 |
Vol.
3, No. 2
March, 2007 | AGF
Member Exchange is designed to provide timely information to AGF members about
important topics of interest to grantmakers. It is also intended to provide a
forum for AGF members to share ideas and learn more about each other. We welcome
member contributions and hope that we hear from you. 
Report on Foundations on the Hill
|
On February 28th, approximately 390 foundation representatives from 40
states ascended Capital Hill for the 10th annual Foundations on the Hill event.
| |
This
was by far the largest turnout in the event’s history. Arizona foundations participated
for the first time and were represented well by Bob King and Joan Lowell from
the Arizona Community Foundation, Don Snider and Jay Ruffner from the Flinn Foundation
and Marissa Theisen of AGF. The delegation made visits to the offices of all 10
of Arizona’s congressional members, informing staff and, in some cases, representatives,
about critical issues impacting the philanthropic sector.
The
major focus of discussions was technical improvements to the Pension Protection
Act of 2006 (PPA) – legislation that resulted in the most significant charitable
reforms since 1969. The technical improvements are designed to address some of
the unintended adverse consequences of that bill impacting. Three key improvements
include: To
read the entire article click
here. |
MEMBER
Q & A This
month we surveyed members on their participation in advocacy efforts. 16
AGF members responded to our survey question. 75% reported that do engage in advocacy,
while 25% reported they did not. To view survey results, click
here.
FOUNDATION
FACES |
This AGF member
was born in Chicago and likes scrapbooking.
[Who
is it?... Find
out!] |
UPCOMING
EVENTS
Unless otherwise indicated, to rsvp for any of these events, contact Madia
Logan.
AGF
Programs April
26, Strengths and Weaknesses of the Darwinian Approach to Funding Nonprofits
- An informal discussion of what funders feel is their role in supporting mature
nonprofits that may no longer be effective. Why do some funders decide to stop
funding an agency when it seems to have outlived its purpose while others seem
to continue to fund them? (Open
to AGF Members Only) May
24, Investing in our Communities: Strategies for Immigrant Integration (Skills
Building) (Open
to AGF Members Only) Other
Events of Interest... April
3 - 5, Native
Americans in Philanthropy - Native Philanthropy Institute & Emerging Leaders
Summit (Scottsdale, AZ) Presented by Native Americans in Philanthropy,
Ft. McDowell Resort, Scottsdale, AZ. Open to Native and non-Native people from
philanthropy, the non-profit sector, higher education, corporate America and Tribal
governments. For more information, go to www.nativephilanthropy.org.
April
11-13, Global Philanthropy Forum 6th Annual Global Philanthropy
Forum Conference April
29-May 1, Council on Foundations
58th Annual Conference April
29, Grantmakers for Education: Roadmap to Results. A
Workshop for Donors on Making a Difference in Education. For more information,
contact Nina Narelle at 503/595-2100 or by email at nina@edfunders.org
May
16-17 , Grantmakers for Effective Organizations: Learning
for Results - A Conference on Organizational Learning in Philanthropy For
more information, go to www.geofunders.org.
June
27-29, National
Center for Black Philanthropy, Inc. Sixth National Conference on Black Philanthropy
For more information, go to http://www.ncfbp.net/.
NEW
MEMBERS! AGF
Welcomes Our Newest Member! John
C. Lincoln Health Foundation | From quality medical care to food for children
in need, the John C. Lincoln Health Foundation has been there to help for 75 years.
As the philanthropic arm of the John C. Lincoln Health Network, its mission is
to support the programs of the not-for-profit network through fund-raising strategies
and prudent stewardship of all donations; active volunteer participation; and
appropriate acknowledgment and recognition of donors and volunteers. Click
here to learn more.
MEMBER
NEWS Community
Foundation for Southern Arizona Reaches the $100M Mark
The Community
Foundation for Southern Arizona reached a milestone in its 26-year history, surpassing
for the first time the $100 million mark in total assets. A final audit is still
pending, but the foundation is reporting that for fiscal year 2006 it has $113.6
million in assets, up about $20 million from the previous year. The money is held
in 479 funds managed by the foundation, which for fiscal year 2006 awarded $7.2
million in grants and scholarships to local nonprofits and community organizations.
Gene D'Adamo & Family Honored by Chrysalis AGF Board Member and V.P.
of Community Relations for the Arizona Republic, Gene D'Adamo & Family will
be honored by Chrysalis on Thursday, April 19 at The Arizona Biltmore. Gene has
been with The Arizona Republic for 26 years and leads their community relations
department. Over the last six years, Chrysalis has been part of the D’Adamo family
with everyone volunteering in one form or another. UniSource
& TEP Grant Announcement UniSource Energy Services and Tucson Electric
Power "Grants That Make a Difference" application & guidelines will be available
at tep.com and unsaz.com starting June 8, 2007. Grant applications are due September
11, 2007. Funds are for programs in UNS service territory serving "at risk" persons.
Grant amounts vary by county. UNS/TEP are sponsoring "Grant Magic" workshops for
charitable nonprofits in our service territories to strenghten agencies' grant
opportunities. Dates: May 15, Prescott; May 16, Kingman; May 22, Tucson. See website
for more details. Honeywell
Announces $500,000 in Community Grants In April, Honeywell Aerospace will
announce more than $500,000 in communuity grants to worthy non-profit organizations
furthering the causes of housing and shelter, family safety, and math and science
education. Grants are dispensed in communities around the world where Honeywell
has an operating presence.
PUBLIC
POLICY UPDATE IRS
Announces Changes to 2006 Forms 990 and 990-EZ
Instructions for the 2006
Forms 990 and 990-EZ, released recently by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
include significant revisions to address the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA
or H.R. 4). These changes will require supporting organizations and organizations
that maintain donor-advised funds to provide additional information on the forms.
Other changes affect how the following information is reported: officer, trustee,
and key employee compensation; family and business relationships; travel expenses
for government officials; and conservation easements. Click
here for the IRS Summary of the Significant Changes to the Forms 990
PHILANTHROPY
NEWS A
Closer Look at Foundation Administrative Expenses
Amid the growing public
scrutiny of philanthropy in recent years, legislators, the media and the general
public are taking a closer look at foundations' administrative expenses. This
article offers some guidance to help foundations manage, benchmark and report
their administrative expenses in ways that can effectively demonstrate and ensure
they are spending their dollars wisely to fulfill the public trust. Click
here to learn more. Giving
by Big Foundations Rose 6% in 2005
The nation's wealthiest foundations
increased the amount of money they awarded by 6.1 percent to $16.4 billion in
2005, according to a new study by the Foundation Center. This increase is lower
than the 8.1 percent growth in giving in 2004, primarily as the result of a slowdown
in the stock market. Nearly 60 percent of these grants went to support Education,
Health and Human Services. While International grantmaking represented only 2.6
percent of total grants, the total was an increase of 40 percent over 2004. To
read more, go to http://foundationcenter.org. Family
Foundations Grew Rapidly between 2001-2005
A new report by the Foundation
Center reveals that between the years 2001-2005 the number of family foundations
in America rose 22.3 percent to almost 34,000. In that period, their giving rose
8.2 percent, to $14 million, and their assets increased by 14% to $233 million.
For more information, go to http://foundationcenter.org. HUD
Report Says Not Enough Beds for Homeless
A report by the Department of
Housing and Urban Development concludes that there are more homeless people in
America than there are available beds for them, reports The Washington Post. Approximately
754,000 people are homeless at any time, but there are only 438,300 beds in shelters
and transitional housing. There are 209,000 additional beds in permanent housing
intended for people who are no longer homeless. Click
here to go to the HUD Report on Homeless.
USEFUL
RESOURCES Arizona
health showed slight decline in 2006
Arizona ranked 34th on a state-by-state
health comparison, according to the latest annual rankings from the United Health
Foundation. This represented a decline from a ranking of 31st in 2005. The rankings
considered measures related to personal behavior (such as smoking and obesity),
community environment (such as crime and poverty), public and health policy (such
as immunization coverage and health insurance status) and health outcomes (such
as infant mortality and cancer deaths). For more information, including state-by-state
snapshots, click
here. Increasing
Foundation Impact
A new paper available from The Foundation Center's series
Practice Matters: The Improving Philanthropy Project is designed to help new and
experienced grantmakers increase their effectiveness. The thought-provoking papers
and discussion guides written by experts tackle ten critical issues in philanthropy.
The tenth and final paper in the series is now available. In The Evaluation Conversation:
A Path to Impact for Foundation Boards and Executives, Patricia Patrizi, one of
the series editors as well as the paper's author, suggests rethinking the purpose
of evaluation in philanthropy and argues that foundations should look outside
themselves to the fields of endeavor they support for the primary benefits and
benchmarks of evaluation. Click
here to view the paper. Nonprofit
World Blogs
The Chronicle of Philanthropy has
introduced Give and Take, a roundup of blogs about the nonprofit world. To see
the list, go to http://philanthropy.com/giveandtake/.
Creating
Change Through Family Philanthropy: The Next Generation will soon be available
from Resource Generation. How can next generation family members bring their values
to the table? How can they move more resources to social justice? This guide gives
young people the tools they need to not just participate but help transform the
field itself. Visit www.changephilanthropy.org
for details. How
Diverse is Your Town? A new site of the Harvard School of Public Health provides
diversity analysis of metropolitan populations including the cities of Upstate
New York. Diversitydata.org
allows visitors to explore how metropolitan areas throughout the U.S. perform
on a diverse range of social measures that comprise a well-rounded life experience.
Executive
Transitions: Grant Makers and Nonprofit Leadership Change, GrantCraft's latest
guide, explores the grantmaker's role when grantee organizations go through a
change at the top. To download a copy of the guide, please visit GrantCraft.
In
Search Of Impact: Practices and Perceptions in Foundations' Provision of Program
and Operating Grants to Nonprofits
A new report from the Center for Effective
Philanthropy examines nonprofit CEO perceptions of grantmaker support. Phil Buchanan,
Executive Director, will speak on the topic at Philanthropy in the Looking Glass
the New York Funders Conference. The report, as well as reactions and other resources,
are available for free download at www.effectivephilanthropy.org.
EDUCATION
RESOURCES
Special
Report Offers Collections of Articles on U.S. Public School Crisis
The
Chronicle of Higher Education special report examines “what colleges and schools
are doing, and what they ought to be doing” about the crisis of the nation’s schools.
The collection of essays, School and College, highlights Georgia’s success in
creating a K-16
education pipeline and analyzes survey results from high school teachers
and college professors on their perceptions of high school graduates/college freshmen’s
level of college
readiness. School and College also profiles the nation’s largest philanthropic
efforts to revamp education. For the complete set of articles click
here. New
Report Tracks Trends in Student Aid
A new College Board report notes the
historical decline in college financial aid and student’s rising reliance on private
loans. “As the price of attending college has increased and family incomes, grant
aid and federal loans have failed to keep pace, student borrowing from private
sources has skyrocketed and now equals about 25 percent of the federal loan volume.”
In 1985, maximum Pell Grant awards covered nearly 60 percent of the tuition, fees
and room and boarding costs. Today, Pell Grants only cover 33 percent of college
expenses. For more information on Trends in Student Aid, click
here. Arizona
Education System Earns Another Failing Grade
According to a new report
by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Center for American Progress and American Enterprise
Institute, Arizona earned a failing grade when it comes to educating and training
children for college and the work force. The report says only 31 percent of Arizona
high school freshmen go on to college, and state students perform poorly on high
school advanced placement exams. Te read more, click
here. New
Report Covers Entrepreneurship Policies by State The Education Commission
of the States has published a review of state laws that promote entrepreneurship.
The review covers state-by-state policies on entrepreneurial training in K-12,
programs at the university level, the creation of education centers, and other
programs. To see the short report, click
here. Four
Strategies for Turning on the Road to an Entrepreneurial Economy
According
to the Ewing Kauffman Foundation, “Entrepreneurs tell us that perhaps the most
significant constraint on their future growth, and on the growth of future entrepreneurs,
is the difficulty finding and attracting ‘talent’—highly skilled entrepreneurial
workers.” Ensuring an entrepreneurial workforce requires a strong primary, secondary
and postsecondary educational system and Kauffman’s research points to the rising
inequalities in the American education system as one of the nation’s main challenges.
A new Kauffman report also outlines four strategies to overcome educational inequalities:
1) encourage and allow educators to be innovative, rewarding their entrepreneurial
ventures, 2) promote market-based education reforms, 3) study the role of entrepreneurs
in the American economy infusing creativity and entrepreneurism into all academic
disciplines and 4) devote more resources to support and develop a science and
engineering-based entrepreneurial economy. Click
here to view On the Road to an Entrepreneurial Economy. | 
