Web Site Ranks Cities by Charity Efficiency
Charity Navigator, a watchdog group in Mahwah, N.J., has added an interactive, online chart to its Web site that allows users to see how 25 major cities stack up in 16 measures of nonprofit performance. Charity Navigator looked at financial data from 1,500 nonprofit groups, as reported on their…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
New Database Assists Myeloma Research
The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium is using a powerful shared database to link four leading medical-research centers to try to accelerate the development of drugs to treat the disease. A cancer of the plasma cell, multiple myeloma has no known cure. In 1998, after she was diagnosed with the…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Spam Filters Snag Charity Messages, Study Finds
A new study of 40 nonprofit organizations found that at least one in five e-mail messages sent over seven months was misclassified as spam. Mindshare Interactive Campaigns, a company in Washington, used five accounts to subscribe to e-mail lists maintained by 40 nonprofit organizations. The company…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Bits: GWU Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet Publishes Online Fundraising Guide
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education is conducting a survey to learn how colleges and universities use e-mail to solicit donations. Institutions that participate will receive a free copy of the results. The deadline to complete the survey is September 30. To get there: Go to…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Web Site Offers Vast Radio-Program Collection
After its first year, the nonprofit PRX Public Radio Exchange has received a clear signal that its idea of linking radio programs with stations in search of content is working. Some 1,000 digital radio stories have been licensed through the site for broadcast on public radio stations. The…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Nonprofit Groups Offer New Technology Tools
Two charities that help small to medium-size nonprofit organizations raise money online plan to expand the array of services they offer. Groundspring.org, a San Francisco organization that provides charities with tools that allow them to communicate with their supporters via e-mail and accept…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
The following awards have been presented for work in advocacy, fund raising, nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, and other areas. Education fund raising. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (Washington) has presented several awards that recognize outstanding doctoral and other…
Cancer Survivor’s Wish Creates Video Game
Players who enter the world of Ben’s Game must destroy cancer cells and collect the seven shields that offer protection from the common side effects of chemotherapy. Winning is far from easy, as fearsome creatures like the Qball Monster and the Robarf Monster guard the charms that protect against…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Software Company Makes Stock Offering
Blackbaud, a Charleston, S.C., company that produces fund-raising, accounting, and school-administration software, plans to sell 9.1 million shares of common stock in its initial public offering, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 1. The company…
By NICOLE WALLACE
Features Editor
Nonprofit Hospitals Under Examination in Congress and in Court
Nonprofit hospitals are coming under increasing scrutiny in Congress and in the courts over their performance. Underlying the questioning is whether the hospitals provide sufficient services to warrant their exemption from taxes, and some experts say that additional attention may soon be given to…
By Harvy Lipman
Contributor
A New York man has pleaded guilty to criminal charges of acting as a professional fund raiser without registering with state authorities as required by New York law. Dominic J. D’Alfonso, of North Syracuse, acknowledged that his company, Upstate Telemarketing, had solicited donations for at least…
By GRANT WILLIAMS
Contributor
9/11 Disaster Fund Set to Award Grants
The American Red Cross plans to solicit proposals from nonprofit organizations nationwide for a $50-million program to help people affected by the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The effort will draw upon funds from the Red Cross’s Liberty Disaster Fund, which was established after the…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Charities Say Congressional Plans Could Put the Brakes on Car Donations
Washington Nonprofit groups that benefit from car-donation programs are scrambling to preserve what has become a small but steady source of income while responding to Congressional concern that donors are claiming inflated deductions and that charities are getting too little financial benefit.…
By Lauren Kafka
Contributor
Overhauling Oversight of Charities and Foundations: Key Ideas Offered by Senate Aides
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST:Ideas raised by Senate aides: Laws designed to prevent conflicts of interest and “self-dealing” among foundations would also apply to charities. Penalty fees for those found guilty of legal abuses would be increased. Current law: Although charities are covered by provisions to…
Charities’ Election Defections
The contentious presidential race has prompted many donors to redirect their contributions to politicsJanine Kraus, a fund raiser at the Coral Reef Alliance, thought she was about to pull off a major coup this ALSO SEE:» Related articles: about Charities and Elections spring by securing a $35,000…
By Elizabeth Schwinn
Contributor