself, do I want to teach? Do I want to go back to school? Now that I don’t have this full-time job. 

Mockingbird: So how did you get started in nonprofit work?

Dulce: In 2019, my aunt and church started a program to help Latino students who want to go to college and explore their options. A lot of these students are first generation, low income, and their parents have never gone. The committee in the church had seed money, and a group of volunteers, so hired my aunt on as a program organizer. Then, I started working there.

A lot of the programming was in English and Spanish, and required the parent component – the parent needed to be involved with the students. I saw how impactful it was for the students, and also the parents. These parents wanted to help, but didn’t know what to do or how to start. They didn’t know what they didn’t know. They would attend events at the school, but didn’t know the benefit of the events. They’d walk out and have more questions than answers, and wouldn’t know who to talk to. 

Parents were so happy to have this opportunity to have information about scholarships, majors, and campuses. And students that started with us are on campuses now. 

So, after two years there, I used that model to build We The Conduits. And then moved to LA – I couldn’t do the winters in Chicago anymore!

Mockingbird: How would you describe your nonprofit?

Dulce: We want to focus on all BIPOC communities and families – there’s so much diversity in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. And anyone who is doing this kind of work, we want to support. We can help with resources and information for students and their parents. We’re also proud to be an independent organization; there are some other organizations that are like this, but they’re usually tied to the school. 

Mockingbird: What are the differences between your nonprofit and others?

Dulce: We centralize everything for the family, especially at the high school level, and act as a liaison between resources and families. Our goal is not to have families and students join us; we’re going to help them connect the dots on the resources they have access to. Definitely not trying to duplicate workshops and info. 

For example: a young woman is going back to school and starting college this fall. She’s part of our program advising, and she qualified for the Promise Program. It gives her 2 years of college for free, and they give her priority class registration and parking. We want her to be part of the program to give her all of that support. So we are offering her things, but she’s substituting what she can with that program. 

Mockingbird: How did you find – and decide – to join the Mockingbird Fiscal Network?

Dulce: I mean, I’m doing this all myself – I didn’t have any backup or funding. I created WTC on my own because I knew there was a need.

We needed to find a way to get more support without having to wait months or more to file the paperwork and become a nonprofit. That process typically takes at least 6 months, and that was pre-pandemic. But people needed help now, so we needed to raise money. 

In order to take donations to promote as a nonprofit, we needed the designation. I liked getting that through a Fiscal Sponsorship, which is a great way to start right away. 

I did some research in the area, and Mockingbird Analytics came up. Mockingbird Analytics has been a great partnership to get our nonprofit to get established and apply for grants. One of the biggest things they offer is the Incubator Training. They have a plan for you to be an independent organization in 18-24 months, with the goal for you to become your own nonprofit organization. So helpful!

Want more information on how to become a part of the Mockingbird Fiscal Sponsor network? Check out our website here for more information!