As executive director of Congregation Emanu-El B’ne Jeshurun, a synagogue in River Hills, Wis., Bruce Ente provided health insurance for the organization’s three employees. But four years ago, those premiums cost the synagogue, which ran on an annual budget of $1.3-million, about $11,000 each month…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
A man in his 20s, who has just joined the board of his family’s foundation, is bright, enthusiastic, and bubbling over with new ideas. But he soon begins butting heads with older board members and their established thinking. Just as the situation reaches a boiling point, the individuals stop…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Fiscal Sponsorships Help Programs Keep Costs Down
A new online tool may help make it easier for groups to work together and avoid the hassle of duplicating financial and administrative services. The tool is intended to promote so-called fiscal sponsorships. Under such arrangements, a nonprofit organization accepts money donated to a program or…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Grant Makers Spur Creation of Statewide Nonprofit Database
As a busy nonprofit leader, Bruce Katsiff didn’t want to spend hours pouring his group’s financial data into a Web site, but he is happy he did. Mr. Katsiff says his organization, the James A. Michener Art Museum, in Doylestown, Pa., now has $40,000 more toward its capital campaign because he made…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
New Effort Seeks to Simplify the Process of Submitting Grant Proposals
Peggy Payne, executive director of Safe Passage, in Rock Hill, S.C., has felt overwhelmed by the amount of paperwork involved in seeking grants. Last year, her group suffered due to what she considers a minor mistake in a grant application. In a grant proposal, Ms. Payne’s group, which assists…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Nonprofit Leaders Seek Guidance in Building Rapport With Boards
Mark Slocum, head of the Heart Connection Children’s Cancer Programs, a charity in Des Moines, has endured his share of uncomfortable board meetings. “I’ve found as executive director that, a lot of times, board members kind of look at you like you have a hidden agenda or are trying to slide…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Hoong Yee Lee Krakauer, executive director of the Queens Council on the Arts, in Woodhaven, N.Y., had a problem: how to restructure her organization’s board. “We had loose bylaws, my board didn’t understand its roles and responsibilities, and they weren’t doing things they should’ve been doing,”…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Philanthropy Retreats Help Married Couples Learn How to Balance Their Giving Priorities
Howard T. and Sara E. Fleming have been making grants through their own family foundation for ALSO SEE:DATABASE: America’s Top DonorsARTICLE: A Big Year for Big GivingARTICLE: 23 Donors Claimed Spots on Both ’06 and ’07 Most-Generous ListsARTICLE: How The Chronicle Compiled the List of the Top…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
Five Grant Makers That Offer Consulting Aid
Following are foundations that provide consultants’ services to grantees and grant seekers through formal programs:. The Chicago Foundation for Women offers grantees ALSO SEE:ARTICLE: A California Grant Maker Offers Local Charities Free Consulting Help walk-in consulting on selected days throughout…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor
A California Grant Maker Offers Local Charities Free Consulting Help
Door of Hope, a nonprofit group that serves homeless families in Pasadena, Calif., needed help: Its donations had declined and the charity was in financial jeopardy. So a year ago its executive director, Tim Peters, began meeting with a management consultant who has, so far, ALSO SEE:ARTICLE: Five…
By Darlene M. Siska
Contributor