Friday, August 26, 2011

A Ramped Up Education Program for Nonprofits | Duke Today

A Ramped Up Education Program for Nonprofits | Duke Today: Durham, NC - Duke's Nonprofit Management program is ramping up its offerings to those working in and with the nonprofit sector -- whether they are paid staff, directors, administrators, board members, or philanthropists -- to help them navigate successfully in an uncertain economy.

9/11: The Nonprofit World Remembers - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

A variety of Coverage from the Chronicle of Philanthropy

9/11: The Nonprofit World Remembers - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: 9/11: The Nonprofit World Remembers

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | NJ Supreme Court Decision Chips Away at Nonprofit Confidentiality

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | NJ Supreme Court Decision Chips Away at Nonprofit Confidentiality: The New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously declared Tuesday that the nonprofit New Jersey League of Municipalities is subject to the same open-record disclosure standards as the municipal governments it represents. The decision means that the League is no longer able to use its nonprofit status to deny access to records that it and other nonprofits have typically thought of as protected from public disclosure.

AP IMPACT: Many charities formed after 9/11 raised big dollars, but didn't deliver on promises - Winnipeg Free Press

AP IMPACT: Many charities formed after 9/11 raised big dollars, but didn't deliver on promises - Winnipeg Free Press: Americans eager to give after the 9/11 terrorist attacks poured $1.5 billion into hundreds of charities established to serve the victims, their families and their memories. But a decade later, an Associated Press investigation shows that many of those nonprofits have failed miserably.

9/11 in the Arts - An Anniversary Guide - NYTimes.com

9/11 in the Arts - An Anniversary Guide - NYTimes.com: selected listing of events related to the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Events are ordered by opening or release date, and alphabetically for events on the same day.

Faith and rights groups to mark 9/11 in solidarity | Cincinnati.com | cincinnati.com

Faith and rights groups to mark 9/11 in solidarity | Cincinnati.com | cincinnati.com: Some people might not know how to react on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Some might express anger. Others sadness.

The City of Cincinnati and 16 faith and civil rights groups and other institutions are offering a program that afternoon designed to remember but focus on unity and hope.

Not just cutting check for schools, businesses are writing new lessons | StarTribune.com

Not just cutting check for schools, businesses are writing new lessons | StarTribune.com: Just cutting a check for a school doesn't cut it anymore for businesses.

In a significant shift away from "checkbook philanthropy," corporations in Minnesota and nationwide are not merely writing checks but are helping to write curriculums for schools, design or teach classes and train principals.

Food bank shoots for Guinness record - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Food bank shoots for Guinness record - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: The Greater Washington County Food Bank will attempt to break a Guinness World Record this weekend.

Even if it don't succeed, organizers say the food bank will still come out on top.

In conjunction with the food bank's 30th anniversary, Executive Director Lisa Nuccetelli said the organization is participating in the "Great American Food Drive."

The goal is to generate the most food donations in 24 hours in one location.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Good360, IU collaborate to measure impact of 'product philanthropy': IU News Room: Indiana University

PRESS RELEASE

Good360, IU collaborate to measure impact of 'product philanthropy': IU News Room: Indiana University: BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs and Good360, formerly Gifts In Kind International, have completed the first year of a unique, ongoing collaboration designed to measure the impacts of corporate gifts-in-kind to non-profit organizations.

9/11 Charities Under Scrutiny For Failing To Raise Money For Victims

9/11 Charities Under Scrutiny For Failing To Raise Money For Victims: NEW YORK -- Americans eager to give after the 9/11 terrorist attacks poured $1.5 billion into hundreds of charities established to serve the victims, their families and their memories. But a decade later, an Associated Press investigation shows that many of those nonprofits have failed miserably.

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Gay-Rights Activists Lobby Companies to Cut Ties with Charitable-Giving Website Linked to Focus on the Family

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Gay-Rights Activists Lobby Companies to Cut Ties with Charitable-Giving Website Linked to Focus on the Family: Gay-rights activists are calling on corporations to end their charitable-giving deals with the Charity Give Back Group (CGBG), according to a Denver Post report. Once known as the Christian Values Network, CGBG recruits online shoppers who can designate a percentage of their purchase totals to go to a list of specific charities, both secular and religious. One of the designated nonprofit recipients is Focus on the Family, which many gay-rights activists and others consider a hate group due to its attitude toward gays and lesbians.

Kickstarting Jewish Culture? | The Jewish Week

Kickstarting Jewish Culture? | The Jewish Week: alk about Jewish funding for culture seems to be getting louder, Kelman said, citing a 2010 panel discussion at the Association for Jewish Studies conference. Fordham University professor Ayala Fader is planning a book on the subject. Stephen Hazan Arnoff, executive director of the 14th Street Y, and Steven M. Cohen, research professor of Jewish social policy at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, published in JTA a call for a “Jewish cultural policy” after JDub shut down.

Of course, that conversation is part of a larger national debate about support for arts and culture, especially when the effects of recession linger and unemployment persists above 9 percent. Recently, Republicans cited the soft economy when they repeated their call to eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts altogether.

Giving Grows as a Business-School Subject - Philanthropy Today - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

Giving Grows as a Business-School Subject - Philanthropy Today - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: Three dozen business schools worldwide now offer courses devoted to giving, according to a recent Aspen Institute report, and the national service coalition Campus Compact says about 100 such courses are offered to undergraduates at U.S. schools, with some giving students money to donate to local projects. (Read about one of those efforts in The Chronicle’s continuing-education guide.)

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Innovative Fundraising: Iowa Arts Center Sells Naming Rights to Its Toilets

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Innovative Fundraising: Iowa Arts Center Sells Naming Rights to Its Toilets: A Cedar Rapids nonprofit arts organization that recently renovated its flood-damaged social hall is selling naming rights to its new toilets, complete with decorative plaques to be placed above each facility, for $1,000 a pop. The Des Moines Register reports that while supplies last, donors can even choose their particular comfort station. An email from the group, Legion Arts, announced the exciting opportunity:

Celebrities, Survivors Join To Make 10th Anniversary Of 9/11 A Charity Milestone | FoxNews.com

Celebrities, Survivors Join To Make 10th Anniversary Of 9/11 A Charity Milestone | FoxNews.com: As the nation prepares for the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, leading nonprofit organizations MyGoodDeed and HandsOn Network have launched a national public service announcement campaign to organize the largest day of charitable service in U.S. history.

One LA museum hosts an exhibition in the fine art of giving - The National

One LA museum hosts an exhibition in the fine art of giving - The National: In the end, it is not necessarily the thought that counts, but the price tag," Komaroff notes candidly in the exhibition catalogue.

Conceived so broadly, the process of gift-giving was crucial to diplomacy, civic and religious philanthropy, and to the international exchange of art and wealth. Gifts, then and now, are rarely acts of pure generosity, says Komaroff, who notes that the exchanges of objects (and cash) reflect relations of power and obligation.

Why Tech Is Key to the U.S. State Department's Mission

Why Tech Is Key to the U.S. State Department's Mission: First of all, I think that one ought not make a generalization about any philanthropic effort that just lives on the Internet. I mean, those efforts are as varied as efforts that are organized on street corners or in communities or anywhere else. So I hate to say, you know, “Online activism or online philanthropic efforts are all X.” I think the community and those efforts are sufficiently far along that to stereotype them in one way is intellectually lazy …

massnonprofit.org ::

massnonprofit.org ::: Some large organizations that have not yet embraced integrated marketing, while some smaller organizations are quite sophisticated on this front,” reported a study commissioned by Texas-based Convio that looked at 123 nonprofits nationally, each of which had raised at least $1 million per year via direct response channels.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | The Economy Turns Generation Next into Generation Vexed

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | The Economy Turns Generation Next into Generation Vexed: This article from the Los Angeles Times about young people with life plans undone by the recession grabbed our attention for a particular reason. The first person profiled in the article, a 20-year-old woman, had planned for a career at a nonprofit to be followed by marriage and a home purchase. While it wasn’t clear that she had given up her nonprofit career plans, the implication was that she had to pay more attention to the day-to-day challenges of money and survival than to prospects for following her dreams and desires. Relying on a survey released by the nonprofit Generation Opportunity that found that three-quarters of respondents aged 18 to 29 were going to put off career or purchase choices due to the economy, the Times referred to this cohort of young people as “Generation Vexed.”

Anonymous Donors Help Cover Philadelphia School Chief's Buyout - Philanthropy Today - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

Anonymous Donors Help Cover Philadelphia School Chief's Buyout - Philanthropy Today - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: Anonymous Donors Help Cover Philadelphia School Chief’s Buyout

August 23, 2011, 9:47 am

Anonymous contributors pledged $405,000 to help Philadelphia buy out the contract of its top schools official, writes The Philadelphia Inquirer.

What to Watch: Nonprofits to discuss how to stretch dwindling dollars at conference - The Washington Post

What to Watch: Nonprofits to discuss how to stretch dwindling dollars at conference - The Washington Post: On Thursday, nonprofits, including charities and trade associations, will have an opportunity to hear creative ways for stretching their limited resources at the 11th annual Public Private Partnership Conference. The event is sponsored by the D.C. Mayor’s Office of Partnerships & Grant Services as well as the Nonprofit Roundtable of Greater Washington, Center for Nonprofit Advancement and Greater DC Cares.

Young Actors Bring Portraits to Life; US Water Activist to Walk Across Africa | Special English | Learning English

Young Actors Bring Portraits to Life; US Water Activist to Walk Across Africa | Special English | Learning English: Amy Russell founded the nonprofit organization Walk4Water three years ago while she was still in college.

AMY RUSSELL: “If I ever wanted to tackle any of these big social causes of our day, [I realized] that I’d have to start at the root of everything. And the root of everything looks like it was poverty. Then, when I studied poverty a little more, I realized that clean water is just at the base and the root of all that. You can’t really have the rest of the development process of sanitation, education, all those types of things without having the basic necessity of clean water.”

Monday, August 22, 2011

Nonprofit Resource Center: The Demand for Leadership in Rural Minnesota

Nonprofit Resource Center: The Demand for Leadership in Rural Minnesota: Benjamin Winchester, Research Fellow at Extension Center for Community Vitality at the University of Minnesota (pictured left), suggests that in many rural communities the answer is “no.” There’s not enough people to cover the volunteer board roles and the elected or appointed public roles we’ve created in our society. If you live in a small town or most anywhere in rural MN, this probably doesn’t come as a shock to you. You’ve been noticing for some time now that the same people are involved in the church council; are involved in the Lion’s Club; are involved in the Red Cross blood drive; are involved in the PTA or school board and more. Or that sometimes no one steps up to take board positions or open council seats.

Young volunteers turn backs on money - USATODAY.com

Young volunteers turn backs on money - USATODAY.com: She works a couple of part-time jobs, but most of her time is spent as an unpaid advocate for Nashville's homeless men and women.

The 26-year-old says she has a roof over her head, a husband who loves her, plenty of friends and a car that starts most of the time. And she has the belief that she'll be taken care of no matter what.

Rain doesn’t dampen charity cardboard boat race in Aurora - DailyHerald.com

Rain doesn’t dampen charity cardboard boat race in Aurora - DailyHerald.com: articipants in the Fox Valley United Way’s What Floats Your Cardboard Boat Race knew they’d get wet Saturday when their handmade crafts began to sink.

So the day’s rainy weather didn’t cancel the event, which kicks off the yearly fundraising campaign for the United Way.

Charity tomato fight highlight of Pittston festival - News - The Times-Tribune

Charity tomato fight highlight of Pittston festival - News - The Times-Tribune: Both trenches fired away as fast as they could, heaving the juicy projectiles through the air. And standing firm in the middle of one of the throngs in a camouflage shirt and eye black, Jake Amendola ducked an incoming blast, then launched a first tomato into a makeshift shield and the second into the chest of an opponent.

It was tomato chaos Saturday afternoon in the parking lot of Cooper's Seafood House as more than 250 people took part in the Pittston Tomato Festival's charity tomato fight.

Donors give record amount to UW

Donors give record amount to UW: A sluggish economy didn’t stop the University of Wyoming from collecting a record $43.1 million in private contributions during the last fiscal year.

More than 24,000 donors gave to the school, which raised more than $40 million in private contributions for only the second time in its history, according to the university. The contributions include gifts to Wyoming Public Media and the Cowboy Joe Club.

A Gold Mine of Data About Smart Ways to Help Nonprofits - Good Advice - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas

A Gold Mine of Data About Smart Ways to Help Nonprofits - Good Advice - The Chronicle of Philanthropy- Connecting the nonprofit world with news, jobs, and ideas: And that is exactly what will soon be available from a study underwritten by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. I learned about the preliminary results at the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s conference, Better Philanthropy: From Data to Impact, where I attended a discussion with Kathy Reich, a program officer at the Packard Foundation, and Paul Connolly, a nonprofit management consultant, about preliminary findings from the foundation’s Organizational Effective Goldmine Research Project, which analyzes 1,300 grants that were designed to make nonprofits stronger.