Philanthropy Today - Philanthropy.com

These are items on other Web sites that are of interest to the nonprofit world. The Chronicle has no control over their content or availability. To reach the Philanthropy Today staff, send an e-mail message to daily.news@philanthropy.com

Compiled by Noelle Barton, Caroline Bermudez, Maria Di Mento, Audrey Hill, Anne W. Howard, and Candie Jones.

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May 2009

May 29, 2009

One Third of Bay Area Nonprofit Groups Fear Closure Within the Year

One-third of San Francisco-area nonprofit groups are worried they may have to shut down in the next year, and 34 percent say they have no more than two months’ worth of operating funds in reserve, according to a survey by the regional United Way.

Nearly two-thirds of the 391 respondents to the organization’s 2009 Nonprofit Pulse Survey said demand for their services was increasing. Twenty-three percent have had to reduce services, while 26 percent said they have collaborated in the past six months with another charity.

Anne Wilson, head of the Bay Area United Way, said the increasing collaboration and partnership among groups “might be the one positive emerging from these lean times.”

Pennsylvania Military School Sues Alumni Group

A private Pennsylvania military academy has sued a group of disgruntled alumni in the latest salvo of a divisive fight over the school’s leadership and direction, reports The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Valley Forge Military Academy & College says the graduates’ group, Valley Forge Old Guard Inc., has done “irreparable harm” to the school and its foundation by using copyrighted symbols and images on its Web site and literature.

The alumni group has been at odds with the academy since July 2005, when Valley Forge trustees hired the school’s first civilian president.

Critics Question Court Nominee's Ties to Puerto Rican Nonprofit Group

Sonia Sotomayor, President Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court, is now under public scrutiny for the years she spent on the Board of Directors of a Puerto Rican advocacy group, The New York Times reports.

Ms. Sotomayor served on the board of the Puerto Rican Defense and Education Fund from 1980 until 1992, when she was appointed to become a federal judge.

During that time the organization, now known as LatinoJustice PRLDEF, filed lawsuits concerning job discrimination and bilingual education and staked out strong positions on issues such as capital punishment, voting rights, and police brutality.

“While it’s fine to let your Puerto Rican heritage influence — or any heritage for that matter — influence your positions when you’re on a board, it’s quite a different story when you’re a judge, and I wonder whether she knows the difference,” said Curt Levey, executive director of Committee for Justice, a conservative legal group.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Weatherization Nonprofit Groups Set for Stimulus Gain

Nonprofit organizations that provide energy-saving “weatherization” services to homes are set to get a major financial benefit via the federal economic-stimulus package, which sets energy efficiency and the creation of green jobs as major priorities, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Local governments, as well as private organizations, are jockeying for grants to provide energy audits and make weatherizing repairs, particularly for low-income families. Some states are asking charities to compete for some or all of their funds from the federal Weatherization Assistance Program.

Sheltering Arms Senior Services, a Houston charity that took in $350,000 last year, could get $22.2 million over two years and increase tenfold the number of homes it weatherizes annually.

For more on this and other parts of the economic-stimulus package that could benefit charities, see The Chronicle’s coverage.

(A paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)

Gates Foundation Chief Hails Benefits of Philanthropic Risks

Charities that have the means to do so need to take chances and try things that might fail as a way to learn the best routes to social innovation, the head of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Jeff Raikes, said in an interview with the Associated Press.

“Almost by definition, good philanthropy means we’re going to have to do some risky things, some speculative things, to try to see what works and what doesn’t,” said the former Microsoft executive, who assumed administrative leadership of the world’s largest philanthropy nine months ago.

Mr. Raikes, whose own foundation supports youths, education, and Seattle causes, cited the Gates Foundation’s education effort, which has spent billions in recent years on scholarships and school improvements. He said he believes the philanthropy must take a different approach and direct grants toward developing and supporting more effective teachers.

Charities and Foundations Play Growing Role in Global Development

Charities and foundations are moving rapidly into the development landscape previously dominated by government-run institutions such as the United Nations and the World Bank, the Financial Times reports.

While the government entities are still in the best position to respond to crises requiring a significant response, such as the global economic downturn, for-profit and nonprofit social enterprises can adopt more nimble and innovative approaches to particular problems in the developing world, the newspaper writes.

“Business and society have to go through this utterly profound management transformation to move away from a few people running everyone else,” said Bill Drayton, founder of the social-entrepreneurship organization Ashoka. “Because that model can’t function in a world with rapid change coming from all directions.”

From The Chronicle: IRS Urged to Investigate University

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a civil-liberties watchdog group in Washington, is asking the Internal Revenue Service to investigate Liberty University after the university dropped its official recognition of a student Democratic Party club, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports. Liberty University, in Lynchburg, Va., was founded by the late Rev. Jerry Falwell.

From The Chronicle: MacArthur Fund Unveils $68-Million Effort to Promote Peace in Asia

With security concerns rising on the Korean peninsula, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation announced today it is committing $68-million during the next seven years to promote peace and international cooperation among Asian nations, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Prospecting: Using Twitter to Raise Money

Twitter users now have a new way to support charity, but it might not ever raise much money for good causes, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s online fund-raising column.

Online Discussion Next Week: Using Online Networks to Promote Social Causes

In today’s economy, nonprofit leaders need to understand how to effectively promote their organizations, programs, and fund-raising campaigns.

Many groups want to use online social networks to get their messages out but don’t know how to build their images and get attention on the networks.

In an online discussion on June 2, we’ll discuss how you can ensure that your organization stands out through online networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn and explore how those tools can complement traditional marketing efforts.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

SURVIVING THE RECESSION: SIGN UP TODAY FOR A SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL EVENT

The turbulent economy is creating new incentives to combine “back office” functions like accounting, human resources, and technology.

But figuring out how to collaborate with other organizations — including how to unite fund-raising and mission-related programs — is a challenge.

To help Chronicle readers learn how to approach such efforts, we invite you to a one-hour Webinar on June 3.

Our Webinars give you easy access to experts without the expense of paying for consultants or the hassle of leaving your office during your busy day. What’s more, you can invite as many of your staff colleagues or board members as you like — and all can watch the Webinar with you for one low price.

If you are a Chronicle subscriber, you get an extra benefit: 40-percent off your registration fee.

Learn more about how the Chronicle’s educational events can help your organization thrive in these tough times by visiting our Web site.

May 28, 2009

Court Asked to Reopen Shuttered College

A court in New Orleans has been asked to order Tulane University to reopen the H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, which it shuttered after almost 120 years, according to the group Save Newcomb College.

Susan Henderson Montgomery, a successor of Josephine Louise Newcomb, who created the college through a bequest and earlier donations, petitioned the Civil District Court for Orleans Parish on May 27 to grant summary judgment on key issues in the case and order the college’s reopening.

The petition states that Ms. Newcomb’s bequest to Tulane’s board was contingent on the board creating and maintaining in perpetuity a women’s college at the university. The plaintiff’s lawyers say they are not seeking money or property but recognition of the donor’s original intent. The college was closed in 2006 as part of post-Hurricane Katrina restructuring.

St. Jude's Wins Target-Sponsored Contest on Facebook

St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, in Memphis, has won Target’s “Bullseye Gives” contest, in which Facebook users voted on how to divvy up $3-million pledged by the retail chain, reports The New York Times.

St. Jude’s, founded by the late actor Danny Thomas, finished first among the 10 competing charities, with 26.5 percent of the more than 290,000 online votes. The hospital will get $797,123 from Target. The American Red Cross, which finished a close second at 26.5 percent, won $793,942.

The competition attracted 97,000 new fans to Target’s Facebook page and increased the number of daily page views by 4,800 percent.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Teach for America Attracts Record Number of Applicants

A tight job market has a record number of college graduates seeking positions with Teach for America, reports the Associated Press.

More than 35,000 prospective graduates — including 11 percent of all Ivy League seniors — applied to join the nonprofit service program for the coming school year, a 42 percent gain over 2008. The program will send 4,100 new recruits into classrooms this fall, primarily in poor areas.

Profile Looks at Clinton's Role as Global Philanthropist

A profile to be published in this Sunday’s New York Times Magazine reports on Bill Clinton’s life today as an ex-president and leader of a global philanthropy.

While following President Clinton around the world in his travels on behalf of the William J. Clinton Foundation, the article notes that the charity’s work has won support and donations from some of his fiercest past political foes, such as conservative billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife and media mogul Rupert Murdoch.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

In the Arts: Judge Gives Green Light to Warhol Foundation Suit

A New York judge this week ruled that an art collector could pursue a lawsuit claiming fraud by the organization that authenticates Andy Warhol’s work, Bloomberg and The New York Times report.

According to court papers, a Warhol self-portrait judged authentic by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts when collector Joe Simon-Whelan purchased it in 1989 has since twice been declared fake by the group. Mr. Simon-Whelan has accused the foundation of seeking to inflate the value of Warhol works by limiting supply, a charge it denies.

In other arts news, The New York Times says that New York’s Film-Makers’ Cooperative, which faced closure after being evicted from a city-owned TriBeCa property, has found a new lease on life thanks to the real-estate developer Charles S. Cohen, who will lease new quarters to the experimental-film outfit for a symbolic $1 a year.

Also, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts has eliminated three of its 15 full-time positions and reduced working hours for remaining staff members to relieve fiscal pressure stemming from deep cuts in state funds for the University of Utah, which operates the museum, The Salt Lake Tribune reports.

(Free registration is required to view the Times articles.)

Profile: Former Tennis Star Runs Children's Cancer Charity

The Washington Post profiles Andrea Jaeger, who reached the heights of professional women’s tennis as a teenage prodigy in the 1980s and who now focuses on fund raising for her children’s cancer charity.

Ms. Jaeger, who took orders as a Dominican nun in 2006, co-founded the Little Star Foundation for young cancer patients in 1990, three years after injuries ended her meteoric tennis career. Among other services, the organization brings thousands of children annually to a Colorado ranch for a week of horseback riding, rafting, and other activities.

Also: Read The Chronicle’s profile of Ms. Jaeger’s philanthropic work.

(Free registration is required to view the Post article; a paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle profile.)

From The Chronicle: White House Officials Discuss Office of Social Innovation

Two officials in the Obama administration discussed plans for the new White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation, saying it will work closely with the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that runs national-service programs, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

From The Chronicle: Community-Foundation Giving

Community foundations increased their giving in 2008, bucking the belt tightening that swept nearly all quarters of the philanthropic world, according to new findings by the Foundation Center, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Government and Politics Watch: Defending Obama's Deduction Proposal

An Obama administration official is advising charities not to worry about the White House plan to limit charity tax breaks for the wealthy and to keep in mind the “broader context” of President Obama’s plan, notes Government & Politics Watch, the Chronicle’s online column.

Give and Take: Exploring a New 'Corps' for Journalists

To make sure journalism continues to serve as democracy’s watchdog while the newspaper industry makes difficult changes, an organization similar to Teach for America is needed to recruit, train, and deploy a new generation of reporters, notes a new item in Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus:

How online fund-raising contests put international groups at a disadvantage.

And how men and women differ in their approaches to philanthropy.

Prospecting: Watchdogs for Unethical Mail Campaigns

A British association of fund raisers is asking its members to become whistle-blowers when it comes to unethical direct-mail solicitations, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Plus:

Setting overly high goals may prevent charity fund raisers from getting the best possible results.

Publicity stunts prove to be an effective way to raise money.

Transcript: Financing for Arts Groups in a Weak Economy

Read a transcript of our online discussion today on new ways arts organizations are raising and earning money.

Read about the remaining two sessions in our four-part series Financial Management in Tough Times and read the transcript from the first discussion in the series.

SURVIVING THE RECESSION: SIGN UP TODAY FOR A SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL EVENT

The turbulent economy is creating new incentives to combine “back office” functions like accounting, human resources, and technology.

But figuring out how to collaborate with other organizations — including how to unite fund-raising and mission-related programs — is a challenge.

To help Chronicle readers learn how to approach such efforts, we invite you to a one-hour Webinar on June 3.

If you are a Chronicle subscriber, you get an extra benefit: 40-percent off your registration fee.

Learn more about how the Chronicle’s educational events can help your organization thrive in these tough times by visiting our Web site.

Get Ahead: Deadlines for Grants and Awards

You can get an early look at the deadlines for grants and awards compiled by The Chronicle. We have posted on our Web site all the application deadlines that will appear in our June 4 issue.

You will also find an updated list of conferences and workshops designed for nonprofit executives.

May 27, 2009

Judge Sentences Holy Land Co-Founder to 65 Years in Jail

U.S. District Judge Jorge Solis today sentenced one of the co-founders of the Holy Land Foundation to 65 years in jail, The Dallas Morning News reports. The move comes six months after a Dallas jury convicted the man, Shukri Abu Baker, and four others of directing more than $12-million from the Muslim charity to the Palestinian group Hamas, which is designated by the United States as a terrorist organization.

Mr. Baker told the court, “I did it because I cared, not at the behest of Hamas.”

Judge Solis responded by saying, “You didn’t tell the whole story. Palestinians were in a desperate situation, but that doesn’t justify supporting Hamas.”

PBS Objects to Fund-Raising Event's 'Mr. Rogers' Link

PBS has filed a complaint with California officials over a scheduled May 31 fund-raising event staged by a California teenager who styles himself the successor to the children’s-television icon Fred Rogers, the public broadcasting journal Current reports.

Michael Kinsell, 18, of San Diego, bills the event as a tribute to the late host of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and says it will raise money for “children’s public television” and a new show of his own entitled “Michael’s Enchanted Neighborhood.”

In a complaint filed with the state attorney general’s office, PBS accused Mr. Kinsell of “falsely claiming association” with Mr. Rogers in event publicity in a manner that could divert funds to his nonprofit group from PBS and Family Communications, the production company owned by the Rogers family.

Lower-Income Americans Are Comparatively Most-Generous Givers

America’s poor and lower-income earners donate more in percentage terms than those in higher-income groups, and their giving slackens less in tough economic times, according to McClatchy Newspapers.

The latest survey of consumer expenditure by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the poorest fifth of U.S. households gave an average of 4.3 percent of their incomes to charities in 2007. The figure for the wealthiest fifth was 2.1 percent, and no other quintile gave more than 3 percent.

Among the reasons cited for the disparity are that poorer Americans tend to know more people in need, and that people with less money include disproportionate numbers of women and the elderly, groups studies have shown to be more generous givers.

Dalai Lama Pledges $100,000 for Florida University's Religion Program

The Dalai Lama has offered to donate $100,000 to help save Florida International University’s Department of Religious Studies, which is slated to close as the college slashes its budget, reports The Miami Herald.

The exiled Tibetan political and spiritual leader was contacted about the threatened closure in April by Nathan Katz, a religion professor at the Miami college who met the Dalai Lama while studying in India in the 1970s. Mr. Katz said the department, which has about 125 students and 12 full-time faculty members, plans to do more fund raising and has invited the Dalai Lama to return this year to visit the university, which bestowed him with an honorary doctorate in 1999.

Trust to Get Half of James Brown Estate in Court Deal

A South Carolina judge has approved a settlement in the lengthy court battle over the late soul-music superstar James Brown’s estate, reports the Associated Press.

Mr. Brown’s charitable trust will get nearly half of the estate, with the remainder split among his adult children and his wife and young son. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member died on Christmas Day 2006.

The value of the estate has not been made public, but lawyers involved in the case have said there is little money in Mr. Brown’s accounts and that what is at stake in the dispute is future income from movies, royalties, and the sale of the performer’s likeness.

(Free registration is required to view this article on the New York Times site.)

Study Finds Glut of Charities in Texas Capital

With more than 6,300 charitable organizations, Austin has Texas’s most crowded nonprofit field, a situation that could be creating inefficiency and duplication of effort, The Austin American-Statesman reports.

A study by Greenlights for Nonprofit Success found that the Austin area had 3.82 charitable nonprofit groups per 1,000 residents, more than any other large Texas city and tied with Oklahoma City for most in the Southwest.

Greenlights’ executive director, Matt Kouri, said there is “overpopulation” in some areas of the charitable field, and many local organizations “could benefit by merging, collaborating, or sharing services.”

Bay Area Charity Makes Art of Kids' Class Work

The San Francisco Chronicle profiles Kids Serve Youth Murals, a 10-year-old organization that has worked with local students to produce some 80 large-scale artworks around the Bay Area.

Josef Norris, who founded the organization after responding to a classified ad to do a one-week mural workshop at a San Francisco High School, said the group’s goal is “ownership, ownership, ownership,” with the young participants designing the mural and constructing it on-site.

The group’s latest project is a nearly 200-foot mural consisting of thousands of ceramic tiles honoring female heroes for Women’s History Month.

From The Chronicle: Fighting Nonprofit Fraud

As charities cut back on staff members and face shrinking resources, they should be prepared for an uptick in incidents of fraud, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Government and Politics Watch: IRS Notice for Defunct Charities

The Internal Revenue Service has released a fact sheet that explains the steps that tax-exempt organizations should follow to notify the government if they close or merge their operations, notes Government & Politics Watch, the Chronicle’s online column.

Online Discussion Tomorrow: Financing Arts Organizations

Join us Thursday, May 28, for the second in a series of four recession-related discussions that will look at new ways to finance arts organizations.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 26, 2009

Meeting on Financial Trends Raises Millions for Cancer Research

Some 1,000 hedge-fund managers will pay $3,000 a head to attend a charity fund-raising event tomorrow that doubles as an often-prescient conference on financial-market trends, Bloomberg reports.

Now in its 14th year, the Ira W. Sohn Investment Research Conference has raised more than $20-million for a foundation created by a friend of Mr. Sohn’s, a Wall Street trader who died of cancer in 1989. All registration fees go to organizations working on cancer treatment and programs for seriously ill children.

The featured speakers include David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital, who raised warnings at last year’s gathering about Lehman Brothers four months before the financial titan filed the largest bankruptcy in American history.

Vetting Charities and Joining Donor Groups Can Maximize Giving Muscle

With giving expected to decline this year due to the recession, The Wall Street Journal offers advice for ensuring that small donations make a difference.

Tips including more closely vetting organizations’ programming and finances before making a gift, pooling one’s personal funds with those of others in a giving circle; checking to see whether one’s employer has a program to offer matching gifts; and making a small loan to an entrepreneur in the developing world or a small local business.

In the Arts: Los Angeles Art Museum and Florida Orchestra Make Cuts

The strapped Museum of Contemporary Art, in Los Angeles, will not mount four planned exhibitions and will eliminate 17 jobs to balance its budget for the coming fiscal year, reports the Los Angeles Times.

The museum, which has seen its endowment shrink from $38-million to $5-million since 2000, has now pared its staff by more than a quarter, from 159 employees to 119, and reduced its $20-million budget by 22.5 percent.

In other arts news, the St. Petersburg Times reports that the Florida Orchestra has laid off three workers and instituted pay cuts of 5 to 10 percent for employees earning more than $50,000. The orchestra has raised $14-million in its current “sustainability” campaign but is unlikely to reach its goal of $20-million for this fiscal year.

Also, The Boston Globe reports that the Boston Jewish Film Festival is thriving despite the economic slump that has hit both arts organizations and Jewish philanthropies hard. “Major donors are still willing to commit,” said Jaymie Saks, the head of operations and fund raising for the 20-year-old event.

(Free registration is required to view the Times and Globe articles.)

Nonprofit Leader Advocates for Los Angeles's South Asian Immigrants

Hamid Kahn, who leads an outreach and advocacy organization that serves Los Angeles-area immigrants from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, is profiled in the Los Angeles Times.

A native Pakistani, Mr. Khan, 52, is executive director of the South Asian Network, which has organized campaigns on behalf of taxi drivers and laborers in the so-called Little India district and lobbied for immigration reform. He also hosts a weekly show on KPFK, part of the noncommercial Pacifica Radio Network.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Ex-Convict's Nonprofit Magazine Advocates for Prisoners

Paul Wright, a convicted killer who has become a leading national advocate for prisoners, is profiled by the Associated Press.

Mr. Wright launched Prison Legal News in 1990 while serving a 25-year sentence at Clallam Bay Correction Center in Washington State for killing a cocaine dealer in the course of a robbery.

Six years after his release, he continues to produce the tabloid magazine, which reports on behind-bars issues such as mail censorship, overcrowding, and abuse by guards.

Survey Finds Irish Charities Pessimistic About Prospects

Charities in Ireland face a gloomy outlook for 2009, according to a new report from Dublin’s Trinity College, the Irish Independent reports.

Nearly three-quarters of the organizations surveyed in February by the college’s Centre for Nonprofit Management expected demand for their services to increase this year; almost two-thirds expected income to decline. Eighty-five percent reported feeling threatened with the prospect of downsizing or closing outright.

From The Chronicle: National-Service Nominee Withdraws

Maria Eitel, President Obama’s pick to lead AmeriCorps and other national-service efforts has withdrawn her name from consideration, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Give and Take: Should Charities Advertise More?

Should nonprofit groups spend more money on advertising, asks a new item in Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus: Scholars debate the effectiveness of foreign aid.

May 22, 2009

Madoff and the Economic Downturn Double Pain for Jewish Groups

The combined effects of the economic downturn and the Bernard Madoff scandal are forcing Boston-area Jewish charities to downsize, merge, or close outright, The Boston Globe reports.

The umbrella organization Combined Jewish Philanthropies has laid off a tenth of its work force and preliminarily approved a 15-percent cut in grants next year. Individual charities have closed offices, cut staff members, and even mulled merging with non-Jewish groups as a result of declining endowments, reduced government aid, and the disproportionate impact of the Madoff fraud on Jewish philanthropy.

“The American Jewish community has probably lost 30 percent of its wealth, and we have no idea how to cut the costs of the Jewish community by 30 percent,” said Jonathan Sarna, a professor of American Jewish history at Brandeis University.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

S.F. Collaborates With Nonprofit Group on Cash-Incentive Program for Families

The city of San Francisco will team up with the nonprofit Family Independence Initiative on a program to pay struggling families for setting and meeting life-improvement goals such as losing weight, obtaining health insurance, and improving kids’ grades, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Families could earn up to $2,000 a year through the program, which Mayor Gavin Newsom tested two years ago with $500,000 in city funds after a similar effort achieved good results in Oakland.

The 16 San Francisco families who participated in that effort raised their income 19 percent (not including the incentive awards), six started businesses, and three bought homes.

The expanded program will not use city money but instead will seek federal support and try to tap wealthy donors.

In the Arts: Smithsonian Eyes Movie Windfall, More Layoffs at N.Y. Radio Stations

The Smithsonian Institution is anticipating a financial boost from the Hollywood comedy “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” reports The Washington Post

Under a deal with Twentieth Century Fox, the institution could get up to $1.25-million in licensing and location fees and other payments if the film matches the box-office success of the first “Night at the Museum.”

In other arts news, the New York public television stations WNET and WLIW announced an additional 50 layoffs, bringing total job cuts this year to about 130, nearly a quarter of the staff, according to The New York Times.

WNET.org, the station’s parent company, will go into the next fiscal year with a $144-million budget, down 23 percent from current spending, under a plan approved this week by its board.

Also, the Arts & Science Council, in Charlotte, N.C. voted this week to cut its grant to the Charlotte Symphony by more than half for the 2009-10 season, from $1.95-million to $900,000, and demanded that the orchestra provide a restructuring plan to receive the funds, says The Charlotte Observer.

(Free registration is required to view the Post and Times articles.)

Red Cross Says Workers Barred From Sri Lankan Camp

The International Committee of the Red Cross said Thursday that its workers have been denied access to Sri Lanka’s largest refugee camp, reports The Washington Post.

According to a statement on its Web site, the humanitarian organization has been barred from the Menik Farm camp since last weekend and is unable to distribute aid or monitor the condition of some 130,000 Sri Lankans displaced by intense fighting in the closing stages of the country’s 26-year civil war.

The United Nations this week called on the government to allow aid groups unfettered access to the war zone.

Lakshman Hulugalle, a spokesman for Sri Lanka’s Defense Ministry, defended the restrictions, saying the government is doing its best to meet refugees’ needs and is “not letting journalists and others go there to treat these people as if they were animals in a zoo.”

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Brandeis U. Suspends Payments to Staff Retirement Accounts

Brandeis University will halt payments to faculty and staff members’ retirement accounts for a year beginning July 1, a move that will cover most of the Massachusetts institution’s projected $8.9-million deficit, reports The New York Times.

Similar curbs on employee benefits have been undertaken by financially troubled corporations in response to the downturn but are rare among colleges, which have relied more on layoffs and suspension of building projects to cut spending.

“We are absolutely at a point in this economy where these sort of things have to be on the table,” said Roland King, vice president for public affairs at the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

{Free registration is required to view this article.)

Opinion: Nonprofit Groups Must Prepare Now for AmeriCorps Expansion

Nonprofit groups must “scale up quickly” to absorb the tide of volunteers from the recently enacted expansion of AmeriCorps and other national-service programs, according to an opinion article in the Christian Science Monitor.

Buffeted by the recession, many organizations are not equipped to accommodate the influx, writes Bethany Godsoe, executive director of the Research Center for Leadership in Action at the New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

Ms. Godsoe suggests nonprofit groups more closely talk to local leaders to align volunteer placements with community needs, expand training of volunteers, and take other steps to ensure that the expansion of service programs does not result in “thousands of good intentions and billions of dollars that don’t move the dial on tough social issues.”

Read a Chronicle of Philanthropy story on charities’ preparations for the AmeriCorps expansion.

(A paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)

Prospecting: Donors Grow More Optimistic on the Economy

Battered by the recession, few donors plan to increase their giving anytime soon. But their confidence in the economy is now showing some signs of improvement — which could bode well for longer-term fund-raising efforts — according to a new survey cited by Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Give & Take: Charity Overhead Costs

Ranking charities by their administrative overhead leads to many problems in directing money where it is most needed, writes a charity official cited in Give & Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus: What are the moral and political roles of foundations?

Government and Politics Watch: Lobbying Rules

Independent Sector, a national coalition of charities and foundations, has asked the Obama administration to rescind or modify rules that restrict contacts between lobbyists and federal officials regarding the $787-billion economic-stimulus law enacted in February, Government & Politics Watch, the Chronicle’s online column.

From The Chronicle: Chief Executive Resigns Amid Plagiarism Charges

Janet K. Ginn has stepped down from her position as chief executive of the Heifer Foundation in Little Rock, Ark., amid allegations of copyright infringement and plagiarism, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Online Discussions Next Week: Tactical Philanthropy and Arts Financing

Join us Tuesday, May 26, at noon Eastern time, for a live, online discussion with the wealth adviser Sean Stannard-Stockton on how changes in technology, demographics, and ideals are challenging traditional nonprofit structures in profound ways.

Plus: Join us Thursday, May 28, for the second in a series of four recession-related discussions that will look at new models of financing for arts organizations.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

Holiday Notice: No Philanthropy Today on Monday

Because of the Memorial Day holiday, we will not be sending you Philanthropy Today on Monday. We will be back in your mailbox on Tuesday. We’ll keep our site updated over the holiday weekend with any breaking news on the nonprofit world.

May 21, 2009

Vick Might Team Up With Humane Society on Anti-Dog-Fighting Campaign

Michael Vick, the suspended NFL star released from federal prison yesterday after serving 19 months for dog fighting, says he wants to work with the Humane Society of the United States to help eradicate the practice among urban teenagers, the Associated Press reports.

The society’s president, Wayne Pacelle, met with the ex-Atlanta Falcons quarterback Tuesday, Mr. Vick’s final full day at the U.S. penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kan. Mr. Vick returns today to his home in Hampton, Va., where he will serve two months of home detention before his scheduled release in July.

Mr. Pacelle discussed the possibility of the nonprofit group enlisting Mr. Vick to campaign against dog fighting in an interview with National Public Radio.

Clinton Urges Travelers to Donate When Buying Airline Tickets

Former President Bill Clinton has joined an international effort to tap airline passengers as donors to raise money for medical aid for the developing world, reports The New York Times.

The joint effort by the United Nations and Leading Innovative Financing for Equity, a newly formed coalition of aid organizations, aims to collect funds for projects to fight malaria, tuberculosis, and AIDS. Passengers who book their flights online will be asked to add a $2 donation to their bills in support of the effort.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

FTC Settlement Leads to Closure of Three California Charities

Three Southern California nonprofit groups targeted by the Federal Trade Commission in its nationwide crackdown on charity abuses will dissolve after reaching a settlement with the U.S. agency, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The government said the American Veterans Relief Foundation, the Coalition of Police and Sheriffs, and the Disabled Firefighters Fund, which share a Santa Ana address, spent only 5 percent of the $19-million they raised from 2005 to 2008 on charitable purposes. Instead, most of the money went to staff members and telemarketing contractors, according to regulators.

The commission fined the charities $19-million but waived the penalty due to their inability to pay. A lawyer for the organizations said they decided to settle because they could not afford to mount a defense.

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In the Arts: Gardner Expansion Approved, Lyric Opera Stays in Black

The trustees of Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum voted this week to proceed with a controversial addition that will necessitate the demolition of a century-old carriage house, reports The Boston Globe.

Museum officials say the new building, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, is needed to relieve pressure on the existing edifice, which opened in 1903. Opponents maintain that the carriage house, erected by Ms. Gardner four years later, was integral to her vision for the institution.

In other arts news, the Chicago Tribune reports that the Lyric Opera of Chicago posted a slight surplus for the 2008-9 season, in contrast to the deficits faced by other big-city operas. But the group is cutting spending in anticipation of rougher financial seas next season.

Also, the Phoenix Symphony’s musicians and staff members have agreed to a 17-percent pay cut over the next three years, reports The Arizona Republic. The $2-million savings will allow the organization to maintain a full-time orchestra.

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Madoff Losses Imperil Prestigious Program for Israeli Musicians

An internationally influential scholarship program for young Israeli musicians is in danger of shutting down as a result of the Bernard Madoff fraud, The New York Times reports.

The American-Israeli Cultural Foundation’s $14-million endowment was wiped out in Mr. Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, forcing it to slash a program considered an essential stepping stone for Israeli music students. Hundreds of young performers audition for the grants annually, and past recipients include Daniel Barenboim, Itzhak Perlman, and Pinchas Zukerman.

The organization, which supports dance and visual arts as well as music, expects to award about 350 scholarships next year, compared to 800 in the past. It has raised about $1-million in emergency funds and dismissed most staff members at its New York and Tel Aviv offices in an effort to preserve the program.

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Troubled Economy Triggers Changes in Giving Strategies

A New York Times article offers advice to donors on maximizing the impact of their giving as the downturn both reduces their ability to donate and ratchets up requests from hard-hit charities.

Strategies discussed include converting multiyear pledges to a charity’s endowment into an immediate gift of operating cash; deferring gifts while maintaining a commitment to a particular nonprofit group; and focusing on charities that would be most threatened without continued support and are most worth preserving.

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Big Donors Set Time Limits on Their Philanthropy

Philanthropists are increasingly setting deadlines for their charitable giving, rather than creating foundations designed to last in perpetuity, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Jennifer and Peter Buffett, Charles Feeney, and Bill and Melinda Gates are among the major donors who have imposed so-called spend-down or sunset provisions on their giving in recent years in hopes of having a quicker impact on major global issues than they might following a more traditional approach of long-term annual payouts.

“There are such pressing needs now, from climate change to the economic challenges facing our communities, we need to get focused and step up in a big way now,” said Ms. Buffett, who runs the NoVo Foundation with her husband.

Government and Politics Watch: Fight for Federal 'Capacity-Building' Money

Sen. Max Baucus, the Senate Finance Committee chairman, says he still considers it a priority to get $25-million in federal money over five years for a Nonprofit Capacity-Building Program, reports Government and Politics Watch, The Chronicle’s online column.

Plus: More than 300 nonprofit organizations from across the country attended a meeting with White House and administration officials to discuss ways to mobilize people to volunteer this summer.

Secret Meeting of America's Elite Donors Draws Wave of Suggestions

What did Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Ted Turner, Warren Buffett, and other top donors discuss during their secret meeting on philanthropy this month in New York? Chronicle readers have plenty of ideas and suggestions for the group. Offer your views and read what others have said.

Prospecting: Online Tool Serves Dual Purpose

The brevity imposed by Twitter — a social-media site that enables people to post messages of 140 characters or fewer — has created a boom in tools that shorten Web addresses. One, called Good.ly, also promotes giving, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Online Discussions Next Week: Tactical Philanthropy and Arts Financing

Plus: Join us Thursday, May 28, for the second in a series of four recession-related discussions that will look at new models of financing for arts organizations.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 20, 2009

Gates Foundation Tackles Malaria and Drug Counterfeiters in Southeast Asia

A $23-million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to the World Health Organization will pay for a new effort to battle a deadly, drug-resistant strain of malaria breeding in Southeast Asia, reports Bloomberg.

The prevalence in the region of counterfeit medications produced largely in China has helped spread the new strain, which one Bangkok medical researcher called a “time bomb” that could undo decades of work to curb the disease.

British Authorities Probe Charity With Links to July 7 London Bombers

Britain’s Charity Commission is investigating a religious aid organization in which two of the men who carried out the July 7, 2005, suicide bombings in London served as trustees, reports Third Sector Online.

A commission spokeswoman said the probe would examine whether Iqra, in Yorkshire, had been used to “facilitate terrorist, extremist, or other inappropriate activities.” The organization has not submitted any accounts or trustees’ annual reports since it was registered in 2003.

The group’s former trustees include Mohammed Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer, two of the four identified July 7 bombers, and Waheed Ali, who was convicted last month of attending a terrorist training camp but acquitted of involvement in the bombings of a London bus and subway train that killed more than 50 people.

In the Arts: Artists Share Stories of Creativity Amid Economic Crunch

The New York Times reports on the responses it received to an Internet solicitation for artists to share how the economic downturn is affecting their lives and work.

The response from visual artists, theater professionals, performers, arts managers, and others ranged from despairing to defiant, with many saying the recession had strengthened their commitment to their work or even generated creative inspiration.

In other arts news, a California State Assembly committee will consider today legislation to funnel 20 percent of receipts from the sales tax on art and arts supplies to cultural institutions via the state Arts Council, reports the Los Angeles Times.

The Los Angeles Times also reports on the results of the Association of Art Museum Curators’ annual awards, which honored exhibits at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, among other institutions.

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Divorce and Financial Questions Bedevil Animal Charity

The Daily Herald, of Everett, Wash., reports on controversies surrounding Pasado’s Safe Haven, a sanctuary for injured and abused animals that has won national attention and support from Oprah Winfrey and Will Smith.

The article details the two-year legal wrangling over the shelter that grew out of the divorce of co-founders Susan Michaels and Mark Steinway and questions over the blurring of boundaries between the organization’s mission and the couple’s personal business, including the use of $170,000 in Pasado’s funds to build a home for them on the charity’s grounds in Snohomish County, Wash.

Housing Nonprofit Chief Emerges as Banking-Industry Critic

The Wall Street Journal profiles Bruce Marks, whose nonprofit Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America has taken the lead in blasting the financial sector and campaigning for foreclosed homeowners in the wake of the housing crash.

The organization has staged rallies at mortgage investors’ homes, held mass debt-counseling sessions for struggling homeowners, and published photos and sometimes home phone numbers of lenders it accuses of blocking efforts to head off foreclosures.

Though bankers privately deplore his tactics, Mr. Marks has gained growing influence in the lending industry. His organization has signed agreements with the four biggest U.S. mortgage lenders to work with its counselors to set up lower payments for struggling borrowers.

Nebraska Philanthropist Blames Alcohol and Drugs for Vegas Debts

A prominent Nebraska philanthropist accused of failing to pay nearly $14.8-million to Las Vegas casinos claims he was plied with alcohol and drugs as he ran up huge gambling debts, the Associated Press reports.

Terrance “Terry” Watanabe, who has developed a reputation as a major giver to nonprofit organizations since selling his Omaha import firm in 2000, was indicted last month in what an official with the Clark County, Nev., prosecutor’s office has called the largest bad-check case ever in Las Vegas.

In a letter to Nevada grand jurors, a lawyer for Mr. Watanabe alleged that officials at two Las Vegas casinos kept his client “significantly and visibly intoxicated” with drinks and a prescription painkiller at gaming tables in late 2007.

From The Chronicle: Secret Gathering of America's Top Donors

In a meeting closed to the news media and the public, Bill Gates, David Rockefeller Sr., Oprah Winfrey, and other leading philanthropists met in New York this month to discuss ways to promote efforts to solve growing social problems in America and abroad, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Together, the philanthropists who gathered have committed a total of more than $72.5-billion to charitable causes since 1996, according to a Chronicle tally.

From The Chronicle: Congress Eyes 'Commercialization' in College Sports

Big-time college sports programs derive 60 to 80 percent of their revenue from commercial sources, suggesting that intercollegiate athletics — at least at the elite level — may have “crossed the line” from a nonprofit, educational endeavor to a commercial activity, according to a new report from the Congressional Budget Office, covered by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

From The Chronicle: Foundation Board Diversity

Foundations are failing to recruit diverse board leadership, with Hispanics being the most underrepresented compared to their growing number in American society, according to a new report, says The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Government and Politics Watch: State Department's Text-Message Campaign

In an effort to help Pakistani refugees, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced yesterday that cellphone users can text the word “swat” to 20222 to make a $5 gift to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, reports Government and Politics Watch, The Chronicle’s online column.

Prospecting: Weight-Loss Fund Raising

Facing a $200,000 deficit, the executive director of the Greater Bay Area Make-a-Wish Foundation is going on a 12-week diet and getting people she knows to pledge money for every pound she loses, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Plus: A new report finds a link between organizational structure and online fund-raising success.

Money and Mission: Debating Nonprofit Salaries

The author Dan Pallotta’s recent comments that low salaries in the nonprofit world prevent talented young people from seeking out careers at charities have touched off an emotion-charged debate among readers. Offer your views and read what others have said.

May 19, 2009

Gates Foundation Gives $1-Million to a School in London

For the first time, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded its $1-million annual prize for global health to an academic institution — the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, reports The Seattle Times.

The school beat out more than 100 other organizations nominated for the award and will use the money to train people to work in public health around the world. It will receive the award later this month at a conference in Washington, the paper reports.

Former N.Y. Charity Leader Sues Over Ouster by Organization

The former chief executive of the Black Equity Alliance, a charity in New York, is suing the organization, saying its board fired her because she endorsed Mayor Michael Bloomberg for re-election, reports The New York Times on its City Room blog.

A lawyer for Joyce S. Johnson tells the paper that Ms. Johnson endorsed Mr. Bloomberg in March as a private citizen, not as head of the charity. Ms. Johnson’s suit claims that board members suggested to her that her endorsement could put the charity’s nonprofit status in peril, the Times reports. The lawsuit also alleges the charity’s board did not favor the endorsement of Mr. Bloomberg over his opponent, William C. Thompson Jr., who is black.

Officials for the charity did not comment in the article.

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In the Arts: Chicago Symphony Musicians Take Pay Cut

Musicians in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra have agreed to a 2.5 percent pay cut for about two years and the donation of additional services to help the organization save about $4-million, reports the Chicago Tribune.

This follows a pay and hiring freeze at the orchestra that began in October. In a column in the Tribune, music critic John von Rhein says pay cuts at financially challenged orchestras around the country should go beyond performing musicians and into the ranks of high-profile music directors.

Meanwhile, symphony organizations in Indianapolis and New York, as well as several museums around the country, have employed the use of text messaging to engage their audiences, reports The New York Times.

A story on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition discusses whether big expansion projects at art museums, such as the $300-million project just completed at the Art Institute of Chicago, contribute toward the goal of revitalizing local economies and increasing attendance.

At Brandeis University, the Rose Museum closed its temporary exhibitions on Sunday, and when it reopens in mid-July, it may not have a director or curator, reports The Boston Globe.

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Charities That Counted on Auto Dealers Expect to Feel Squeeze

Charities around the country, especially those in small towns where there are few large companies to support them, are expecting to feel the effect of closures by major auto companies, reports the Associated Press.

The closure of dealerships is the latest blow in a string of recession-related effects on charities, as the numbers of unemployed grow, reducing individual giving, and more people hold back on major purchases like cars, cutting into profits at auto companies that have traditionally supported charity work. Closures of dealerships by Chrysler and General Motors are expected to number nearly 2,000 by the end of 2010, the Associated Press reports.

Obituary: Former Gill Foundation Leader Rodger McFarlane

Rodger McFarlane, a prominent gay-rights leader who is credited with starting the first AIDS hotline in the early 1980s and who led several major nonprofit organizations, died Friday in New Mexico, reports The Denver Post.

Mr. McFarlane, 54, killed himself in a park near the town of Truth or Consequences and left a note citing debilitating back pain and heart problems, the Post reports. He was a Navy veteran and an avid outdoorsman as well as executive director of the Gill Foundation, in Denver, from 2004 to 2008.

In New York, Mr. McFarlane was the first paid executive director of the Gay Men’s Health Crisis and president emeritus of Bailey House, which provides housing for homeless AIDS patients. He also led Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS from 1989 to 1994.

From The Chronicle: Women Take Lead Role in Deciding Donations

Women are taking an increasingly prominent role in determining their household’s charitable giving, with high-income women in particular more likely to seek financial advice and use sophisticated methods when making donations, according to a new study sponsored by Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Government and Politics Watch: Senate Proposes Change for Nonprofit Hospitals

The two top members of the Senate Finance Committee have released what they call policy options for revamping the nation’s health-care system that include a change in how the tax-exempt status of nonprofit hospitals would be handled under federal law, reports Government and Politics Watch, The Chronicle’s online column.

Give and Take: The Price of Working for Charity

The author Dan Pallotta argues that new graduates can dedicate themselves to charity or work for their own financial security, but they can’t do both, according to a recent item in Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus:

Potential conflicts in NPR’s coverage of “The Soloist.”

The nonprofit world is officially a more popular topic on Twitter than swine flu.

Concerns about Guidestar’s added feature that highlights guidebook-style reviews that volunteers and charity clients post.

Transcript: How Small Groups Can Stretch Tight Resources

Read a transcript of our online discussion today on tips to help small charities survive the economic downturn.

May 18, 2009

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Sharply Curtail Giving

The mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have reduced charitable giving by more than 40 percent since 2006 and focused their grants more sharply on housing issues, eliminating a major source of support for some nonprofit groups in the Washington metropolitan area, reports The Washington Post.

Fannie Mae and the Freddie Mac Foundation donated about $47-million combined last year, compared with $83.5-million in 2006. Their spending is projected to drop slightly this year, and a Fannie Mae spokesman said its giving would focus on preventing foreclosures.

The financially troubled companies, long the biggest corporate donors in the Washington area, were taken over in September by the federal government, prompting fears among nonprofit groups about the long-term future of the firms and their donations.

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N.Y. Red Cross to Lay Off More Than 40 Workers

Across-the-board layoffs will claim more than a quarter of the Greater New York Red Cross’s 186 employees, reports The New York Times.

Trainers, dispatchers, and senior managers are among the people who will lose their jobs as the country’s largest Red Cross chapter seeks to cut costs in the face of a 25-percent drop in private donations. The chapter’s budget has declined from $34-million this year to $28.5-million for 2010.

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Jewish Groups Craft Plans to Save Hard-Hit Day Schools

Jewish day schools across the country are considering emergency measures as the recession drains their coffers and causes a drop in enrollment, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Many of the nation’s 700 Jewish day schools, which educate some 200,000 students and charge an average tuition of $14,000, are being stretched by rising demand for financial aid and pull-outs by economically ailing families.

“If things continue the way they are, schools are going to be so cost-prohibitive, the system will collapse,” said Rabbi Saul Zucker, director of educational services at the Orthodox Union, a New York education and service organization.

The union has proposed several changes, including stripped-down alternative schools for parents who can’t afford established institutions and a low-cost health-insurance program for employees nationwide.

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Professional Golf Events Likely to Produce Less for Charity This Year

Charity generated by PGA Tour events will decline by as much as 14 percent this year as a result of the economic downturn, reports the Associated Press.

The tour’s golf tournaments, structured as nonprofit organizations that donate proceeds to local charities, raised $124-million last year, but the economic crunch is cutting into major revenue sources like corporate sponsorship and hospitality sales.

“If I had to guess right now, I’d say we wouldn’t be off more than 10 to 14 percent with our charitables [compared to 2008], which I think would be a victory” given the overall fiscal climate, said Tim Fincher, who oversees the tours.

Two Big Donors Among Targets in Madoff Inquiry

Two major U.S. philanthropists are among a group of large-scale investors under scrutiny by federal investigators in the Bernard Madoff scandal, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with the investigation.

Jeffry Picower and Stanley Chais are already the targets of lawsuits filed by Irving Picard, the trustee overseeing the Madoff case. Those lawsuits allege that they benefited from their dealings with the disgraced financier. (Read The Chronicle’s article about the lawsuit against Mr. Picower, his wife, and their foundation.)

Sources told the Journal that investigators with the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan are gathering evidence they believe will show that Mr. Picower and Mr. Chais told Mr. Madoff how much they wanted in return for their investments.

Lawyers for both men said they had no knowledge of Mr. Madoff’s Ponzi scheme when they were investing with him. Mr. Picower’s foundation shut down in December, citing billions of dollars in Madoff-related losses.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported last month on the Picower closure’s ripple effect in the nonprofit world.

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United Way Joins With Dolly Parton to Expand Literacy Program

Dolly Parton is teaming up with the United Way of America to double the size of her children’s-literacy organization Imagination Library, the Associated Press reports.

The entertainer joined Brian Gallagher, chief executive of United Way of America, last week to announce a goal of providing free books monthly to 1 million children by 2014, double Imagination Library’s current target. Founded by Ms. Parton in her home state of Tennessee, the reading program now operates in the United States, Canada, and Great Britain.

Read a Chronicle of Philanthropy article about Imagination Library.

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U.K. Man to Donate Proceeds From $24-Million Estate Sale

The owner of a country estate in the north of England plans to sell the $24-million property and give the proceeds to a British cancer charity, the BBC reports.

Brian Burnie, who made millions in building, petrochemicals, and an investment company, purchased Doxford Hall and its 10-acre grounds in the county of Northumberland in 1993 and converted it into a spa hotel.

“I’ve done the stately home bit — the bricks and mortar — but I’ve always been a people person,” said Mr. Burnie, whose wife is a breast-cancer survivor. “To be able to do something to help people has a much bigger return than any financial gain.”

Opinion: Rein in Pay for Nonprofit Hospital Chiefs

The heads of nonprofit hospitals in Central Florida and beyond collect paychecks that are excessive “if not downright obscene,” writes an Orlando Sentinel columnist.

Scott Maxwell, a columnist for the newspaper, cites recent compensation packages of $858,000 for John Hillenmeyer, chief executive of Orlando Health, $1.1-million for Lars Houmann, chief executive of Florida Hospital, and $3.5-million for Don Jernigan, head of Adventist Health, in Winter Park, Fla.

“The massive paychecks, after all, stand in stark contrast to millions of Americans who forgo medical procedures and help because they simply can’t afford it,” Mr. Maxwell writes.

Read The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s coverage of federal scrutiny of hospital chiefs’ pay.

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New York Times Ombudsman Weighs Handling of Nonprofit Article

The public editor of The New York Times discusses charges that the newspaper held back last fall on reporting about some aspects of Acorn’s voter-registration efforts because it was too politically charged to publish close to an election. The editor, Clark Hoyt, says he does not think the newspaper held back on reporting because of any political bias, as several blog writers have charged.

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The Federal Stimulus Measure and Charities: a Special Report

The Chronicle this morning posted its new issue online. You can see a summary of all the articles, opinion pieces, and features in the May 21 issue.

On the cover: A special report on how charities are trying to get a share of the stimulus package.

Prospecting: Stressing Low Administrative Costs

A Salvation Army affiliate is stressing its low administrative costs in an effort to appeal to donors, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Online Discussion Tomorrow: Advice for Small Charities

Join us tomorrow, May 19, at noon Eastern time, for a live, online discussion to pose questions to experts who can help small charities learn to stretch their tight resources.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 15, 2009

Veterans' Group Disbands After Founder's Fraud Exposed

A Colorado veterans organization has disbanded after discovering that its founder, who had said he had served in Iraq and been present at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, was a fraud, says The New York Times.

Federal authorities are investigating whether Richard Glen Strandlof, a 32-year-old drifter wanted an on outstanding warrant, improperly solicited contributions for the Colorado Veterans Alliance, which he had founded under the name Rick Duncan.

A member of the group’s board said he became suspicious while compiling paperwork to seek tax-exempt status for the group. The alliance alerted the FBI, which detained Mr. Strandlof at a Denver meeting of the organization on Tuesday.

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Global Health Activist Said to Be Mulling White House Post

Paul Farmer, co-founder of the international medical nonprofit group Partners in Health, has told colleagues he is considering a possible Obama administration appointment to coordinate the federal government’s overseas health efforts, The Boston Globe reports.

Dr. Farmer, vice-chairman of the Harvard Medical School’s Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, helped start Partners in Health when he was a student at the university. He remains active in the organization, which has worked to reform Rwanda’s health system and build antituberculosis programs in Russia and Peru, among other global projects.

The State Department this month proposed a major increase in money for programs to fight AIDS, tuberculosis, and other diseases worldwide.

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Maryland County Blocks Grant Over Charity Executive's Pay

A suburban Washington county is withholding money for a local charity over its top executive’s pay, reports The Washington Examiner.

The Montgomery County, Md., Council eliminated a $55,000 grant to Food & Friends, a Washington nonprofit organization that delivers meals to people with HIV/AIDS and cancer, to “send a clear signal” about the compensation of the organization’s executive director, Craig Shniderman, council member George Levantha said. Mr. Shniderman earned $357,447 in salary and benefits in 2007.

Robert Hall III, president of the charity’s board, said the director’s pay was determined “after careful study” and following the recommendation of an independent consultant. Mr. Shniderman’s pay has been frozen this year.

Campaign to Spur Giving by Wealthy Women Surpasses Target

A worldwide campaign to persuade women to give $1-million each to organizations that focus on women and girls has raised $177-million, $25-million more than its goal, reports The Seattle Times.

The article spotlights Seattle-area participants in the Women Moving Millions drive who donated $1-million each to the northwestern city’s Women’s Funding Alliance, which supports some 140 groups providing economic, legal, and other assistance in the Puget Sound region.

Online Album Leak Benefits Chicago Antipoverty Charity

The rock band Wilco is seeking charitable donations from fans who download its new album now that it was leaked onto the Internet this week, Billboard reports.

In an e-mail message to fans, the musicians suggested that as “guilt abatement,” people who get free copies make a donation to Inspiration Corporation, which serves the poor and homeless in Chicago.

“We’ve seen a spike in online donations and are hoping for a sustained bump in giving from Wilco fans,” said John Pfeiffer, the charity’s executive director.

In the Arts: Calif. University Gets $25-Million for Theater, Texas Museum Gets Early Michelangelo

A group of anonymous donors has pledged $25-million toward Chapman University’s construction of a 1,300-seat performing-arts center, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The donors said they would make the gift only if the university raised an equivalent sum from other sources.

In other arts news, The New York Times reports that the Kimball Art Museum, in Fort Worth, has acquired what might be the first known painting by Michelangelo. The late-15th-century “The Torment of St. Anthony” is believed by some scholars to have been painted by Michelangelo when he was 12 or 13.

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Mass. Senate Committee Approves Big Cut in Antiviolence Youth Programs

Massachusetts youth advocates were up in arms yesterday over the state Senate Ways and Means Committee’s approval of a state budget that would nearly eliminate spending for programs designed to reduce youth violence, reports The Boston Globe.

The measure would cut $29-million for the fiscal 2010 spending plan for summer jobs, mentorship, and other programs aimed to keep troubled youths off the street.

Tiziana Dearing, president of Catholic Charities, called the reductions “an obliteration … when money gets tight, prevention gets cut.”

Steven Panagiotakas, a Democrat who chairs the Ways and Means Committee, said that given the state’s $1.5-billion revenue shortfall, “we can only spend what we have.”

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From The Chronicle: Size of Average Online Gift Falls

The total amount of money that charities raised online rose in 2008, as they attracted more donors to their Web sites, according to a new study reported on by The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Government and Politics Watch: Local Governments Increasingly Seek Revenue From Charities

Local governments are taking more steps to obtain money from nonprofit groups, notes Government and Politics Watch, The Chronicle’s online column.

Plus:

New details are available about how charities can get federal money to help them improve their management.

A charity leader has been nominated to a high-ranking State Department position.

Prospecting: Donors in 'Giving Circles' Give More

Donors who participate in giving circles — in which individuals pool their money and decide collectively how to distribute it — give more than other donors, give more strategically, and give to a greater number of organizations, according to results of a new study highlighted in Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Plus: A new study shows that donors respond more generously to high minimum donation levels than to lower ones.

Conference Notebook: European Foundation Centre

Antipoverty activists urged foundations to stop financing ineffective efforts to aid the developing world, in a session at the European Foundation Centre meeting, which opened in Rome Thursday.

We will continue posting updates to our conference notebook as the meeting continues.

Online Discussion Next Week: How Small Charities Can Stretch Their Dollars

Many small nonprofit groups feel particularly vulnerable during these uncertain economic times. But such groups can often thrive because they can be more nimble than larger organizations.

Join us on Tuesday, May 19, at noon Eastern time, for a live, online discussion to pose questions to experts who can help small charities learn to stretch their tight resources.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 14, 2009

Advertising-Industry Downturn Is a Boon for Public-Service Spots

As businesses cut back on advertising, radio and television stations are airing more public-service announcements, National Public Radio reports.

The Ad Council, which connects nonprofit groups with news-media outlets and ad agencies, reports a 23-percent increase in public-service announcements in the past year.

Bill Shea, director of creative services for Autism Speaks, said frequent broadcast of the group’s public-service ads on hit shows like American Idol and 24 has made autism “part of the national vocabulary.”

Catholic Charities, Tampa Residents in Flap Over 'Tent City' Plan

Residents of an East Tampa, Fla., subdivision are fighting plans by Catholic Charities to erect a temporary “tent city” for local homeless people, reports The Tampa Tribune.

Catholic Charities wants to place 250 temporary wooden shelters on 12 acres in the East Lake Park neighborhood. The organization says residents would stay a maximum of 90 days and get help finding jobs and becoming independent. But neighbors say they fear increased panhandling and crime.

Charity in Hong Kong Court Battle Over 'Little Sweetie' Billions

Lawyers began arguments this week in a Hong Kong courtroom drama over the estate of the Chinese billionaire Nina Wang, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The legal fight is between Ms. Wang’s charity, which under a purported 2002 will was to take control of her estimated $4.2-billion fortune, and Tony Chen, a feng-shui master who claims he was her lover for 15 years and who has produced a 2006 will that he says named him sole heir.

Ms. Wang – whose fondness for pigtails and girlish attire earned her the nickname “Little Sweetie” – died of cancer two years ago. She inherited the real-estate fortune amassed by her husband, Teddy Wang, after a long court fight that followed his kidnapping and disappearance in 1990.

Boy Scouts Affiliate Trains Teenagers in Antiterror Enforcement Skills

Thousands of teenage members of the Explorers, an affiliate of the Boy Scouts of America, are being taught techniques used to battle terrorists, illegal immigration, and violence along the United States-Mexico border, according to The New York Times.

The Explorers, a coeducational program, traditionally focuses on preparing young people for careers as police officers and firefighters. In the new training exercises, which simulate confrontations with terrorists and other lawbreakers, participants use compressed-air guns that fire plastic pellets, but they shoot real guns on a closed firing range.

“This is about being a true-blooded American guy and girl,” said A. J. Lowenthal, a sheriff’s deputy in Imperial County, Calif., who helps run Explorers training. “It fits right in with the honor and bravery of the Boy Scouts.”

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Former Official of Nonprofit Group Jailed for Diverting Donations

A Northern Virginia man was sentenced Wednesday to eight months in federal prison for stealing more than $100,000 from a nonprofit group for which he served as executive director, reports The Washington Post.

Raafat A. Dajani pleaded guilty in January to depositing $107,000 in donations to the American Task Force on Palestine into his own bank account from 2004 through last year. According to court records, Mr. Dajani has repaid $93,000 to the Washington organization.

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Big Fund-Raising Galas Respond to Changing Economy

As the spring fund-raising benefit season gets going, big-ticket events are trying to maintain the glitz and star power that attract wealthy donors without seeming insensitive to the terrible economy and public anger at financial-world excess, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Charities are trying to frame their fund-raising galas as “people coming together to help those less fortunate” to avoid the perception of “a bunch of clueless, thoughtless people drinking too much,” said Melissa Berman, president of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.

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Leader Stepping Down at McCormick Foundation

The McCormick Foundation announced Wednesday that its chief executive, David Grange, will retire on June 30, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Mr. Grange, a former U.S. Army general, joined the $1-billion Chicago philanthropy in 1999 as executive vice president and chief operating officer and ascended to its top post in 2005. The McCormick board has yet to name a successor.

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From The Chronicle: Habitat for Humanity Receives $100-Million Pledge

Habitat for Humanity today announced a $100-million pledge, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports. The commitment is the first publicly unveiled gift of $100-million or more in the past six months — and much larger than the typical amounts individuals give to social-services organizations.

From The Chronicle: Foundation Support for Gay Causes

Foundation support for charities that help gay people continues to grow steadily, rising by 18 percent in 2007, according to a new study whose results are summarized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. The recession is expected to slow but not halt that growth, it said.

Government and Politics Watch: IRS Offers More Form 990 Tips

The Internal Revenue Service has released the second in a series of filing tips to help nonprofit organizations prepare their Form 990 informational tax returns, the primary document that groups file each year. The new information includes advice on reporting executive compensation.

Plus, a detailed site map is now available on the agency’s Charities and Nonprofits Web site to help visitors find specific information.

Give and Take: Hispanic Charities Thriving

Hispanic charities are growing rapidly in America and raising an increasingly large amount of money, according to Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus:

The Skoll Foundation, PopTech, ideablob, and Civic Ventures said yesterday that they are going to create an open database of social entrepreneurs based on information they have gathered and release it to the public as an application programming interface.

The average charity Web site scored lower than government sites in user satisfaction, according to a new survey. The study unearthed two key problems with charity Web sites: How they work and the images they present of the organization.

Transcript: Financing Options

Read a transcript of our online discussion today about financing approaches in the recession.

This is the first in a series of four discussions about Financial Management in Tough Times. The others will follow on every other Thursday at noon.

Plus, mark your calendar for a discussion next Tuesday at noon on recession-survival approaches for small charities. More details will be available soon at http://philanthropy.com/live.

May 13, 2009

Donor's Descendant Sues Brandeis U. Over Planned Demolition

The great nephew of a 1950s donor to Brandeis University has filed suit to prevent the school from razing a science building named for his great uncle, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Brandeis has announced plans to demolish the facility named for Julius Kalman, a real-estate magnate who left property worth $1.8-million to the Boston-area school when he died in 1956. The college is building a major new science center named after donor Carl Shapiro, founder of the clothing company Kay Windsor.

Sumner Kalman maintains that the planned demolition violates the terms of his great uncle’s will, which specified a gift for a building.

Soros Offers $50-Million for N.Y.C. Needy at Robin Hood Gala

Attending Tuesday night’s Robin Hood Foundation event in New York, the billionaire financier and philanthropist George Soros pledged $50-million to provide basic support for the city’s rapidly growing needy population if the organization can match his gift in each of the next two years, The New York Times reports.

Fund-raising experts termed the gift one of the largest ever made to provide basic services such as food and shelter, as opposed to financing strategies to respond to them on a larger scale. Mr. Soros said he hoped the pledge would encourage other big-league donors to follow suit. “We do some cutting-edge things in advocacy on many issues, and we will continue to do that,” he told the Times. “But this is an exceptional situation, and it calls for an exceptional response.”

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Madoff Trustee Takes Aim at Picower Foundation

The Picower Foundation, which claimed massive losses in the Bernard Madoff scandal, has been sued by the trustee overseeing the liquidation of the disgraced financier’s assets, the Associated Press and Bloomberg reports.

Trustee Irving Picard’s complaint, filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, in Manhattan, seeks the return of nearly $7-billion from the philanthropy and several related entities, claiming at least $5-billion was “fictitious profit from [Madoff’s] Ponzi scheme.” Foundation founders and longtime Madoff friends Jeffry and Barbara Picower “knew or should have known they were benefiting from fraudulent activity,” Mr. Picard alleged.

The Florida foundation, which previously listed assets of $1-billion and was a major donor to education, medical research, and other causes, announced plans to close in December, saying it had been devastated by Madoff’s fraud.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported last month on the Picower closure’s ripple effect in the nonprofit world.

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Pa. Court to Decide Whether State Conflict Rules Cover Nonprofit Groups

Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday on a case that centers on whether nonprofit groups should be considered businesses for the purpose of state conflict-of-interest regulations, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Pennsylvania law generally prohibits state employees from using their position to enrich themselves, their families, or their businesses. The issue before the court is whether the regulation covers nonprofit organizations.

The case arises from a controversy two years ago involving two then-cabinet secretaries whose departments awarded grants to charities that employed their spouses. The state Ethics Commission ruled that the grants represented conflicts of interest, a decision challenged by Gov. Edward Rendell.

University Head Gives Bonus to Scholarship Fund

The president of the University of Florida has donated his $285,000 bonus last year to Florida Opportunity Scholarship, a program he founded to help low-income students make it to college, reports the Associated Press.

The gift represents 39 percent of Bernie Machen’s 2008 earnings, which totaled $731,811 in salary, bonuses, and other compensation. The Chronicle of Higher Education lists him as the nation’s eighth-highest paid public-university president.

(Free registration is required to view the AP article on The New York Times site, and a paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle survey chart.)

From The Chronicle: Senate Meeting Questions Role of Nonprofit Hospitals

Sen. Charles E. Grassley, senior Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, asked a provocative question at a roundtable discussion Tuesday on Financing Comprehensive Health Care Reform held by his committee, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

In the Arts: Broadway Mogul Landesman Tapped to Head NEA

The Obama administration will today name colorful theatrical producer Rocco Landesman to head the National Endowment for the Arts, reports The New York Times.

Mr. Landesman, a horse-racing aficionado and former Yale School of Drama teacher, brought hits like
“Big River,” “Angels in America,” and “The Producers” to Broadway. Colleagues described him as a candid and savvy entrepreneur who would lobby hard for increased arts funding and energize the endowment, which has seen its budget decline since the early 1990s.

In other arts news, the Times reports the American Federation for the Arts has named George G. King, director of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, in Santa Fe, N.M., its next director, effective Aug. 1.

Also, Bloomberg reports that Carnegie Hall will sell $100-million worth of bonds later this year to pay for renovations.

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Ex-Prostitute Runs D.C. Organization to Help Sex Workers

The Washington Post profiles Jackie McReynolds, a former prostitute who started an organization to help sex workers get off the streets.

Angel Project Power, which Ms. McReynolds founded four years ago, offers counseling, literacy classes and other coursework, and internships with retail businesses and other local employers. A former drug addict who worked as a prostitute for more than two decades, Ms. McReynolds received her high-school diploma five years ago at age 45 and has since earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in human services.

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Government and Politics Watch: IRS Offers and Seeks Advice

The Internal Revenue Service has added a detailed site map to its “Charities and Nonprofits” Web site to help visitors find what they are looking for, notes The Chronicle’s Government and Politics Watch update.

Plus:

New IRS tips for filing the redesigned Form 990.

Tax agency asks nonprofit officials and advisers for help setting top priorities.

Prospecting: Stanford Lays Off 20 Percent of Fund-Raising Staff

In the latest sign that the recession is endangering fund raisers’ job security, Stanford University has decided to lay off nearly 20 percent of its development staff, notes an item in Prospecting, The Chronicle’s roundup of the fund-raising news.

Plus: A virtual fund-raising conference draws a global audience.

Online Discussion Tomorrow: Financial Management

Join us Thursday at noon U.S. Eastern time for a live online discussion on financial management during tough economic times. The series will offer three additional seminars.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 12, 2009

Downturn Adds Risk to Charitable Annuities

Charitable gift annuities, an increasingly popular financial tool for investors seeking a reliable stream of retirement income, are getting riskier as some strapped nonprofit groups struggle to make the payouts, reports The Wall Street Journal.

The annuities allow donors to make a tax-deductible, lump-sum contribution, in exchange for which they receive regular payments. For donors older than 65, those yields are now between 5.3 and 9.5 percent. The charity keeps whatever remains of the initial gift when the donor dies.

But with the recession, some charities are having trouble meeting their annuity payments and are turning to insurance companies to back up their obligations. Should the recipient go bankrupt, the payments can stop entirely, as happened when the National Heritage Foundation, in Falls Church, Va., filed for protection from creditors in January and ceased annuity payouts amounting to $2-million a year.

See The Chronicle’s article about the bankruptcy at the National Heritage Foundation.

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Think-Tank Report Faults British Charities' Governance

Britain’s nonprofit organizations could face a crisis unless charities quickly strengthen their management boards, according to a new study reported in the Financial Times.

The analysis by New Philanthropy Capital, a think tank established by former Goldman Sachs bankers, says charities’ governance is “not up to scratch” and that large nonprofit organizations should explore mergers to save money and protect vital services.

Trustees are effective in basic roles but lack experience running large organizations that could be exposed by the economic crisis, said Eleanor Stringer, a co-author of the study.

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Recession Leaves Smallest Colleges Especially Vulnerable

The country’s smallest four-year colleges are getting an especially harsh economic lesson amid the downturn, the Associated Press reports.

Lacking the state aid that is granted to public universities and the endowments that support larger private universities, institutions such as Vermont’s Sterling College, with unusual curricula and small student bodies, are facing a particularly tough test in the recession.

Nine degree-granting schools closed last year, up from the more typical four in 2007, according to the American Council on Education. Several small Christian institutions are among the recent victims.

Laos Legalizes Local Nonprofit Groups

For the first time in its history, the Southeast Asian nation of Laos will allow its citizens to form nonprofit organizations, according to the Vientiane Times, the country’s English-speaking newspaper.

Under the “association establishment” decree signed by Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh, local groups can now register members, organize themselves, and be legally protected. In the past, loosely organized domestic groups did exist but operated quietly under the government’s radar.

The move was welcomed by dozens of international nongovernmental organizations, which have been pressing the Communist government to legalize nonprofit groups for years.

International aid groups have been allowed to operate in Laos since the country began to open up its economy in 1986. Laos, one of the least developed nations in the world, depends heavily on foreign aid.

The decree will take effect in November.

Nonprofit School Group Seeks to Organize Parents in Los Angeles

A nonprofit group that operates 10 Los Angeles-area charter schools is organizing parents in an effort to assert greater political control of the city’s school system, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The philanthropist Eli Broad is among those supporting the effort by Green Dot Public Schools and its founder, Steve Barr.

Under the plan, if more than half the parents at a school sign a petition, Green Dot will guarantee them a new charter school within three years. The parents can then use that pledge to put pressure on the Los Angeles Unified School District to improve public schools. The district loses money if enrollment shifts to the privately run charter schools.

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Pastors on Bamboo Bike Roll Out to Raise Funds for Africa

Three West Virginia ministers riding a custom-made bicycle constructed from bamboo will embark tomorrow on a nationwide tour to raise money for hunger relief in Africa, reports The Herald-Mail of Hagerstown, Md.

Lutheran pastors David Twedt, Ron Schlak, and Fred Soltow, Jr. hope to raise $5-million on their “Tour de Revs,” which starts tomorrow morning in Chicago. Their 100-day itinerary includes 65 synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, ending at the denomination’s national assembly in Minneapolis in August.

Opinion: Helmsley Grants Make a Mockery of Donor Intent

Last month’s disbursements of the first grants from the late hotelier Leona Helmsley’s charitable trust “throw donor intent out the window,” The Wall Street Journal opines in an editorial.

Ms. Helmsley’s nonbinding “mission statement” for the foundation directed trustees to spend money first for the care of dogs and second for “other charitable activities” as they see fit. A February court ruling gave the trustees sole discretion in spending the money, and only $1-million of the $136-million in initial grants announced in April went to animal-rights and -welfare causes.

Donors who “don’t want to have their intentions similarly distorted” should be very specific about how they want their money posthumously spent, or else give it away before they die, the Journal writes.

See The Chronicle’s article on the disbursement of grants from the Helmsley Trust.

Obituary: Sister Mary Paul Janchill, Youth-Charity Pioneer

Sister Mary Paul Janchill, whose Brooklyn youth-support center became a model for neighborhood-oriented family services nationwide, died last week at the age of 88, reports The New York Times.

Sister Janchill, a member of the order the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, co-founded the Center for Family Life in 1978 in a largely poor and largely Hispanic neighborhood.

The center embraced a comprehensive approach to help families, offering programs including child care, job placement, counseling, a food bank, and a sports league.

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From The Chronicle: Corporate Giving

Corporate foundations gave an estimated $4.4-billion to charity last year, a 3-percent drop from 2007, according to a new report whose results are summarized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. The report says giving this year is expected to be down again, with slightly more than half of the corporate foundations surveyed anticipating a drop in contributions.

Transcript: Starting a Nonprofit Group

Read today’s transcript from our online discussion about starting a nonprofit organization.

May 11, 2009

Spring Round of Benefits Goes On, but on a Smaller Scale

The springtime benefits that are a tradition for many nonprofit groups are largely going on as scheduled despite the recession, but many groups are taking steps to scale back the events, reports The New York Times.

Some charities are holding benefits in donors’ homes or joining forces with other organizations to cut costs.

“You have to think outside the box,” said Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a board member at the Food Allergy Initiative, whose recent benefit luncheon shared flower arrangements, sound and lighting equipment, and other expenses with another charity holding an event the same day in the same place. “You can’t just think in the old way based on the budgets we had in the past.”

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China Restricts Volunteer Efforts to Help Earthquake Victims

The government of China has restrained private efforts to aid victims of last May’s earthquake in Sichuan province, putting a brake on an unprecedented wave of volunteerism that swelled in the wake of the disaster, reports the Associated Press.

Private relief groups that sprang up to channel volunteer efforts and a flood of donations have been left short of funds, and many of the groups now face hard-to-navigate registrations and government suspicion of their work, the news agency says.

Lean Times Revive Resentment in College Towns

Town-gown relationships that flourished in the boom years are souring as the economic crisis delays ambitious expansion plans by elite universities and drains the budgets of college towns, according to The New York Times.

Residents in North Allston, Mass., are angry that Harvard plans to slow or even abandon construction of a $1-billion science complex in the town, leaving a gaping pit where the foundation has been dug.

Officials in Ann Arbor, Mich., Princeton, N.J., and Durham, N.C., have renewed calls for tax-exempt colleges and universities to make voluntary payments to their cities, while other college towns are seeking to assess new fees on colleges.

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Charities Benefit From Online Fund-Raising Contests

A spate of charity competitions that allow people to vote for their favorite groups online is offering nonprofit organizations a new fund-raising opportunity, The New York Times reports.

A contest begun Sunday on Target’s Facebook page allows people to choose among 10 charities eligible to win a portion of $3-million that the retail chain is donating. Other contests include one by the actor Hugh Jackman to give $100,000 to organizations touted by his Twitter followers and a competition run by online charity marketplace GlobalGiving.

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More Cuts Loom at L.A. Museum Under New Chief Executive

The Museum of Contemporary Art, in Los Angeles, is making many changes as its new chief executive, Charles E. Young, prepares a 2009-10 budget of $15-million or less, down from the $20-million in annual spending of recent years, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The staff size was pared from 152 to 108 in January, shortly after the arrival of Mr. Young, a former UCLA chancellor who came to the downtown institution at the behest of the philanthropist Eli Broad.

The museum has also temporarily closed exhibit spaces and trimmed its exhibition schedule and plans to reduce employee pay and benefits as part of a belt-tightening that Mr. Young said is necessary to restore the museum’s financial footing and prepare for a “renaissance” in the fall.

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Couple Donates $800-Million Over the Past Decade

Gerry and Marguerite Lenfest, who have donated or pledged almost $800-million over the past decade, will this week receive the Philadelphia Award, a prestigious civic honor, says The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Following the $1.2-billion sale of Mr. Lenfest’s cable-television business in 2000, the Philadelphia couple decided to give most of the proceeds away.

Since then they have supported 180 local, national, and international organizations, most notably giving $93-million to the Philadelphia Museum of Art and more than $100-million to Columbia University.

Should Newspapers Keep Reporting on the Mystery Donor?

As newspapers continue to seek out clues about who has been secretly giving colleges millions of dollars, readers are debating whether such articles have a damaging effect on giving. Offer your views and read what others have said.

From the Chronicle: Obama Sticks by His Plan on Charitable Deduction Limits

President Obama stuck to his proposal to limit the federal tax breaks wealthy people can get for itemized deductions, including charitable donations, in a proposal released today, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

From The Chronicle: $90-Million for Overseas Think Tanks

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and a research institute in Canada announced today a $90-million, five-year effort to bolster think tanks in poor nations, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

From The Chronicle: President's Budget Includes Support for Estate Tax

Final budget proposals released by the Obama administration today show that the president continues to support a plan to permanently keep the estate tax at levels that are already in effect this year, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Prospecting: Raising Money From Jewels

Charities are benefiting from jewelry giveaways, reports Prospecting, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus: Another fund raiser has submitted an appeal for readers to review and strengthen.

Two Online Discussions This Week: Starting a Nonprofit Group, Plus Financial Management

Join us tomorrow at noon U.S. Eastern time for a live online discussion on starting a nonprofit organization.

Plus: The Chronicle is offering an online discussion on Thursday, at noon U.S. Eastern time, on financial management during tough economic times. The series will offer three additional seminars.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 08, 2009

University of Dubuque Receives $30-Million Gift

A University of Dubuque alumnus has donated $30-million to the Iowa institution, reports the Associated Press.

The gift from Joseph Chlapaty and his wife, Linda, will be used to strengthen academic programs and support construction and renovation of campus facilities.

Mr. Chlapaty, chief executive of Advanced Drainage Systems, a pipe-making company, is chairman of the institution’s Board of Trustees. He praised the university’s support of students like himself who are the first in their family to attend college.

PBS Offers Companies Shorter Sponsorship Deals

Seeking to offer corporate donors more flexibility in a time of shrinking budgets, some PBS outlets will allow companies to sponsor programs for as little as one week at a time, says The New York Times.

The Sponsorship Group for Public Television, which handles sales for Boston’s WGBH and other PBS producers, will encourage companies to underwrite children’s shows such as Arthur for one to 10 weeks this summer. The plan marks the most extensive experiment with shorter sponsorships for PBS, which historically has asked corporate donors to pay for a yearlong commitment.

“Marketing decisions are being made closer to air time,” said Suzanne Zellner, WGBH vice president for corporate sponsorship. “We want to be responsive to the marketplace.”

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More Clues Emerge About Mystery Donor

The mystery donor who has been making anonymous gifts of $1-million to $10-million to colleges run by women may have given as much as $90-million, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

At least 18 institutions now report receiving donations, with Temple University now announcing that it received a donation in January 2008, the newspaper says.

The donor has requested that the universities use the money for scholarships and to cover general expenses, and requires that institutions do nothing to investigate where the money came from.

See The Chronicle’s coverage of the rise in anonymous gifts.

Boston-Area Food Banks Mull Joining Forces

Spurred by the planned closure of one of their number, food charities in Salem, Mass., are exploring ways to combine operations and cut costs, reports The Boston Globe.

The Salem Mission is converting its food pantry into a medical clinic as part of a larger program to focus on homeless individuals rather than families who can use other soup kitchens. But it has pledged not to close until plans are made to meet its current clients’ needs.

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Research Study Raises Questions About Gates Foundation's Health Grants

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation should increasingly be held accountable for the effectiveness of its grant making, according to a study published Friday in the medical journal the Lancet, the Associated Press reports.

“What we have is a private actor with a huge degree of influence, but not really a mechanism by which that influence is held to public account,” said David McCoy, who analyzed the $8.95-billion the world’s largest philanthropy gave to some 1,100 health organizations around the world from 1998 through 2007.

According to the report, nearly two-thirds of that money went to 20 organizations, many of which were based in the United States, some within miles of the foundation’s Seattle offices.

Philip Stevens, director of health policy at the International Policy Network, questioned the study, terming Mr. McCoy an activist who has criticized the principle of private involvement in health.

In the Arts: Emergency Infusion for National Gallery, Masterpieces for Auckland Museum

President Obama’s 2010 budget proposes $40-million for an emergency face-lift for the iconic East Building of the National Gallery of Art, reports The Washington Post.

The money comes on the heels of an engineer’s report that found faults in the support system for the marble panels that make up the I.M. Pei-designed museum’s exterior. The work would increase the gallery’s 2010 federal aid to $165.2-million, up from $122.7-million this year.

In other arts news, the philanthropists and collectors Julian H. Robertson Jr. and Josie Robertson have donated works valued at $120-million to $150-million to the Auckland Museum of Art in New Zealand, according to The New York Times. The gift, which includes works by Picasso, Gauguin, and Mondrian, is reportedly the largest ever to an art museum in the Australasian region.

Also, The New York Times profiles the Rev. Jay Wegman, director of the Abron Arts Center on New York’s Lower East Side, which has hosted the likes of Lou Reed and John Cage and is gaining a reputation as a downtown locus for avant-garde performance.

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From The Chronicle: How the Obama Budget Would Affect Nonprofit Groups

Nonprofit groups received mixed news in President Obama’s budget proposal released yesterday, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

We have summarized the highlights in an article and offered more detailed coverage of each area that affects nonprofit groups in our Government and Politics Watch column.

Among the key areas we have recently added updates on: spending on international groups, social services, housing, and management of nonprofit groups. We’ll be continuing to add reaction and analysis throughout the day, and we urge you to add your insights and ideas by clicking on the comments link below the article, linked above.

Prospecting: Twitter and Charity

A new competition is under way to raise $1-million for charity through the Twitter social-networking Web site, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Give and Take: Charity Web Sites

What are the elements any small charity should have on its Web site? That is the subject of a new post in Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Podcast: Useful Online Tools for Charities

In the latest installment of Social Good, a monthly Chronicle podcast, Jessica Clark, director of the Future of Public Media Project at American University, discusses whether nonprofit models are the future of newspapers.

Ms. Clark also talks with the host, Allison Fine, about some useful resources for nonprofit groups that want to improve their use of online tools.

Two Online Discussions Next Week: Starting a Charity and Financial Management

Join us next Tuesday, May 12, at noon U.S. Eastern time for a live online discussion on starting a nonprofit organization.

Plus: The Chronicle is offering an online discussion Thursday, May 14, at noon U.S. Eastern time, on financial management during tough economic times. The series will offer three additional seminars.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

May 07, 2009

Obama's Win Raises Fund-Raising Challenge for Civil-Rights Memorials

Museums and monuments devoted to the struggle for civil rights are facing new fund-raising hurdles in the wake of the election of America’s first black president, reports The Wall Street Journal.

As signs of racial progress, punctuated by President Obama’s election, spark debate about the relevance of traditional treatments of racism and blacks’ role in U.S. history, curators and others involved in such projects say they are encountering growing resistance from potential donors.

“Funders will always say, ‘Why does it matter today?’” said Doug Shipman, executive director of the planned Center for Civil and Human Rights, in Atlanta. “You have to prove to them that Martin Luther King matters today.”

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Court Backs 2002 Raids on Muslim Organizations

An appeals court yesterday upheld a lower court decision asserting the legality of federal raids on a Northern Virginia network of Muslim charities, think tanks, and businesses, The Washington Post reports.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruled that the March 2002 raids in search of evidence of terrorist financing — which included raids on homes — did not violate the targets’ constitutional rights. A Herndon, Va., family filed suit, alleging that agents fabricated evidence to obtain a search warrant and falsely imprisoned them in their home.

The raids, which were strongly denounced by Muslim leaders, have led to several indictments and the conviction of a prominent Islamic activist, Abdurahman Alamoudi, but no charges have been filed against the Herndon organizations at the center of the probe.

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In the Arts: Pa. Budget Proposal Ends Arts Funds, S.F. Opera's New Cuts

A Pennsylvania budget plan approved this week by Republicans on the state Senate Appropriations Committee zeroes out funds for the arts, film offices, public television, and some museums, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

While the panel’s top Democrat said it is unlikely the GOP proposal will be approved in its current form, arts officials said it marked a new frontier in budget politics. “I’ve seen lots of head fakes and brinksmanship in the past, but this feels very real,” said Charlie Humphrey, executive director of the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts.

In other arts news, the San Francisco Opera announced another $1-million in spending reductions for the 2009-10 season, including a 5 percent pay cut for top executives, reports the San Francisco Business Times. The company will enter the new season with a $63-million budget, $6-million less than originally proposed.

Also, the Orlando Sentinel reports that 11 dancers are leaving the Orlando Ballet after this season, five of them dismissed by the new artistic director, Robert Hill. However, Mr. Hill said the company will enter next seasons with a full complement of 30 performers.

Boston Landmarks Compete for Voters in Grant Sweepstakes

Twenty-five historic sites in Greater Boston are battling in a public vote for shares of a $1-million grant pie to be doled out through the Partners in Preservation project, The Boston Globe reports.

The American Idol-style grant competition, previously staged in San Francisco, Chicago, and New Orleans, is a joint venture of American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The online balloting began April 14 and closes May 17.

Landmarks ranging from a 17th-century meetinghouse to the 40-year-old New England Aquarium are campaigning for the $100,000 first prize, with the remaining grants to be divided among the runners-up by an advisory committee of local civic and preservation leaders.

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British Cancer Charity Requests Refund of Iceland Losses

A British cancer charity will deliver to the prime minister’s office today a petition signed by almost 100,000 people demanding a refund of about $9.8-million it lost in Iceland’s banking collapse, Third Sector Online reports.

Nine members of Parliament are due to join staffers from Christie’s, which supports the Christie cancer hospital, in Manchester, at 10 Downing Street. A House of Commons committee recommended last month that the charity be compensated for its losses.

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Obituary: Save the Chimps Founder Dies at 59

Dr. Carole C. Noon, an anthropologist and primatologist whose nonprofit organization runs the world’s largest sanctuary for captive chimpanzees, died of pancreatic cancer Saturday at her home in Fort Pierce, Fla., reports The New York Times. She was 59.

Save the Chimps, which Dr. Noon founded in 1997, cares for 282 animals at campuses in Fort Pierce and Alamogordo, N.M. Its residents were formerly used in biomedical research or show business, or had been sold and raised as pets.

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Government and Politics Watch: Obama's 2010 Federal Budget

President Obama’s proposed 2010 federal budget will call on Congress to eliminate or reduce spending on 121 current programs, which would save nearly $17-billion, according to administration officials, The Chronicle’s Government and Politics Watch reports.

Plus:

President Obama seeks slightly more than $373.4-million for the Peace Corps, a 10-percent increase from the $340-million the organization now receives.

Arts groups would get a slight increase under President Obama’s proposal.

Give and Take: Evaluating the White House Office of Social Innovation

Allison Fine, a social-media expert and Chronicle contributor, isn’t thrilled with the details that have begun to emerge about the White House Office of Social Innovation, notes a new post in Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Plus:

Considering the alternatives to foundations and traditional grant making.

Can a $500,000 arts prize spur innovation?

Prospecting: The Chronicle Seeks Your Advice

Ann Logan, chairwoman of Reach Out and Read Colorado, has asked Chronicle readers to offer advice on her fund-raising letter, which is scheduled to be mailed this month to new potential donors, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Conference Notebook: Bill Clinton Proposes 'Creative" Recession Solutions

While the economic recession is hurting nonprofit groups, they must respond by being more creative and working with businesses, government agencies, and one other, Bill Clinton told participants at the Council at Foundations meeting highlighted in the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s conference notebook.

Plus: Several Obama administration officials spoke about their interest in working with foundations to fight the nation’s most urgent problems.

May 06, 2009

Top British Grant Makers See Big Losses

The Wellcome Trust, Britain’s largest charitable foundation, suffered a nearly 9-percent loss in the value of its assets last year, the Web site of British magazine Charity Finance reports.

The trust’s portfolio fell by $2.8-billion to $21.2-billion for the year ending September 30. In its annual report, the charity said that “the depth of the financial crisis has exceeded our expectations.”

Another major British donor, the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, saw its investment assets drop 22.5 percent to $1.1-billion, leading to an approximately 8-percent decline in giving.

Former Finance Officer Pleads Guilty to Stealing From Child-Abuse Charity

The former finance director of the National Children’s Alliance pleaded guilty on Tuesday to stealing from the nonprofit organization, which works with victims of child abuse, reports the Associated Press.

Sharon Martin admitted to stealing eight payroll checks worth about $15,800 from the alliance, a Washington group that operates more than 500 children’s advocacy centers nationwide. She worked for the organization as finance and senior staff director from 1994 to 2007.

Ms. Martin faces up to six months in prison when she is sentenced in August.

Opinion: Surge in Anonymous Giving Has a Downside

A downturn in “conspicuous philanthropy” might not bode well for the state of charitable giving, writes Judith H. Dobrzynski, a business journalist, in an opinion article published by Forbes.com.

Citing last week’s Chronicle of Philanthropy report on the recent rise in large anonymous gifts, she noted that highly public contributions can have a ripple effect on giving and help fund raisers, who use lists of wealthy givers to find new prospects.

If the “age of competitive mega-philanthropy” is ending, she writes, “the inspirational role it played in encouraging smaller donors may also be lost.”

White House Press Dinner to Benefit Charity for Poor

The 2,700 guests at this weekend’s White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner will forgo dessert and donate the savings to a social-service charity in Washington, says the Associated Press.

Along with the $13,140 raised by skipping the last course at the annual dinner, the association will give another $10,000 to So Others Might Eat, which provides meals, job training, and mental-health and drug treatment to the poor. Following tradition, proceeds from the event will also support journalism scholarships.

The correspondents’ group wanted “to recognize the difficulties that lots of people are facing right now,” said Jennifer Lowen, Associated Press White House reporter and president of the association.

(Free registration is required to view this article on the Washington Post site.)

In the Arts: Carnegie Hall to Adopt Horne Foundation

The Weill Music Institute, the educational arm of Carnegie Hall, will take over the programs of the Marilyn Horne Foundation, which the famed mezzo-soprano founded in 1993 to support the work of young singers, according to The New York Times.

The transition will take place next year, with Ms. Horne staying on as the foundation’s artistic director.

In other arts news, Michael M. Kaiser, president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and architect of its Arts in Crisis program to assist recession-battered cultural organizations, discussed the downturn’s impact on the arts in an online discussion hosted by The Washington Post.

(Free registration is required to view these articles.)

Conference Notebook: How the White House Decided to Propose Limits on Charitable Deductions

A White House official offered insights to foundation leaders about how the Obama administration decided to propose limits on charity tax breaks available to the wealthy, in a session at the annual Council on Foundations meeting highlighted in the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s conference notebook.

Plus:

Why the Madoff scandal has caused a “trust deficit” as foundations decide where to invest.

Foundation leaders debate a watchdog group’s recommendations to make big changes in the allocation of grants.

Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York, outlines how the city is trying to help nonprofit groups deal with the recession.

A Treasury Department official says the Obama administration is open to revising guidelines for foundations that give overseas.

From The Chronicle: 62% of Foundations Plan to Decrease Giving

Sixty-two percent of foundations expect to reduce their giving this year, according to a new study whose results are summarized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

From The Chronicle: Obama to Seek $50-Million for Social-Innovation Fund

President Obama is asking Congress to provide $50-million to support creative and successful nonprofit groups as part of a new Social Innovation Fund, a top White House official told the Council on Foundations’ annual conference, in Atlanta, on Tuesday, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reports.

Last evening Michelle Obama, the first lady, told the audience at a New York gala that the idea for the fund is simple: “Find the most effective programs out there and then provide the capital needed to replicate their success in communities around the country.”

Making Financial Decisions: A New Online Discussion Series Starts Next Week

As the recession forces charities to make increasingly challenging financial decisions, many nonprofit leaders and board members do not know what questions to ask and do not have a clear understanding of what their choices will mean to their organizations’ long-term financial health.

To help nonprofit leaders understand their options, The Chronicle of Philanthropy and the Nonprofit Finance Fund are offering a series of free, live online discussions that will give nonprofit and foundation leaders the opportunity to get advice from financial experts.

Clara Miller, chief executive of the Nonprofit Finance Fund, along with other experts, will offer concrete and practical tips and ideas on some of the most pressing financial issues charities face today.

The series will take place every other Thursday at noon U.S. Eastern time, beginning May 14. You may start posing questions now. Early questions have a better chance of getting answers.

2010 Federal Budget: Help Guide Us to the News That Matters Most to Your Organization

President Obama on Thursday is set to release the details of his proposed 2010 federal budget — and we’re looking for your help in collecting information about how his plans will affect nonprofit organizations.

If you — or someone at your organization — is keeping track of how the budget proposals, links to official statements, or analysis, we hope you will share them with readers by posting them on our Government & Politics Watch blog or by sending us an e-mail message.

We will provide regular updates about and reactions to the budget on Government & Politics Watch beginning Thursday.

We have also created a hashtag on Twitter devoted to the federal budget and nonprofit groups. The tag is #budgetnp.

Announcement: Chronicle Names Veteran News Executive as Its New Publisher

The Chronicle of Higher Education Inc., the parent company of The Chronicle of Philanthropy, has announced that Mireille Grangenois will this month become the organization’s new publisher. Ms. Grangenois is an advertising, marketing, and public-relations executive who began her career as a reporter.

Ms. Grangenois, currently a managing director at the Burson-Marsteller public-relations firm, has wide experience in the news business, both online and in print. She served previously as vice president for advertising at The Sun, in Baltimore, where she also was vice president for marketing and interactive media and general manager of its Web site. Before working at The Sun, she was an advertising executive at Washington Post Newsweek Interactive and at The Philadelphia Inquirer.

At Burson-Marsteller, Ms. Grangenois is responsible for its multicultural practice. Her clients include the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the United Negro College Fund, and Hampton University.

Ms. Grangenois is a 1978 alumna of New York University.

In recent years, Ms. Grangenois has served on the boards of several cultural, civic, and academic organizations, including the University of Maryland’s journalism school, the Lincoln Theater, in Washington, D.C., and the Center Stage Theater, in Baltimore.

In addition to the two newspapers and their associated Web sites and other online services, The Chronicle of Higher Education Inc. produces the Arts & Letters Daily Web site, newsletters for trustees of colleges and other nonprofit organizations, and live and online events for people in higher education and the nonprofit world.

May 05, 2009

Conference Notebook: Foundations and the Federal Economic-Stimulus Plan

Foundations should get involved in helping shape spending decisions made under the new federal stimulus law, a White House aide told participants at the annual meeting of the Council on Foundations.

Plus, in other sessions at the meeting:

A Congressman urged charities to take more “daring” actions to fix the nation’s economic problems.

The new Secretary of Health and Human Services urged foundations to take an active role in promoting public health.

Local and regional foundations were encouraged to take more active steps in dealing with home-foreclosure troubles.

Foundation investment experts offered advice and discussed steps they are taking to deal with financial turbulence.

Tension Continues to Roil Big Antipoverty Charity

About 100 Feed the Children employees have signed a petition asking board members and executives reinstated to their roles by a judge to quit, according to The Oklahoman.

The five directors and four executives were returned to their posts after they were ousted in December by the Oklahoma City charity’s leader, Larry Jones, amid a battle for legal control of the organization. Feed the Children is one of the nation’s biggest antihunger charities.

In the “no confidence” petition, sent May 1 to the judge overseeing the case, employees said Feed the Children had been “a brutal workplace” when the ousted directors and managers were present and had improved while they were gone.

Read The Chronicle‘s recent article on the leadership controversy at Feed the Children.

(A paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)

Nevada Indicts Nonprofit Group on Voter-Registration Irregularities

The antipoverty group whose drive to sign up new voters became a lightning rod for Republican criticism during last year’s presidential election has been charged by Nevada officials with voter-registration fraud, The New York Times reports.

The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, commonly known as Acorn, and two former leaders of its Nevada branch are accused of paying incentives to canvassers to exceed registration quotas, in violation of state law. Officials said about three-quarters of the approximately 91,000 registrations Acorn submitted in Clark County, Nev., were invalid.

Scott Levenson, a spokesman for Acorn, said the organization had fired the two employees responsible for the payment scheme and cooperated with investigators. He termed state officials’ decision to indict Acorn itself “political grandstanding.”

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Despite Congressional Ban, National Zoo to Get Stimulus Funds

The National Zoo, in Washington, will get federal stimulus money for renovations and other work, despite a provision in the stimulus legislation striking zoos from the $787-billion package, reports ProPublica.

The Smithsonian Institution is directing $11.4-million of its $25-million in stimulus money to the zoo, which it operates.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors had included several zoo projects on a list of proposed stimulus beneficiaries, but members of Congress inserted a provision in the bill that prohibited state and local officials from spending the designated funds on casinos, golf courses, swimming pools, aquariums, or zoos.

Unusual Health Research Focus of Small Gates Foundation Grants

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on Monday awarded 81 small grants designed to promote innovative, unconventional approaches to health issues, reports the Associated Press.

The five-year, $100,000 grants will support such projects as exploring the use of tomatoes as a vehicle for antiviral drugs, treating skin with lasers to enhance the efficacy of vaccinations, and suppressing malaria-carrying mosquitoes’ sense of smell to prevent them from sniffing out humans as a source of blood.

Also: Jeff Raikes, the Gates foundation’s chief executive, outlined plans on Monday to spend $73-million over the next five years to help impoverished farmers in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, the Associated Press says.

Nonprofit Job Losses Stoke Concern in Britain

Employment at British charities declined in the fourth quarter of 2008, dropping to 716,000 from an all-time high of 724,000, prompting fears of a recession-fueled contraction in nonprofit employment, Third Sector reports.

“We’ve seen lots of front-line care jobs lost as organizations seek to provide the same service for less money,” said Mike Short of Unison, the national trade union for public-service workers.

“Clearly, people are losing their jobs in the sector and we should not be complacent,” said Jenny Clark, research manager with the National Council of Voluntary Organizations. “At the same time, however, there is also a danger of being alarmist.”

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Campaign-Style Fund Drive Raises Quick Stake for Bush Library

The foundation overseeing the planned George W. Bush presidential library in Dallas has raised more than $100-million in the 100-odd days since Mr. Bush left office, far outpacing similar efforts on behalf of his recent predecessors, Time reports.

Following traditional presidential-library practice, the Bush effort has sought large contributions directly from a small group of wealthy benefactors. But it has also taken a page from the playbook of modern political campaigning, establishing a national finance committee with 100 co-chairs in every state.

The projected $300-million center on the campus of Southern Methodist University is scheduled to begin construction this November and open in 2013.

In the Arts: Mass. Theater Closes, a Nonprofit Record Label Grows

The Foothills Theatre Company, in Worcester, Mass., announced that it will suspend operations this month after the last performance of its current production, the Associated Press reports.

The 35-year-old nonprofit theater, the only professional stage company in the central Massachusetts town, was suffering from declines in attendance, donations, and corporate sponsorships.

In other arts news, the Los Angeles Times profiles Threadheads, a nonprofit record label that evolved from a chat room at the New Orleans Jazz Fest Web site to support local musicians.

Also, the Times reports on the Southern California-based Centre Pompidou Foundation, which raises money and collects works for Paris’s Pompidou Center.

(Free registration is required to view the AP article on the Boston Globe site as well as the Los Angeles Times articles.)

Prospecting: Site Seeks to Help American Charities Raise Money Online

GlobalGiving — an online giving site best known for connecting donors with development projects overseas — is holding a competition to attract more American charities, notes Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising column.

Give and Take: How Much Should Board Members Give?

How to get board members to make personal donations — and solicit money from others — is debated in a new post in Give and Take, The Chronicle’s roundup of the best blog posts about the nonprofit world.

Transcript: First Steps for Marketing a Charity

Read a transcript of today’s live online discussion about the first moves that should be taken by someone in a nonprofit marketing job.

May 04, 2009

Recession Puts Brakes on America's Arts Boom

The recession has slammed the brakes on the surge in artistic activity across America in recent years, declares The Washington Post in an overview of the rash of shutdowns, layoffs, and budget cuts enacted by cultural institutions nationwide.

Organizations that thrived through other recessions and the recent mini-downturns following the 2001 terrorist attacks and the bursting of the dot-com bubble now find themselves reeling from a combination of shrinking investment portfolios, reduced government and corporate support, and plunging private donations and ticket sales.

“I have never seen a situation like this in my 25 years in the business,” Michael M. Kaiser, president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, told the newspaper.

See The Chronicle article, in the issue posted online today, outlining the creative responses that big arts groups have taken as the financial crisis has cut into their budgets.

(Free registration is required to view the Post article, and a paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)

Practices of Arizona Network of Charities Raise Questions About Federal Policy, Newspaper Says

More than a dozen charities associated with a Phoenix televangelist took credit in federal tax filings for donating tens of millions of dollars’ worth of medicines and other goods that they did not actually collect, store, or distribute, The Arizona Republic reports in an investigative series.

According to the newspaper, at least 14 of 22 charities tied to Don Stewart Association used paper ownership transfers of materials passed through multiple organizations to claim the goods’ full value as incoming revenue and outgoing donations on tax returns from 2003 to 2005.

Some watchdogs say such practices, while not illegal, can mislead donors and benefit charities by inflating their financial profile. Officials with the association defended its practices, noting that the materials reached their intended destinations in the developing world.

The Chronicle examined these charities in a 2007 investigative report available in our archives.

(A paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)

Madoff Associate Says Fraud Wiped Out Family Foundation

A money manager who was sued on charges that he profited from Bernard Madoff’s investment swindle says he and his family charity were instead victims of the disgraced financier, reports the Associated Press.

Stanley Chais said his Chais Family Foundation, which contributed millions of dollars annually to Jewish causes, was wiped out by Mr. Madoff’s multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.

In a complaint filed Friday in bankruptcy court, Irving Picard, the trustee handling the Madoff case, asserts that Mr. Chais — described in court papers as “the first speed-dial entry” on phones at Mr. Madoff’s firm — should forfeit more than $1-billion he earned on Madoff investments to help pay bilked investors’ claims.

(Free registration is required to view this article on the Boston Globe Web site.)

Downturn Deters Charity Tribute Galas

The black-tie charity tribute gala is becoming an endangered species as the financial meltdown makes it more difficult for organizations to attract people to honor, traditionally business and finance titans who are expected to make large donations and encourage friends and associates to make gifts to attend, The New York Times reports.

Carnegie Hall, which raised $4.2-million at an April 2008 event to honor Terry J. Lundgren, head of Macy’s, canceled this year’s gala because it was unable to come up with anybody who could pay the sum it takes to be the marquee attraction at a dinner.

“This idea of getting on the phone and saying, ‘Wouldn’t you like to be honored at our gala?’ – that’s more difficult, more challenging now than in my 30 years of experience at this,” said Will Maitland Weiss, executive director of the Arts and Business Council of New York.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Charity-Run Street Newspapers Thrive Even in the Recession

While major international news organizations are struggling, the mostly charity-run weekly and monthly newspapers sold on the street by homeless people in major cities worldwide appear to be weathering the downturn, The New York Times reports.

The more than 100 such papers in 40 countries operate primarily to aid the indigent and survive on circulation sales, subsidies, and donations, making them less subject to the vagaries of the advertising market.

“I was concerned that 2008 and 2009 might see a drop in sales, but that hasn’t happened,” said Paolo Briviom an official of the monthly newspaper that is distributed in Milan. In tough times, he added, readers understand “that we all have to help each other.”

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Ex-AIG Chief to Sell Shares to Foundation-Linked Investment Firm

Starr International, the U.S. investment arm operated for the benefit of the Starr International Foundation, is buying out the financial stake held by Maurice R. Greenberg, the former chief executive of the American International Group, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Greenberg filed documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission Friday to sell his nearly 12.9 million shares to Starr, for which he is one of 12 voting shareholders. Starr already holds 206 million shares of AIG and was the largest shareholder in the troubled insurer before it was bailed out by the federal government.

The newspaper said the sale was part of a plan to turn over more of Mr. Greenberg’s assets to charity.

(A paid subscription is required to view this article.)

Government and Politics: Key Senate Change

Sen. Charles E. Grassley is expected to leave his powerful post on the Finance Committee in 2011 as part of a deal reached today with Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, who is expected to take over the top Republican spot on the Judiciary Committee, The Chronicle’s Government and Politics Watch reports.

Mr. Grassley, an Iowa Republican, is the senior Republican of the Finance Committee. In that role, he has been the Senate’s most active voice on key nonprofit issues such as abuse, the tax treatment of nonprofit hospitals, endowments, and executive compensation.

Plus: Seeking ideas on the new federal innovation fund for nonprofit groups.

From The Chronicle: Recession Slows Down Growth in Online Donations

Online donations to charity continue to increase, according to a new Chronicle of Philanthropy survey, but the recession has slowed the pace of growth.

Subscribers to the newspaper have full access to a searchable database of online giving results at more than 200 organizations, as well as details showing results for many of the nation’s biggest charities over the past five years.

Conference Notebook: Update From Foundation Meeting

The economic recession and the Obama administration present an opportunity for grant makers to innovate and forge new relationships with federal, state, and local governments, Steve Gunderson, chief executive of the Council on Foundations, said in a speech to open the organization’s annual meeting.

The Chronicle will post regular updates from the meeting in its conference notebook.

Prospecting: Help Craft an Appeal

An AmeriCorps Vista volunteer who is working at a nonprofit legal clinic in Indianapolis seeks advice on how to craft an appeal the charity plans to send this summer, as part of Prospecting, The Chronicle’s fund-raising blog. We encourage you to share you ideas on how to improve the appeal — and to learn from the suggestions placed by others.

Plus:

A charity in Singapore finds a way to give donors easy access to all of its financial records.

An American fund-raising software company expands in Europe.

Online Discussion Tomorrow: Marketing a Good Cause

Join us tomorrow, May 5, at noon, U.S. Eastern time for a live online discussion on nonprofit marketing.

Tomorrow’s discussion is designed to help newly hired marketing experts move quickly to elevate the public profile of their organizations. But it will also provide advice for other nonprofit leaders who want to learn how to make smart decisions to help their organizations win attention.

Taking your questions will be Kivi Leroux Miller, author of The First 100 Days in Your New Nonprofit Marketing Job.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

New Issue of The Chronicle Available Online

The Chronicle this morning posted its new issue online. You can see a summary of all the articles, opinion pieces, and features in the May 7 issue.

May 01, 2009

Ford Foundation Puts $50-Million Into Effort to Help Cities Buy Foreclosed Homes

The Ford Foundation will pump $50-million into a new nonprofit venture that seeks to stem neighborhood property-value declines by helping cities buy foreclosed properties, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The money will go to the National Community Stabilization Trust, a consortium of nonprofit groups that will act as a middleman between local governments trying to rehabilitate distressed neighborhoods and financial institutions that want to unload seized homes.

The trust, which also received $3-million from the MacArthur Foundation, hopes to facilitate purchases in more than 100 cities by the end of the year.

Boston Charities Hope to Copy N.Y. Kids' Program Touted by Obama

Boston nonprofit leaders are hoping to copy a successful New York education program that President Obama has touted and wants to expand nationally, reports The Boston Globe.

The activists will tour the Harlem Children’s Zone today to start a campaign to make a poverty-stricken Boston corridor one of the sites for the national expansion the president seeks to include in his budget proposal for next year. The decade-old Zone brings together social-service efforts to solve children’s health, nutrition, and well being at home to remove obstacles that impede success at school.

The Harlem project is about 70 percent charity-supported, with state and federal funds supplying the rest. The Obama administration plans to cover about half the cost of bringing the project to 20 other cities.

See an article from The Chronicle’s archive about how Harlem Children’s Zone and other charities sought to influence Mr. Obama on the campaign trail.

(Free registration is required to view the Globe article, and a paid subscription or temporary pass is required to view the Chronicle article.)

Brandeis Committee Issues Interim Report on Donor-Intent Controversy

The committee examining Brandeis University’s actions regarding the Rose Art Museum issued an interim report on Thursday that praised the university administration and did not call on it to retain the museum’s director, Michael Rush, The Boston Globe reports.

Brandeis, which this winter announced plans to close the Rose as a public institution and sell part of its $350-million collection to reduce the school’s fiscal woes, said last week that the museum will remain open until fall but that Rush’s contract will not be renewed. The director is popular with administration critics, who oppose any art sales or change in the museum’s mission.

The report says the future of the collection is up to the Brandeis Board of Trustees and that whatever decision it makes, “there will remain a substantial collection of art to be preserved and made available for research, study, and cultivation.”

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

Washington 'Redesigners' Donate Work to Make Shelter More Inviting

Temporary apartments at a Washington-area emergency shelter are getting a makeover, thanks to volunteer work by “redesigners,” specialists in quick, low-budget redecoration, The Washington Post reports.

Sixteen members of the organization Interior Redesign Industry Specialists used discount, recycled, and found furniture and accessories to transform two units at the Patrick Henry Family Shelter, in Fairfax County, Va., and they are now at work on a third. The effort is part of an “adopt an apartment” effort started by Shelter House, a local charity.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)

In the Arts: Jazz Fest Benefits New Orleans School, Video Artist's Archive Goes to Smithsonian

In New Orleans for the annual Jazz Fest, legendary crooner Tony Bennett yesterday handed out dozens of new tubas, trumpets, and trombones to students at a charter school founded after Hurricane Katrina, the Associated Press reports.

The gift was set in motion by a New York jazz fan who won a $5,000 “Big Give” contest held by Oprah Winfrey’s magazine and decided to put the money toward instruments for New Orleans schools. Mr. Bennett and charitable groups such as Music Rising and the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation joined the effort, which procured $100,000 worth of instruments.

In other arts news, The New York Times reports that the estate of the pioneering video artist Nam June Paik will donate his archives to the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The Smithsonian won a competition for the coveted collection, beating out proposals from the Getty, Guggenheim, and Whitney museums and the Museum of Modern Art.

Also, longtime Los Angeles County Museum of Art contemporary-art curator, Lynn Zelevansky, has been named director of Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Museum of Art, reports the Los Angeles Times. She will take office in July, succeeding Richard Armstrong, who left to take over the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.

(Free registration is required to view the New York Times and Los Angeles Times articles.)

Online Discussion Next Week

Join us on Tuesday, May 5, at noon, U.S. Eastern time for a live online discussion on nonprofit marketing.

Next week’s discussion is designed to help newly hired marketing experts move quickly to elevate the public profile of their organizations. But it will also provide advice for other nonprofit leaders who want to learn how to make smart decisions to help their organizations win attention.

Taking your questions will be Kivi Leroux Miller, author of The First 100 Days in Your New Nonprofit Marketing Job.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

From The Chronicle: the Googlization of Philanthropy

Philanthropy is about to benefit from a revolution in how information is shared — what the Chronicle columnist Sean Stannard-Stockton calls the Googlization of philanthropy.

“Googlization focuses on enabling collaboration and participation by unbundling the process of creating information from its distribution,” he writes in an opinion article in The Chronicle of Philanthropy. “The very technology that is killing newspapers and record companies will revolutionize philanthropy for the better.”