FN&C Now

Volume 5, Number 47 – December 7, 2004 IN THIS ISSUE NEWS COVERAGE: 9/11 foundation board members named JUST PUBLISHED: Tools help with due diligence and knowledge management; studies encourage healthy lifestyles and strong fiscal policy AT THE COUNCIL: Design a session for the 2005 community foundations conference; sign up for Breaking News ACT NOW: Sign up for the 2005 Family Foundation Conference or the Center for Effective Philanthropy's seminar on improving foundation performance ON THE MOVE: Erin K. Budde (Metropolitan Association); Doug Hagan, Robert J. Jordan and Randolph L. Tom (Community Technology); Regina L. Muehlhauser (Irvine); Dewayne Matthews (Lumina); Karen Davis (Geisinger); Mary R. Sissel, Laura Barton and Brother Jeff Fard, et al. (Denver) NEWS COVERAGE 9/11 FOUNDATION BOARD: New York Governor George E. Pataki and New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg selected 31 members of the board of directors for the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation. Board members, who are charged with raising $500 million, will oversee and coordinate fundraising for and construction and operation of the memorial and cultural buildings at the site. John C. Whitehead, chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, will lead the foundation until January, when the directors will elect a chair. Members include Vartan Gregorian, Robert DeNiro, Barbara Walters, David Rockefeller, Michael D. Eisner and Robert Wood Johnson IV. Read more: http://www.wtcmemorialfoundation.org . JUST PUBLISHED KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) recently released The Due Diligence Tool: For Use in Pre-Grant Assessment, by Liza Culick, Kristen Godard and Natasha Terk. The tool provides program officers with a research-based methodology for conducting due diligence. "Worksheets, checklists and interview questions included in the tool can guide grantmakers in reviewing the most telling documents, asking the most salient questions and gaining a better understanding of what to look for," said Culick. Download the tool (PDF): http://www.geofunders.org/_uploads/documents/live/DDToolPub4Print.pdf . GEO also released Leveraging What You Know: Knowledge Management Strategies for Funders, which synthesizes the latest trends in knowledge management. The publication reports on key issues, such as technology-supported taxonomies, organizational culture assessment and effective communication. Download the report (PDF): http://www.geofunders.org/_uploads/documents/live/GEO2004KMReportFinal.pdf . HEALTHY RESOURCES: Grantmakers In Health released two publications aimed at promoting healthier individuals and fiscal policies. "Selling Healthy Lifestyles" focuses on applying social marketing principles to motivate people to make behavior changes that can improve health and reduce risk of chronic diseases. "Health and Fiscal Policy" is a portfolio of resources, including an overview of budget and tax policy issues, a primer describing the link between health and fiscal policy, and documents outlining tactics to help grantmakers be more strategic in their work on public policy issues. Download "Selling Healthy Lifestyles" (PDF) at: http://www.gih.org/usr_doc/Selling_Healthy_Lifestyles_Issue_Brief.pdf . Download "Health and Fiscal Policy" (PDF) at: http://www.gih.org/usr_doc/Health_and_Fiscal_Policy_-_What_Every_Funder_Should_Know.pdf . AT THE COUNCIL CALL FOR SESSIONS: The Council on Foundations Fall Conference for Community Foundations will be held in Seattle, September 19–21, 2005. The planning committee requests your ideas for sessions developed around the conference theme, "Community Knowledge at Work," which focuses on the role of community foundations as knowledge centers and community leaders. Deadline for submissions is Friday, February 4, 2005. Please note that the committee will not be able to accept all proposals. Find out more: http://www.cof.org/index.cfm?containerid=31&menuContainerName=&navID=0&navID=250 . FREE NEWS SERVICE: Breaking News is a free, daily e-mail newsletter summarizing the top articles—mostly from national and regional newspapers—about philanthropy. Breaking News is available to Council members only. Subscribe by e-mailing your name, title and foundation name to media@cof.org. ACT NOW FAMILY FOUNDATIONS: Mark your calendar for the Council on Foundations 2005 Family Foundation Conference in Miami, January 23–25, 2005 (preconference activities begin January 22). With "Principled Giving for Family Foundations" as its theme, the conference will launch the Stewardship Principles for Family Foundations. Speakers include Dennis Archer, former mayor of Detroit and immediate past president of the American Bar Association, and Alberto Ibargüen, publisher of the Miami Herald and the Spanish-language newspaper El Nuevo Herald. Read more or register: http://int2.cof.org/conferences/family2005 . IMPROVING PERFORMANCE: The Center for Effective Philanthropy's seminar, "Higher Impact: Improving Foundation Performance," will be held March 17–18, 2005, in San Francisco. Explore key dimensions of foundation performance through sessions on strategy development, performance assessment, governance and leadership, and learn about the results of the center's Foundation Governance Project. Speakers include Diana Aviv, Paul Brest, Carol Larson and Gavin Newsom. Register (early bird registration ends December 15) or read more: http://www.effectivephilanthropy.org/seminars/seminars_upcoming.html . ON THE MOVE ERIN K. BUDDE became president of the Metropolitan Association for Philanthropy in St. Louis December 1. Budde succeeds Ann McFarland Sullins, who had served as interim president since June. Read more: http://www.givingforum.org/news/regionalnews.html . The Community Technology Foundation of California appointed DOUG HAGAN, ROBERT J. JORDAN and RANDOLPH L. TOM to its board. Read more: http://zerodivide.org/announcements/151 . REGINA (REGGIE) L. MUEHLHAUSER will join The James Irvine Foundation's board January 1. Read more: http://www.irvine.org/irvine_news/press_releases/archive/2004/12-01_regina_muehlhauser.shtml . Lumina Foundation for Education appointed DEWAYNE MATTHEWS senior research director. Read more: http://www.luminafoundation.org/newsroom/news_releases/120104.html . KAREN DAVIS, president of The Commonwealth Fund, was appointed to the Geisinger Health System Foundation's board of directors. The Denver Foundation appointed MARY R. SISSEL board chair. LAURA BARTON and BROTHER JEFF FARD were appointed co-vice chairs. FREDERICK B. TAYLOR is treasurer and CHRISTINE JOHNSON is secretary. SUBSCRIBE FN&C Now is published by the Council on Foundations to keep you in the loop by sharing news between bimonthly editions of Foundation News & Commentary magazine (FN&C Now Web archive: http://www.foundationnews.org/now/index.htm ). Please feel free to forward this message to your friends and colleagues who might enjoy it. To subscribe (it's free) to FN&C Now, send an e-mail to fncnow@cof.org . Questions or comments about FN&C Now? Contact Paula J. Kelly at 202/467-0261. To contribute a news item for consideration, please e-mail fncnow@cof.org . To unsubscribe, send a blank e-mail to leave-fncnow-4832R@int1.cof.org . To subscribe to Foundation News & Commentary, an award-winning magazine, please send an e-mail to fncsubs@cof.org , or visit our website at http://www.icnfull.com/cgi-bin/cobolscript.exe?cof/cofmain.cbl . Council on Foundations 1828 L Street, NW Washington, DC 20036 202/466-6512 webmaster@cof.org last update: 12.07.04