News & Notes is a monthly email newsletter designed to keep the Arizona community updated on local and national developments in the philanthropic sector. This service is provided free of charge by the Arizona Grantmakers Forum - please feel free to forward this on to your colleagues.
May Program on Aging
On May 15th, forty representatives from nonprofit organizations and more than fifteen funders gathered to hear an engaging presentation from Marc Freedman, president of Civic Ventures. Marc discussed how to ensure a positive future for Arizona by creating an "encore economy" with older adults.
Marc defined a new stage of life that is taking shape in our society - a post-work, pre-elderly time during which baby boomers are engaging in meaningful work in the community. As a special treat, Marc introduced the latest Civic Ventures Purpose Prize winner, Gene Jones. Mr. Jones received the award for creating the nonprofit Opening Minds through the Arts in Tucson, Arizona at the age of 84. The K-8 program integrates the arts into core school curricula as a way to boost individual academic achievement and improve at-risk children's chance for future success. He briefly addressed the audience, discussing his work with Opening Minds through the Arts and his motivations for launching the project. A full video of the event is available online - click here to view.
Upcoming Programs
Arizona Grantmakers Forum Summer Social
July 24, 2008
5:00pm - 7:00pm
Backstreet Wine Salon: 3606 E. Indian School Road
AGF members, join your colleagues for a fun evening of networking and socializing at Backstreet Wine Salon! This informal event is an opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet new colleagues in a relaxing atmosphere. Attendees will be invited to discuss exit strategies, learning from each other the challenges and best practices related to phasing out funding from a grantee. Click
here to RSVP.
Open to AGF Members only!
Meaningful Metrics for Measuring Impact
August 21, 2008
11:30am - 1:30pm
First State Bank: 1750 S. Woodlands Village Blvd., Flagstaff AZ
Grantmakers, especially those committed to addressing the root causes of social problems, struggle with the question: how do we know if our charitable giving has a positive impact?. The Annie E Casey Foundation, one of the largest foundations in the U.S., has been grappling with this questions for a number of years. They have developed a results-oriented framework which they use to evaluate the impact of their various grantmaking programs. This program will provide the opportunity to join your colleagues
in cool Flagstaff to hear how one national funder has tackled the question of how to measure grant impact. Click here to register.
Open to funders only!
Webinar:
How Funders Can Choose to Manage Advocacy Campaigns
July 15, 2008
11:00am - 12:30pm
Webinar: Click here to register.
What questions should funders ask themselves before committing to an advocacy strategy? Should funders set up and manage their own campaigns, support campaigns of advocacy organizations or coalitions, or establish a new entity to develop and run campaigns? What are the different management styles that funders can employ when supporting an advocacy campaign? To explore these questions and more, please join a panel of foundation officers with extensive experience in advocacy for a Webinar discussion of how
funders can choose to manage advocacy campaigns. There is no registration fee to participate in the Webinar. Register online at: http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey.zgi?p=WEB227XB6GB5M8. Every participant will receive a copy of �Why Supporting Advocacy Makes Sense for Foundations,� also available for free download at www.atlanticphilanthropies.org/atlantic_reports.
Member News
Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Accepting Applications for Piper Fellows
The Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust's Piper Fellows program provides up to $30,000 to support the professional development of outstanding senior executives of nonprofit organizations serving Maricopa County, Arizona. Eligible applicants are executives with significant responsibilities for the programmatic or operational activities of a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization or a governmental agency serving the areas of human services, healthcare, education, religion, or arts and culture in Maricopa County. The complete
Piper Fellows Brochure can be downloaded at the Piper Foundation website: click here.
Lodestar Foundation Launches Collaboration Prize
The Phoenix-based Lodestar Foundation, in association with the Arizona-Indiana-Michigan (AIM) Alliance, has announced a new Collaboration Prize designed to inspire nonprofit collaborations that achieve exceptional impact and significantly eliminate duplication of efforts. The $250,000 prize will be awarded annually to a collaboration that demonstrates quantifiable evidence of impact and effectiveness through programmatic collaborations, administrative consolidation, or other joint activities. Visit www.thecollaborationprize.org for
more information.
Social Venture Partners Arizona Announces 2008 Investments
Social Venture Partners Arizona (SVPAZ) recently announced its latest round of new and continuing grants to the Maricopa County nonprofit community. Since its inception in 1999, SVPAZ has invested over 3 million dollars in 27 children and educational nonprofits in the greater Phoenix area using a venture capital model of investment and involvement. In addition, Social Venture Partners Teens, a youth philanthropic program of SVPAZ, recently announced Gabriel’s Angels as their 2008, $5,000 grant recipient
focusing on child abuse in Arizona.
Corporation for National and Community Service Announces "RSVP" Funding
The Arizona State Office of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) announces the availability of Federal grant funds to support a Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) in Cochise, Greenlee, Graham and Santa Cruz Counties. The Corporation for National Service provides grants to qualified agencies and organizations for the dual purpose of engaging persons 55 and older in volunteer service to meet critical community needs and to provide a high quality experience that will enrich the lives of volunteers. Approximately $58,200 per year is now available in federal funds to support 116 volunteers. Applications must be received by the Corporation State Office in Phoenix, Arizona, by 5:00 pm on July 31, 2008. The successful applicant shall be awarded the funds and shall start the new program on September 30, 2008. Click here for more information.
Announcements from the World of Philanthropy
- Foundations Give Millions for Efforts to Resolve Foreclosure Crisis
- Charitable Giving Topped $306 Billion in 2007
- Facebook 'Causes' Raises $2.5 million for Nonprofits
- Number of Small Foundations in U.S. Increasing Rapidly
News and Resources
Annie E. Casey Foundation Releases 2008 KIDS COUNT Data Book
According to the annual KIDS COUNT Data Book, national trends in child well-being have improved only slightly since 2000. The report, released every year by Casey Foundation, profiles the well-being of U.S. children based on indicators related to the economic, health, education, and social conditions of America’s children and families. On KIDS COUNT's overall child well-being ranking, Arizona ranks 39 out of 50 states. For more information, click
here.
2008 KIDS COUNT Data Book (PDF)
IssueLab: Bringing Nonprofit Research Into Focus
Each day nonprofits worldwide produce insightful and valuable research on complex social issues. IssueLab, an online publishing forum for nonprofit research, makes it easy to locate, access, and engage with this extensive and diverse body of knowledge. IssueLab's mission is to more effectively archive, distribute and promote the extensive and diverse body of work being produced by the third sector. For more information on this unique resource, visit http://www.issuelab.org.
New Publication Available from Foundation Center
Philanthropy Annual: 2007 Review will help you stay up-to-date on the issues, trends, and people that shape philanthropy today. In the Philanthropy Annual, you'll find the most current list of nonprofit academic centers, regional associations of grantmakers, grantmaker affinity groups, and philanthropy periodical editors. Click here to learn more.
Teenagers Adopt Low-Cost, Simple Approach to Giving with Extraordinary Results
Nothing but Nets, a campaign to prevent malaria by making $10 donations to purchase mosquito nets has attracted young donors who are eager and able to participate in contribute to the simple philanthropic effort. The campaign has currently raised $20-million from 70,000 donors. Click here to read the full article.
Click here for AGF Youth Philanthropy Resources.
Nonprofits Get Help Developing Pitches for Business-Minded Donors
The philanthropic community in the Boston area is working to help nonprofits understand the language of the private sector and gain more support from wealthy, business-minded donors. Unlike an older generation of donors, a new wave of philanthropists — many of them relatively young and newly wealthy — are turned off by pitches that try to tug at their heartstrings, instead favoring organizations that strike them as well-run, financially sound, innovative, and poised to truly make a difference. Click
here to read the full article.
2008 Grants in Support of AGF
AGF receives revenues from three primary sources: Dues, Program Revenues and Grants/Sponsorships. We are grateful to the following members who, in addition to their dues, committed to supporting AGF in 2007 with general operating dollars and/or program underwriting:
Leadership Circle
- Arizona Community Foundation
- BHHS Legacy Foundation
- Flinn Foundation
- Helios Education Foundation
- The Lodestar Foundation
- Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust
- Rodel Foundation of Arizona
- Stardust Foundation
- St. Luke's Health Initiatives
- Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust
Partner's Circle
- Mr. Tom Chauncey
- Salt River Project
Program Sponsors
- APS
- The Arizona Republic
- F2 Family Foundation
- Fran Dickman
- McMiles Foundation