Charitable-Giving Bills Proposed in Congress
Members of Congress have introduced legislation that would offer new tax breaks to spur charitable giving. One key provision of the House and Senate bills would allow people who do not itemize deductions on their federal income-tax returns to write off some of their charitable gifts. Another…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Bits: U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Receives $500,000 Grant
Randal D. Pinkett, president of Building Community Technology Partners, in Newark, N.J., and a frequent speaker at nonprofit technology conferences, is a contestant on the NBC reality television show, The Apprentice. For more information: Go to http://www.nbc.com/The_Apprentice_4. The U.S. Hispanic…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Four Organizations Win Internet Awards
The ePhilanthropy Foundation has presented its awards for excellence in nonprofit use of the Internet. The March of Dimes, in White Plains, N.Y., won the award for best “community building, volunteerism, or activism campaign” for its Share Your Story Web site, which allows families of premature…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Technology Groups Agree to Merger
Two nonprofit organizations that provide online fund-raising tools for other charities -- Network for Good, in Bethesda, Md., and Groundspring.org, in San Francisco -- have merged. The combined organization will use the Network for Good name. Founded in 2001 by AOL, Cisco Systems, and Yahoo,…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Female Charity Executives Win Big Increase in Pay
Women who run America’s largest charities have won big increases in pay, but they still earn far less than men in similar jobs, according to a new survey. The study, based on the 2003 informational tax returns of more than 83,000 nonprofit groups, found ALSO SEE:Differences in Pay for Men and Women…
By Debra E. Blum
Contributor
Public Confidence in Nonprofit Groups Is Low, Survey Finds
Public confidence in charitable organizations has yet to rebound from the decline experienced following the attacks of September 11, 2001, says a new report from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. Only 19 percent of the 1,820 Americans interviewed by phone…
By BRENNEN JENSEN
Contributor
Community Funds Urged to Make Big Changes to Survive
Seattle A much anticipated report, released here at this year’s annual community-foundation conference, outlines the future role of such funds within the philanthropic world. But the report’s title, “On the Brink of New Promise: The Future of U.S. Community Foundations,” could just as easily have…
By Ben Gose
Senior Editor
American University Faces Scrutiny Over President’s Pay, Spending
Washington A controversy over compensation and spending by Benjamin Ladner, president of American University, has raised questions about board scrutiny of executive pay and drawn the concern of a key member of Congress. A recent audit of Mr. Ladner, sparked by an anonymous letter to the board that…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor
Donations to Help Hurricane Victims Taper Off at Some Charities
After the initial outpouring of giving to help victims of Hurricane Katrina, donations to some of the nation’s largest relief charities have slowed substantially, even as the Gulf Coast recovers from its second major hurricane, Rita, which caused a wide swath of damage along the Texas and Louisiana…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Carving Out a Role in Disaster’s Wake
Some experts question necessity of charities formed after Hurricane Katrina; others say they fill a need When Terry Webb saw the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused throughout the Gulf Coast, he immediately ALSO SEE:Sharing a World of Experience wanted to take action to help the storm’s victims.…
By Harvy Lipman
Contributor
Foreign-aid groups offer advice in hurricanes’ aftermathWhen Arthur B. Keys Jr., a veteran international-aid worker, visited Katrina-ravaged parts of Mississippi, he felt a disturbing sense of déjà vu. “There’s a one-mile swath ALSO SEE:Carving Out a Role in Disaster’s Wake along the coast where…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Tips for Crafting a Sexual-Harassment Policy to Protect Nonprofit Workers
As the leader of a nonprofit group that aided victims of sexual assault, Judith Stotland had a lot of responsibilities, including one that might sound surprising: creating a sexual-harassment policy aimed at the charity’s employees. “I had an all-woman office, and you might not necessarily think…
By Ronald Hube
Contributor
Bonuses Earned by Top Executives in 2004
Organization Top executive Bonus Compensation Bonus as a percentage of total compensation Partners HealthCare System (Boston) James J. Mongan, Chief Executive Officer $350,000* $1,369,750 25.6% Heritage Foundation (Washington) Edwin J. Feulner Jr., President 260,000 592,054 43.9% Sesame Workshop…
Report Measures Impact of Gates Foundation’s Transitional-Housing Program
Evaluation of the Sound Families Initiative: A Closer Look at Homeless Families’ Lives During and After Supportive Transitional Housing assesses the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s $40-million project to combine transitional housing and support services for homeless families in Washington State.…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
‘Washington Monthly’: Colleges and Service
With the release of its first annual college rankings this month, the Washington Monthly joined the list of magazines and guidebooks that rate institutions of higher education. But “while other guides ask what colleges can do for students,” the magazine says, “we ask what colleges are doing for the…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
‘Inc.’: An Entrepreneurial Nonprofit Organization
In 1965, ceramics and jazz -- and a high-school art teacher -- helped to keep Bill Strickland from dropping out of school. Today, a nonprofit organization he founded is giving thousands of young people each year the same chance to come under the spell of art and music, reports Inc. magazine…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor