Congratulations to Constance Siu, Executive Director of North Newstead Association and recipient of our 2024 Collaboration & Coalition Building Award!
The Collaboration & Coalition Building Award recognizes a person who:
Demonstrates incredible commitment to working through partnerships, even when it’s more challenging than “going it alone.”
Forges new connections that bridge gaps between people, organizations, and places that don’t normally interact with each other in the St. Louis region.
Shows up for others and participates directly in their work; does not only ask or expect that partners and collaborators come to them.
Approaches difficulty and conflict with understanding, compassion, and an open mind.
Constance Siu has always been involved in community work, starting in her high school and college years. While working towards her MSW from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, Constance came to Community Builders Network as a Practicum Student. After hearing and noticing that St. Louis organizations tended to struggle as a result of working in silos, Constance found inspiration during her time with Community Builders Network working on the Social Policy & Electoral Accountability Collaborative (SPEAC), a group of leading St. Louis area organizations that strive to hold elected officials accountable to the communities they represent—or are seeking to represent—both prior to an election and afterward. This work demonstrated the power of cross-industry collaboration and inspired Constance’s future path.
Constance has been a coalition builder and leader in several collaborative efforts, from the Vacancy Collaborative and the Home Repair Network to the Strategic Land Use Plan of the St. Louis Comprehensive Plan. As the Executive Director of North Newstead Association for the past two years, Constance has brought her skills and presence to coalition building efforts within the organization as well. Constance develops sustainable collaborations by “ensuring that everyone sees the common goals, the bigger picture, and how they fit into accomplishing the bigger picture”, bringing individuals and organizations together through the maintenance of a shared vision. Her hope for the future of St. Louis is to see more people both involved in community work and aware of how the work that they do impacts community work, how “everyone has a part to play”. Constance is grateful for the efforts of all of the people who collaborate with her who make the work possible and emphasizes the need to “show up and listen” in order to succeed in the work of collaboration and coalition building. “It doesn’t get simpler than that. It doesn’t have to be very complicated. Show up and listen.”
