FN&C Now

Volume 6, Number 11 – April 1, 2005 IN THIS ISSUE NEWS COVERAGE: Senate Finance Committee to hold hearing on charity reform Tuesday; volunteer hour's value goes up; Third Sector New England offers affordable space to progressive organizations JUST PUBLISHED: Report shows individual Marylanders' generosity; International Dateline focuses on equivalency determination and expenditure responsibility; Stanford Social Innovation Review looks at foundations and the war of ideas NOW ONLINE: Funders Concerned About AIDS relaunches website; Web journal showcases youth-produced media AT THE COUNCIL: Panel on the Nonprofit Sector hosts meeting at 56th Annual Conference; sign up for Breaking News ACT NOW: Inaugural proposals due to Student Social Venture Fund by April 11; apply Amazon.com's Nonprofit Innovation Award by April 28; register for the 10th Nonprofit Workout on accountability ON THE MOVE: Kim Hacker (Social Venture Partners Denver); Jeannine Balfour, Mariam Mohamed and Sarah Lovan (McKnight) NEWS COVERAGE SENATE HEARING: The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on Charities and Charitable Giving: Proposals for Reform Tuesday, April 5, 2005. Individuals scheduled to provide testimony include Diana Aviv, Mark Everson, Brian Gallagher, Jane Gravelle, Mike Hatch, Richard Johnson, David Kuo, Leon Panetta and George K. Yin. Read more: http://www.cof.org/index.cfm?containerid=64&menuContainerName=&navID=0 . VOLUNTEER HOUR: What's an hour of your time worth? Independent Sector estimates that the value of a volunteer hour in 2004 was $17.55 (up from $17.19 in 2003). The total value of 2004 volunteer hours equals approximately $272 billion in services, assuming volunteers gave the same amount of time as in previous years. Read more: http://www.independentsector.org/media/20050324_time_value.html . NONPROFIT CENTER: Third Sector New England (TSNE) is providing a home for nonprofit organizations at the NonProfit Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. TSNE opened the facility to foster collaboration among, provide organizational stability for and build the power of Boston-based groups working for social change. The center is the first of its kind in Massachusetts and one of just a few in New England. The building, which offers affordable office and meeting space to groups of all sizes, currently has openings for mid-sized tenants. Read more: http://www.nonprofitcenterboston.org . JUST PUBLISHED GENEROUS MARYLANDERS: According to a report released yesterday by the Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers, Marylanders who itemized deductions on their tax returns contributed $4.1 billion to charitable causes in 2002. This amount represents nearly 3% of taxpayers' adjusted gross incomes (making Maryland the seventh most generous state in the United States). The State of Individual Giving in Maryland: 2005 covers the year 2002, the most recent year for which government data are available. Download the report (PDF): http://www.abagmd.org/usr_doc/Individual_Giving_Report_2005.pdf . INTERNATIONAL DATELINE: The new issue of International Dateline provides a guide to determining equivalency or expenditure responsibility. The issue also looks at three corporate models for international grantmaking, philanthropy in Italy and a recent workshop on making small grants around the world co-organized by the Global Greengrants Fund, the World Bank's Small Grants Program and the Grants Facility for Indigenous Peoples. Read the issue: http://www.cof.org/Content/General/Display.cfm?contentID=2499#legal . SOCIAL INNOVATION: In the Spring 2005 Stanford Social Innovation Review, Adam Rich looks into how mainstream and liberal foundations hamper themselves in the war of ideas with conservative foundations. In other features, Francie Ostrower recounts grantees' frustration when funders require them to work with other nonprofits, and Michael Klausner and Jonathan Small warn against hiring board members solely for their fundraising skills or standing in the community. This issue's "What Works" section profiles the Jacobs Foundation's revitalization of a neighborhood and the Taproot Foundation's use of volunteers with marketing expertise to aid grantees. Read more or subscribe: http://www.ssireview.com . NOW ONLINE AIDS INFO: The redesigned website of Funders Concerned About AIDS features a user-friendly layout, up-to-date information on its activities and resources for grantmakers seeking to better understand and actively participate in the philanthropic response to AIDS. It also includes the latest publications, news and events on HIV/AIDS. Find out more: http://www.fcaaids.org . YOUTH MEDIA: The Open Society Institute launched an online journal to spotlight the increasing influence of youth-produced media and to reach at-risk and isolated teens. Youth Media Reporter documents television, radio, film and print reports produced by young people, and provides a forum for youth media professionals to share and discuss their work. Learn more: http://www.ymreporter.org/welcome.html . AT THE COUNCIL FIELD MEETING: The Panel on the Nonprofit Sector will hold a field meeting at the Council on Foundations 56th Annual Conference in San Diego, April 10, 2005, at 4 p.m. The panel's March 1 interim report to the Senate Finance Committee recommended ways to improve nonprofit governance and accountability. The panel is now holding 12 meetings across the country to allow nonprofit organizations to comment on and augment those recommendations before it submits its final report later this spring. The meeting is open to all, but registration is required for those attendees who are not registered for the conference. Find out more: http://www.cof.org/index.cfm?containerid=64&menuContainerName=&navID=0 . 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 SOCIAL VENTURE: The Student Social Venture Fund at New York University's Stern School of Business announced its inaugural request for proposals. The fund will award grants of $5,000 to $50,000 (up to $100,000 total) to New York City-based groups that serve the educational needs of youth and submit the best proposals to strengthen their operational functions. The fund—the first student-managed one launched at a U.S. business school—uses capital provided by the Blue Ridge Foundation and Stern School alumnus Stewart Satter. The deadline for proposals is noon on April 11, 2005. Find out more: http://w4.stern.nyu.edu/berkley/social.cfm?doc_id=4230 . TIME'S RUNNING OUT: Amazon.com is conducting a nationwide search for the first Amazon.com Nonprofit Innovation Award, which will honor one U.S. nonprofit that effectively improves its community. Applications for the award will be accepted until April 28, 2005. Stanford Business School's Center for Social Innovation will review applications and select the semi-finalists, then choose ten finalists with a panel of celebrities, Fortune 500 executives and philanthropists. Each finalist will be provided with an Amazon webpage to raise funds and awareness about their programs. The competition will culminate in October 2005 with Amazon.com customers selecting the winner by contributing directly to their favorite nonprofit, who will also receive a matching grant of up to $1 million. Submit an application: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/13786331/ref%3Dnia%5Fsu%5F/104-6798004-2029522 . NONPROFIT WORKOUT: Third Sector New England's 10th Nonprofit Workout (theme: "Keeping It Real: Accountable to Whom?") will be held May 16 and 17, 2005, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Nonprofit staff and board members from around the country will gather to network, share strategies and discover new approaches to nonprofit issues. Session topics will include effective communications strategies, technology, executive transitions, fund development, social innovation strategies, governance and accountability. Register or read more: http://www.tsne.org/section/624.html . ON THE MOVE KIM HACKER is now executive director of Social Venture Partners Denver, a donor-advised fund of The Denver Foundation, which works to increase philanthropy and volunteerism to make social change in the Denver Metro region. JEANNINE BALFOUR and MARIAM MOHAMED were appointed program officers in grantmaking for Children and Families at The McKnight Foundation. SARAH LOVAN was hired as program assistant in the Environment and Research programs. Read more: http://www.mcknight.org/about/news_detail.aspx?itemID=2402&catID=53&typeID=2 . 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: 4.04.05