How Arts Groups Can Adapt to the “Evaluation Craze”
Singing Our Praises: Case Studies in the Art of Evaluation, by Suzanne Callahan, highlights the experiences of several arts groups to demonstrate how the arts-and-culture field can respond to demands for accountability. Ms. Callahan, a consultant, says that arts groups can use a “participatory…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
The ‘Power’ of Jewish Camping Inspires a Dad to Get More Involved
As a kid, I never liked summer camp. It is ironic, I know, given my support of Jewish camping activities throughout the majority of my adult life, and how often I’ve seen young people’s lives changed for the better by their involvement in youth activities. But for me, as a young boy, camp just felt…
Theme Park Exempt From Tax, Court Rules
A Christian theme park is exempt from paying property taxes, a Florida circuit judge has ruled. Judge Cynthia Z. MacKinnon said that the Holy Land Experience, a theme park in Orlando, Fla., run by the nonprofit group Zion’s Hope, is closely tied to the charity’s tax-exempt mission of spreading what…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
IRS Urged to Rethink Charitable Trust Rules
Nonprofit leaders are asking the Internal Revenue Service to revise a new requirement for charitable trusts that are set up by married couples, saying the change unnecessarily complicates giving. The rule, which took effect June 28, requires donors to receive written permission from their spouses…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
Bits: Libraries Unable to Meet Internet Use Demand
GuideStar, a Williamsburg, Va., organization that posts charities’ informational tax returns on the Internet, has started a new service, eDocs, that allows nonprofit groups to post additional documents to the site, such as their audited financial statements, annual reports, and letters from the…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Tree-Planting Campaign Nets Many Donations
The Jewish National Fund has raised $300,000 since May 2004 by updating a century-old fund-raising tool for the Internet age. The New York charity has been planting trees overseas since its start in 1901. Today, donors purchase trees that are planted in Israel in the name of family and friends,…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
New Technology Tools Aid Business Plans
Two new technology tools are available to help charities develop a business plan for a for-profit venture. The Social Enterprise Alliance, a nonprofit membership group in Los Angeles, has collaborated with Palo Alto Software, in Eugene, Ore., to develop the Social Enterprise Edition of the…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Amazon Award Finalists Compete for Top Prize
Amazon.com has announced the 10 finalists for its Nonprofit Innovation Award, which honors creative approaches to solving social problems. Those organizations are now applying their creativity to finding ways to win the prize. Together, Amazon and Stanford Business School’s Center for Social…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
WHERE FOUNDATION MONEY GOES Breakdown of Charitable Spending at Private Foundations Grants 90% Charitable operating and administrative expenses 7% Program-related investments 1% Other 2% Total: $21.2-billion
Private Funds Spend 7 Percent on Administrative Costs, Study Finds
The country’s biggest private foundations collectively spent 7 percent of their charitable distributions on ALSO SEE:Foundation Expenses operating and administrative costs in 2001, according to one of the first comprehensive looks at foundation expenses. But the percentage spent by individual…
By SUZANNE PERRY
Contributor
Government Clarifies Antiterror Rules for Federal Charity Campaign
Concerns about antiterrorism requirements have flared once again as part of the Combined Federal Campaign, the annual charity drive for federal workers. This time the controversy involves local United Ways that administer the campaign in some parts of the country. At issue are reports that some…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor
Many groups use the term, but definition of ‘member’ varies Mark Pilipczuk can learn a lot about his organization simply by looking at its weekly membership report. For Mr. Pilipczuk, the vice president of marketing at the World Wildlife Fund, in Washington, membership numbers can quickly tell him…
By PETER PANEPENTO
Contributor
How Much Companies Gave to Tsunami-Relief Efforts
Companies That Made 20 Percent or More of Their Gifts in Products in 2004 Value of noncash gifts What was donated Percentage of total giving Merck & Company (Whitehouse Station, N.J.) $921,000,000 pharmaceuticals 94.1% Pfizer (New York) 1,161,906,114 pharmaceuticals 92.2 Bristol-Myers Squibb…
American Heart Association, Houston/Gulf Coast District: Appointed Deborah Ortiz, national director of agency-fund development at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Texas (Houston), to be executive director. Art & Creativity for Healing (Laguna Niguel, Calif.): Appointed Michelle Ray, director…
Following are summaries of recent reports by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. This private group reports on whether charities meet standards for fund raising, governance, financial management, and public information. The alliance does not approve or disapprove of charities, and urges potential donors…
The Internal Revenue Service has revoked the charity status of four credit-counseling organizations and is considering whether to revoke the status of several more, says Debra Kawecki, a lawyer at the tax agency. The IRS identified two of the groups as A Better Way Credit Counseling, in Greenacres,…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor