The following awards have been presented for work in advocacy, fund raising, nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, and other areas. Arts. Americans for the Arts (Washington) has presented its Frederick R. Weisman Award for Philanthropy in the Arts to Teresa Heinz, chairman of the Heinz Endowments and…
Congress Investigates Charity Tax Deal
By Elizabeth Schwinn A Congressional subcommittee last week examined a tax deal involving charities and other tax-exempt groups, such as pension funds. The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations spent two days examining two approaches it said involved questionable tax shelters, including…
Appeals Court Reverses Tax-Exemption Ruling
By Elizabeth Schwinn A federal appeals court has ruled that, to retain its tax exemption, a charity hospital must do more to demonstrate that it retains control of a joint venture with a for-profit partner. The decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit overturns a lower court’s…
Web Site Focuses on Vision Problems
VisionConnection, a new Web site, provides information about vision impairment, its prevention, and vision rehabilitation -- all in a format that makes it easy for people who are blind or have limited sight to gain access to the material. Forty vision organizations from around the world worked…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Study Says News Stories Can Aid Online Appeals
Nonprofit organizations can improve their online fund raising by better timing their appeals to news coverage related to their work or cause, according to a new report. In a survey of visitors to Atlantic Monthly Online this summer, more than 80 percent of respondents -- 493 out of 600 -- said they…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Mapping Technology Links L.A. Charity Services
A new Web site combines a database of health, education, and social-service providers in Los Angeles County with mapping technology to help people find the services they need and to make it easier for policy makers and activists to understand the local social-service landscape. HealthyCity.org…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Study: Charity Fraud Exceeds $1-Billion
High-level charity officials stole or misused at least $1.28-billion from 152 nonprofit organizations during the past seven years, but the organizations recovered less than half that amount while many perpetrators received minor punishment, according to a new study. The study, by Harvard…
By Brad Wolverton
Contributor
Charities Brace for State Cuts
Nonprofit groups told to expect hard times until 2006As states continue to grapple with a fiscal crisis that some economists have described as the worst in 50 years, ALSO SEE:Tough Times for State Budgets budget experts and charities in many locales are concerned that nonprofit groups could be big…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Majority of Older Adults Are Volunteers and Donors, New Study Finds
By Nicole Wallace Eighty-seven percent of adults age 45 and older spend time volunteering, according to a new survey published by ALSO SEE:Giving and Volunteering by Adults 45 and Older AARP, a membership and advocacy group for older people. Fifty-one percent said that they volunteer through a…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Chautauqua Institution (N.Y.): Appointed Thomas M. Becker, chief executive officer of the Chautauqua Foundation and executive vice president of the institution, to be president. He succeeds Scott McVay, who has completed a three-year term as president. The Chautauqua Institution offers arts,…
By Elizabeth Schwinn The Internal Revenue Service has published two new brochures to help charities understand the laws governing tax-exempt status. One is designed to help prospective charities apply for a tax exemption. The other explains the requirements for charities to keep records, file…
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…
Albright College (Reading, Pa.): Appointed Susan K. Nenstiel, senior vice president of development at Easter Seals Eastern Pennsylvania (Allentown), to be director of major gifts. American Lung Association (New York): Appointed Karen Wertheimer, director of development at the American Liver…
A group of organizations opposing permanent repeal of the estate tax has released a report that says such a repeal would cause states to lose an average of $187-million annually in donations. The report, “The Estate Tax and Charitable Giving: State-by-State Analysis,” is available online at…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor
A leader of a mental-health group serves diverse constituenciesBaltimore It’s 6:15 on a warm Wednesday evening, and Kathryn S. Farinholt is chatting animatedly with visitors, volunteers, and board members as they file into the offices of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill’s Baltimore…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Creating a Guide Book for Volunteers
Model Volunteer Handbook, by Bill Wittich, describes the policies, procedures, rules, and regulations that the author believes should be collected in a manual and presented to volunteers as they begin serving an organization. Mr. Wittich, a consultant in Elk Grove, Calif., says that a handbook…
By Jessica Kronstadt
Contributor