New Site Seeks to Make It Easier for Giving Circles to Blossom
Global Impact won money from the Gates Foundation to work on ways to help like-minded small donors pool their resources to support favorite causes.
By HEATHER JOSLYN
Contributor
‘Overhead’ Spending Has Little Impact on Giving, Study Suggests
Donors think charities spend too much on salaries and other administrative costs but still support organizations that do so, according to a new survey.
By HEATHER JOSLYN
Contributor
Daily News Roundup: Humane Society CEO Resigns
Wayne Pacelle stepped down after sexual-misconduct allegations, a revolt by major donors, and a threat from employees that they would walk out. In other news, the founder of a nonprofit to close Rikers Island left the organization after an accusation of misconduct; the philanthropist Jon Huntsman Sr. has died; hundreds of Girl Scouts are pushing to rename a Ga. bridge, now named after a segregationist, after the group’s founder; the Clinton Foundation is launching a nonprofit to help hurricane relief efforts in the Caribbean; and more.
Daily News Roundup: 7 Board Members Resign From Humane Society Over CEO Staying On
In other news, the University of Pennsylvania has stripped honors from Steve Wynn and Bill Cosby over accusations of sexual misconduct; the Red Cross general counsel has resigned over handling of sexual assault and harassment allegations; the new tax law could alter how people give to charity for years; the University of Michigan invested billions in funds run by donors’ firms; and much more about big gifts and nonprofit innovation and how nonprofits are dealing with sexual impropriety.
Foundation Salaries Vary Widely, Study Finds
The survey also showed a wide variation in benefits, with corporate foundations far more likely to provide maternity leave than other types of grant makers.
By Alex Daniels
Contributor
Podcast: Bringing 2 Million Domestic Workers Out of the Shadows
In this week’s Business of Giving, MacArthur Genius Award winner Ai-jen Poo, executive director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, discusses the struggles of nannies, house cleaners and other undervalued workers.
James Beard Foundation Serves Up a New CEO
Plus, a National Women’s Law Center alumna returns to become chief operating officer, a former Muscular Dystrophy Association chief takes the helm at a major executive search firm, and other personnel news.
By M.J. Prest
Senior Editor, Solutions
Daily News Roundup: Humane Society Donors Call for CEO to Be Fired
Some donors are not happy that Wayne Pacelle is staying on during the investigation into complaints of sexual harassment. In other news, after the Federal Trade Commission accused a telemarketer of lying to potential donors, some charities are considering cutting ties; the University of Iowa wants to drop Steve Wynn’s name from an institute after he was accused of sexual misconduct; a donor gave money to a conservancy to name a great white shark after Robert Mueller; and much more.
Overview: A Communications Plan That Promises Less Work but More Supporters
A dedicated millennial volunteer and public-relations professional created a model for a nonprofit.
By Drew Lindsay
Senior Editor, Special Projects
Daily News Roundup: Humane Society Sexual-Harassment Controversy Widens
Two senior executives are being investigated for incidents going back more than a decade. In other news, an aid group says that the Border Patrol routinely undermines efforts to help migrants; the California Senate has passed a bill that would let residents pay taxes through a federally deductible, state-run charity; some companies are making charitable deductions with their savings from the new tax law; and much more, including articles on giving and nonprofit leaders.
Half of U.S. Charities Are on Financial Brink
About 8 percent of nonprofits are insolvent, and it would take up to $50 billion to fill their budget gaps, according to new analysis of informational tax-return data.
By HEATHER JOSLYN
Contributor
Daily New Roundup: 3 Women Accuse Humane Society CEO of Sexual Misconduct
Investigators from a law firm hired by the Humane Society interviewed 33 people including the CEO, Wayne Pacelle. In other news, the Salvation Army got a $50 million gift to aid the homeless; FEMA is ending food and water aid to Puerto Rico; the Trumps have invited the founder of a nonprofit rescue team to the State of the Union address; why more Super Bowl ads are pushing nonprofit causes; and much more, including articles on Russian and the NRA and the Koch brothers’ network.
Journalism as Charity? How For-Profit Media May Undercut Nonprofits
In the wake of Trump’s election, journalism is now being promoted as a cause, complete with language used by nonprofit fundraisers.
By Drew Lindsay
Senior Editor, Special Projects
Daily News Roundup: Banks and Universities Often Have Lucrative Partnerships
Banks have contracts across the country that essentially make universities their sales representatives. In other articles, employee theft at nonprofits is commonplace; the #MeToo movement has reached evangelical nonprofits; the NCAA president was notified about sexual-assault reports years ago; Cecile Richards discusses her post-Planned Parenthood plans; an opinion column makes the case for foundations to spend down their assets and close; and much more.
Trust in Charities and Other Institutions Has Declined, Says a Report
The Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual study looking into how public trust has changed across the world, blames a “lack of objective facts and rational discourse.”
By Ariella Phillips
Contributor
Feeding America Food Banks Criticized Diana Aviv’s Leadership in Letter to Board
In a letter sent three months before she left Feeding America, the leaders of 30 affiliated regional food banks relayed their concern that poor leadership was hurting the charity.
By Megan O’Neil
Contributor