FN&C Now

Volume 7, Number 35 – September 1, 2006 IN THIS ISSUE AT THE COUNCIL: Community Foundation Handbook available; sign up for Breaking News AWARDS ROUNDUP: MacArthur foundation announces first awards for small creative and effective nonprofits; American Psychological Foundation names distinguished teacher NEWS COVERAGE: Lumina Foundation forms research advisory committee ACT NOW: Register for conference for foundations with few or no staff; nominate a leader in health philanthropy for the Terrance Keenan Award ON THE MOVE: Kenneth D. Strmiska (Council on Foundations); Linda Griego (Packard); Jenna McHugh (Greater Cincinnati); Grant Oliphant and Gregg Behr (Grantmakers for Effective Organizations); Natasha Battle, Tené Traylor and Kristina Arañas (Greater Atlanta) AT THE COUNCIL COMMUNITY FOUNDATION HANDBOOK: Hiring new staff or a new CEO? The Community Foundation Handbook: What You Need to Know, from the Council on Foundations, will quickly get them up to speed. The book introduces community foundation CEOs and staff to the options available to them in governance, management and administration, resource development and donor relations, grantmaking and community leadership, communications and marketing and more. Although written primarily for staff, the guide is comprehensive enought that board members and volunteers will also find it valuable. Read more or purchase the book: https://www.cof.org/Store/ProductDetail.cfm?&ProductID=5384&navItemNumber=3774 . 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, as well as members and staff of our colleague organizations. Subscribe by e-mailing your name, title and foundation name to media@cof.org. NEWS COVERAGE NEW ADVISORY COMMITTEE: The Lumina Foundation for Education has formed a research advisory committee to help the foundation improve policy and practice in higher education. Fifteen national higher education experts will serve two-year terms on the committee, which will inform the foundation's research agenda, identify established and emerging researchers and disseminate findings to policymakers and practitioners in the field. The foundation's research agenda will focus on key issues and questions to expand opportunities for postsecondary education. These include: affordability; access and persistence among underserved student populations; the growing importance of community colleges; and data-based decisionmaking. Read more: http://www.luminafoundation.org/newsroom/news_releases/08162006.html . AWARDS ROUNDUP SMALL AND EFFECTIVE: The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation named nine organizations in five countries as winners of its new annual award for small nonprofits showing unusual effectiveness and creativity. The organizations receiving the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions are the Chicago Rehab Network; theCLEEN Foundation (Lagos, Nigeria); Fundar: Centro de Análisis e Investigación (Mexico City); Independent Council of Legal Expertise (Moscow, Russia); Knowledge Ecology International (London, Geneva and Washington, DC); North Lawndale Employment Network (Chicago); Peruvian Society for Environmental Law (Lima); RealBenefits (Boston); and the Society for Education, Action, and Research in Community (Maharashtra, India). Each organization will receive up to $500,000—a large sum given that each has an annual budget of less than $2.5 million. The awards will be presented in Chicago on October 5. The foundation will also organize a series of seminars on the winners' work that will be open to other nonprofits. Read more: http://www.macfound.org/site/c.lkLXJ8MQKrH/b.1053853/apps/nl/content2.asp?content_id={4EB54DB4-90EF-42EA-B9AF-F9765C0A8990}¬oc=1 . DISTINGUISHED TEACHER: The American Psychological Foundation presented its 2006 Charles L. Brewer Award for the Distinguished Teaching of Psychology to Randolph A. Smith. Smith is chair & professor of psychology at Kennesaw State University, editor of Teaching of Psychology and a mentor to new scholars and teachers of psychology. The award recognizes a career of significant contributions to the teaching of psychology. Recipients receive a plaque, $2,000 and a trip to the American Psychological Association's (APA) annual convention. The award was presented to Smith at this year's convention in New Orleans on August 11. Read more: http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug06/apfnews.html . ACT NOW LEADERSHIP AWARD: Grantmakers In Health's (GIH) Terrance Kennan Leadership Award recognizes grantmakers in health philanthropy whose work is distinguished by leadership, innovation and achievement. Nominees' work should demonstrate responsiveness to people in their communities, large or small, and particular responsiveness to those in the greatest need. It should also distinguish itself by creativity, risk-taking and boldness in forging permanent improvements in health. The award carries a $5,000 honorarium and will be presented during the GIH Annual Meeting on Health Philanthropy, February 14–16, 2007, in Miami. The nomination deadline is September 15. Submit a nomination or read more: http://www.gih.org/calendar_url2665/calendar_url_show.htm?doc_id=375683 . SMALL FOUNDATIONS: Join the Association of Small Foundations (ASF) in New Orleans October 26–28 for its annual conference. Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, ASF serves foundations with few or no staff. Session topics include ethics, evaluation, managing boards, succession planning, socially responsible investing, involving children in philanthropy and preparing your foundation for natural and man-made disasters. The conference will also include colleague-to-colleague dialogues on marrying into a foundation, being the largest funder in a small town and other topics. On October 25, there will be a preconference program with a day-long tour of New Orleans with the Neighborhood Funders Group. Register or find out more: http://www.kintera.org/site/pp.asp?c=fvKRI7MPJqF&b=1532029 . ON THE MOVE In mid-October, KENNETH D. STRMISKA will join the Council on Foundations as managing director for Community Foundation Services. Read more: http://www.cof.org/council/prdetail.cfm?ItemNumber=5406&navItemNumber=3990 . LINDA GRIEGO was elected trustee of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Read more: http://www.packard.org/newsDetails.aspx?RootCatID=2&CategoryID=48&ItemID=3121 . The Women's Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation appointed JENNA MCHUGH acting executive director. McHugh, a loaned executive from the FACS Group, Inc. (a subsidiary of Federated Department Stores, Inc.), will be with the foundation for one year. Read more: http://www.greatercincinnatifdn.org . GRANT OLIPHANT and GREGG BEHR were elected to the board of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations. Read more (PDF): http://www.geofunders.org/_uploads/ documents/live/grant%20and%20gregg%20board%20announcement_14August2006.pdf . The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta promoted Program Associate NATASHA BATTLE to grants administrator. The foundation also hired TENÉ TRAYLOR as program officer for community development and KRISTINA ARAÑAS as program associate. SPECIAL OFFER The Council on Foundations has a special offer made possible through the Building Strong and Ethical Foundations program. New foundations can receive a half-priced non-member registration rate at any Council conference. In addition, they can also join the Council and receive half-priced membership dues. Your foundation may qualify—even if you've been grantmaking for several years. For specific eligibility information and more details, please contact the COF Membership Department at 202/467-0291. 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: 10.16.06