Skip to main content
Category

Feature

Mar 21

Nonprofits’ minimum wage bind

By Feature, Governance

By Jennifer Jones Austin, commentary, Times Union |

Across the nation there is mounting concern about economic inequity. At the heart of the matter of the ever-increasing economic divide are stagnant wages, which have plagued millions of low- and middle-income Americans for decades. But here in New York state we have a real opportunity to do something about this.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has proposed a $15 minimum wage to be phased in over the next two years for New York City residents and by 2021 for all other New Yorkers. His proposed legislation, the first of its kind put forth by the governor of any state, has the very real potential to increase the financial stability and improve the upward mobility of 3 million New Yorkers. The governor has evidenced his commitment to the minimum wage increase by using his own authority to raise the wages of both state and SUNY employees, but he has not yet moved to include those workers who provide vital human services for the state.

Human services and Medicaid-funded workers employed by nonprofits funded by state government contracts and Medicaid reimbursements deliver mandated services including child welfare, childcare, senior services and supports for the disabled. These workers perform critical roles in our economy and in the communities they serve. However, more than 50 percent of them, more than 400,000, earn less than $15 an hour.

Button Text
Mar 21

Nonprofit ads tap ‘Game of Thrones’ to highlight real-world conflict

By Feature, Fundraising

By Alina Tugend, ShortCuts columnist, The New York Times |

The actors in “Game of Thrones,” the epic fantasy series featuring story lines about civil war and banishment, are using the enormous popularity of their HBO series to raise money for real-life victims of conflict and exile.

Beginning Monday, public service announcements and videos featuring the show’s actors will appear urging support for the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian relief organization that aids refugees. The ads will appear online exclusively, including on the charity’s microsite, YouTube and social media platforms.

The campaign will run through the series’s sixth season, which begins April 24, with the goal of raising $1 million. The organization is tapping into a significant audience: The trailer for the coming season of “Game of Thrones” was viewed 32 million times within 24 hours of being posted online on Tuesday.

Button Text
Mar 21

Nine nonprofits ask for Zebulon, N.C.’s support

By Feature, Fundraising

By Aaron Moody, reporter, The News & Observer |

Nine nonprofit organizations have submitted applications asking Zebulon leaders to consider them for support as the town prepares its budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

The town has dished out the same amount of funding to the same groups for the past four years: $1,000 each to the Zebulon Chamber of Commerce, Shepherd’s Care Medical Clinic and the East Wake Education Foundation, and $500 to the annual Zebulon Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast. All those groups reapplied for varying levels of support this year.

Representatives of six of the nine applicants made brief presentations on their requests at the March 7 board of commissioners’ meeting.

Button Text
Mar 08

Top nine tips for managing junior boards

By Feature, Governance

By Cynthia Remec, executive director and founder, BoardAssist

Every day BoardAssist is approached by enthusiastic millennials who are eager to be agents of change on a nonprofit board.  Unfortunately many of these terrific candidates are either too young to be considered for a full board seat by our clients, or unable to meet the financial commitment required by our nonprofit clients.

Until recently we had not been able to accommodate these terrific people and their generous desire to give back.  Now we can, with our new Pilot Junior Board Matching Program!

Button Text
Mar 08

A trending fundraising tool: a junior board

By Feature, Governance

By CJ Orr, associate director, Orr Associates |

Six years ago, the phrase “junior board” was understood by only a few. Now, I hear it all the time. I work at a nonprofit consulting firm, Orr Associates, Inc (OAI). OAI works exclusively with nonprofits to help them with their fundraising and development needs. Our nonprofit partners consistently tell us they struggle to engage with millennials. Many of them have been building junior boards to serve as a solution.

Over the past year, I took the time to study the complexities and fundraising interests of the millennial generation. In my research, I identified over 400 nonprofits that have a junior board and spoke with over 70 of them about their junior board. I also serve as a board member on four different junior boards.

Button Text
Mar 08

Boarding call for next-gen leaders

By Feature, Governance

By Anna Pikovsky Auerbach, Moonridge Group COO, Stanford Social Innovation Review |

The millennial generation cares about the state of the world and wants to get involved—so why do so few boards have young members?

A quick search of “millennials on nonprofit boards” yields more than 67,000 search results on Google. Most of the articles that turn up emphasize the value of millennial leadership, and include calls to engage and involve them in the social sector. But reality lags far behind interest and intentions.

One large, national survey in 2012 showed that only 2 percent of board members were under 30, while 43 percent were between 50 and 64. Meanwhile, 70 percent of millennials spent at least an hour volunteering last year, and 84 percent made a charitable donation. More than other living generations, the millennial generation is focused on making a difference, being hands-on, and pursuing what it loves. Data like this makes it clear that millennials care about the state of the world and want to get involved — so why do so few boards have young members?

Button Text
Feb 29

Nonprofits and lobbying: Yes, they can!

By Feature, Legislation

By Nayantara Mehta, counsel, Alliance for Justice |

When many people think about nonprofits and lobbying, they might think of a relationship like oil and water: they don’t mix. There is a widespread perception that nonprofits cannot lobby, or if they do lobby, they are exploiting some kind of legal loophole. The fact is that nonprofits, even 501(c)(3) organizations, which are the most restricted type of nonprofits, may legally lobby. Getting involved in the legislative process and having a say in policy discussions is not just an appropriate role for nonprofits; it is vital. If nonprofits are not speaking on behalf of their often-vulnerable communities, chances are nobody else is either.

Organizations with a focus on the environment may be the most visible nonprofits engaging in the policy process, but lobbying is no less important for nonprofits working on every issue area, from the arts to wildlife preservation.

Button Text
Feb 29

Two nonprofits face more than $47,000 in fines over L.A. lobbying forms

By Feature, Legislation

By Emily Alpert Reyes, reporter, Los Angeles Times |

Two nonprofits could face fines totaling more than $47,000 from the city Ethics Commission for failing to accurately report how much they had spent on lobbying at City Hall.

Ethics Commission staffers have proposed a fine of $30,000 for the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, an influential organization that has successfully pushed to raise wages for hotel and airport workers, and $17,500 for the Hospital Assn. of Southern California, a regional trade group for hospitals.

Button Text
Feb 29

Nonprofits can lobby

By Feature, Legislation

By Center for Nonprofits |

Given the many crucial issues facing nonprofit organizations and the people they serve, it is more important than ever that charities become involved in the public policy debate. Yet too many people mistakenly assume that it is illegal for nonprofits to lobby.

To the contrary, federal laws actually exist to encourage charities to lobby within certain specified limits. Knowing what constitutes lobbying under the law, and what the limits are, is the key to being able to lobby legally and safely. This article represents a vastly simplified summary of some of the laws and regulations governing charitable lobbying. The complete laws are much more complex, so consult your attorney or accountant for professional advice.

Button Text
Feb 23

The gap

By Feature, Leadership

By Christine H. O’Toole, freelance writer, Heinz Endowment |

When Patricia Arquette used her Oscar acceptance speech to demand fair pay for women, it wasn’t just Hollywood stars who gave her a rousing ovation.

Television viewers saw actresses Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lopez cheering as Ms. Arquette declared, “It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all, and equal rights for women in the United States of America.” Some 2,400 miles away, women in Pittsburgh’s nonprofit sector applauded, too.

Recent analyses of the region’s nonprofits have revealed a significant pay gap between men and women executives. The studies include a report that Bob Orser and Rita Haronian of the Nonprofit Compensation Associates prepared for the Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management at Robert Morris University. It shows that although 64 percent of executive directors at nonprofit agencies in the Pittsburgh region are women, their average pay was just 75 percent of the average salary for men — $101,475 compared to men’s $135,170. Overall, women’s nonprofit pay has stalled at 74 cents for every dollar earned by men, even as women comprise 74 percent of all employees in the sector.

Button Text