Items relevant to more than one category may appear more than once in this summary. From the issue dated January 26, 2006 About Gifts and Giving LEE A. IACOCCA, the legendary former head of the Chrysler Corporation, is betting his reputation on a campaign to raise money for research on a possible cure for diabetes. THE ATHLETICS PROGRAM at Oklahoma State University will get a substantial boost from a $165-million gift from Boone Pickens, an OSU alumnus. THE GRANDDAUGHTER of Henry Ford bequeathed $50-million to the College for Creative Studies, in Detroit; other recent gifts to nonprofit institutions and organizations. FACE OF PHILANTHROPY: Orbis, a charity in New York, sends a plane equipped with an operating room and other medical equipment to developing countries to train doctors in eye-surgery techniques. About Fund Raising BUOYED by stronger fund raising than they expected last year, many charity leaders are optimistic about 2006, though some did feel the effects of "donor fatigue" caused by the onslaught of natural disasters. YEAR-END ONLINE DONATIONS were up significantly for many nonprofit groups over the same period in 2004. SPECIAL TAX BREAKS enacted to encourage giving in the wake of Hurricane Katrina yielded mixed results, mainly benefiting charities that made sure wealthy donors knew about the law. INTEREST RATES for planned gifts, issued by the Internal Revenue Service. About Managing Nonprofit Groups TIME BANKS, which let members purchase goods and services with fake money and real effort, represent to some an alternative approach to social services. CHARITIES ARE TESTING THE BARTER SYSTEM as a way to help evacuees displaced by the Gulf Coast hurricanes. THE IDEA OF EARNING "TIME DOLLARS" for services rendered has spread far beyond the United States. A SWITCH FROM MUSIC TO NEWS at Detroit radio station WDET has provoked attention-getting protests, but unhappy listeners are fighting an uphill battle against the economic realities of public broadcasting (Dispatches). THIRTY CREDIT-COUNSELING GROUPS are about to lose their tax exemption (Tax Watch). A GROUP OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS have asked the Internal Revenue Service to investigate two Ohio churches for possible violations of a ban on politicking by tax-exempt organizations. COLLEGE ENDOWMENTS outperformed the stock market for the second year in a row, according to two reports on university investments. MANY OF THE TAX-EXEMPT GROUPS that seek help from the Internal Revenue Service do not get it, according to a key official of the agency (Tax Watch). THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE released statistics showing that deductions for charitable contributions rose more than 3 percent from 2002 to 2003 (Tax Watch). TECH-SAVVY, MULTILINGUAL, experienced in business — Victor d'Allant was the only job candidate with all the right skills to take over the Skoll Foundation's Web site for social entrepreneurs (New on the Job). THE VALUES LEARNED from a working-class Catholic family inform the efforts of a lawyer who heads the country's largest gay and lesbian legal organization (Entry Level). About Grant Makers PRIVATE FOUNDATIONS distributed $26.3-billion in 2002, according to the Internal Revenue Service, a decline of 4 percent from the previous year (Tax Watch). RECENT GRANTS by foundations, corporations, and other grant makers. SUMMARIES OF ANNUAL REPORTS from the Community Foundation Silicon Valley, the Dana Foundation, and the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust. About Technology "VIRTUAL VOLUNTEERS" are drawn to charitable work that can be done online, and more and more nonprofit groups are providing opportunities for them. WEB-BASED AUDIO BROADCASTS, known as "podcasts," offer charities a new way to keep supporters informed of their work, often in vivid and timely detail. A TECHNOLOGY-SUPPORT GROUP in New York trains disadvantaged workers to provide computer services to other charities, fulfilling a second mission of giving the workers job skills and paid employment. CHARITIES CAN GAIN FREE ACCESS to a new generation of Web tools through a new nonprofit effort. FOUNDATIONS ARE ADOPTING new technology at a slower rate than in the past, according to a just-issued report. A MAJOR TECHNOLOGY MEETING has been scheduled for March 22-24, in Seattle. A NEW ONLINE SEARCHING SITE allows its users to select a school or charity to receive a small percentage of the revenue it earns from advertising. TECHNOLOGY BITS: Fellowships are available for social entrepreneurs who use technology to advance their missions; a Webcast seeks to bring together museums, libraries, and public-broadcasting stations. Also in This Issue OPINION: Pablo Eisenberg says foundation giving toward recovery efforts in the Gulf Coast has been both meager and unwise; Hugh B. Price has some thoughts on what makes a good nonprofit trustee; and Rick Cohen sees lessons for charities in the lobbying scandal now preoccupying Washington. BOOKS: An exploration of how a leadership theory plays out for real-world nonprofit managers, a guide to audit practices for nonprofit groups, a compilation of essays by an American doctor who specializes in humanitarian relief, and a guide for developing effective community-university partnerships, plus summaries of a study on corporate giving and a handbook for trustees and staff members of arts organizations. PRESS CLIPPINGS: Fast Company looks at the movement toward small high schools, given significant impetus by the Gates Foundation, and at exemplary social entrepreneurs; and Smart Money interviews the new manager of Harvard University's $26-billion endowment, the largest endowment in the country. PEOPLE: Appointments and promotions in the nonprofit world.