How Much Foundations Give Away
LETTERS TO THE EDITORTo the Editor: In its annual survey of foundations (“Slow Growth at the Biggest Foundations,” March 23), The Chronicle calculates annual payout on year-end assets instead of average assets for the year (which is what is required by the Internal Revenue Service). As a result,…
Helping the Poor Takes More Than Charity
Some influential commentators and political activists have begun to again argue that government should no longer provide essential social services to the needy, labeling such a practice an unnecessary and undesirable vestige of the New Deal. They say that private initiative should take the place of…
By MARK ROSENMAN
Contributor
Director of President’s Faith-Based Office Resigns to Take Helm of Catholic College
H. James Towey, director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, has ALSO SEE:Excerpts from an interview with H. James Towey announced his resignation, saying that despite his departure, the Bush administration’s effort to allow religious organizations greater access to…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Online Surveys Help Charities Save Time and Money
TOOLS AND TRAINING By Marilyn Dickey For members of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, getting the results of the group’s survey of fund raisers’ ALSO SEE:Article: Resources and Tips for Conducting Online Surveys salaries and benefits is one of the most valued perks of membership in the…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Foundations Can Expect Increased Attention From State Officials
Whenever the Ford Foundation gets into hot water (as it regularly seems to do), the rest of the philanthropic world might be forgiven a bit of schadenfreude, for taking quiet pleasure at the latest misfortune of a grant maker known for its huge size and ambition. But foundations of all sizes and…
By LESLIE LENKOWSKY
Contributor
As the Council on Foundations’ new president, Steve Gunderson, and its board of directors move to revitalize the organization, they will need to set a moral tone for the council, one that matches the ethical standards the council recently asked its member grant makers to follow. One of Mr.…
By PABLO EISENBERG
Contributor
Support Grass-Roots Environmentalists
MY VIEWSince the first Earth Day in 1970, the modern American environmental movement has been in a constant state of flux. The movement itself began about a century ago with a small number of relatively conservative organizations largely committed to wilderness preservation, and has in the past 35…
By Mark Dowie
Contributor
A Charity Official Runs a Small South Carolina Town
When Carol Burdette gets out of bed at 4:30 a.m, she checks the local paper to see if anyone is calling for the ouster of the mayor of ALSO SEE:ARTICLE: A Nonprofit Takeover of City Hall Pendleton, S.C., population 3,000. Then she prays, asking specifically for grace and tact. “I want to be able to…
By Michael Anft
Contributor
A Nonprofit Takeover of City Hall
Charity officials take elected office as they seek ways to better societyWhen Dom Betro made plans to run for a city council seat in Riverside, Calif., in 2000, he received plenty of encouragement ALSO SEE:ARTICLE: A Charity Official Runs a Small South Carolina Town from his fellow nonprofit…
By Michael Anft
Contributor
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR To the Editor: Michael Lipsky and Dianne Stewart are right on (“The Common Good Depends on Government,” My View, February 23). Their column recalled an “Aha!” moment I experienced several years ago. At a stimulating Grantmakers in Health conference in Los Angeles, I was…