NSC's Sector Update
Your Gateway to Nonprofit Effectiveness
February, 2007
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NSC has had a wonderful and busy start to this new year.

Call for Consultants
NSC is still seeking Missouri-based consultants and service providers skilled in working with nonprofit organizations. Email your resume and contact information to info@nonprofitservices.org no later than February 28, 2007. Or complete the questionnaire found in the Quick Links on the left of your screen.

Missouri's Nonprofit Sector
Recognizing that each community has different needs and resources NSC has joined in partnership with the Department of Health and Senior Services on an information gathering project. Through focus groups conducted throughout Missouri we hope to gain a better understanding of the nonprofit sector in Missouri - their successes, struggles and support needs.

Following completion of these community dialogues the information gathered will be shared with the broader nonprofit sector with a goal being to inform the development of new responsive programs and identify resources and gaps. We believe this information will be invaluable to the development of relevant, useful programming that supports and strengthens nonprofits in Missouri.

A summary of the focus group findings should be available through our website, www.nonprofitservices.org, in late April.

NSC is pround to announce Claire V. Hundelt's recent appointment as NSC's Director, Programs and Services. Claire comes to NSC from the Sisters of Mercy Ministries with a wealth of knowledge of the regional nonprofit landscape.

Claire has over 20 years of local philanthropic experience as a trustee with the Vatterott Family Foundation and in nonprofit management and leadership through positions with such organizations as The Greater St. Louis Community Foundation and the Lutheran Family and Children Services Foundation. Claire has also volunteered as a board member with the Metropolitan Association for Philanthropy and as chair of the “Will to Give” Initiative for Gateway to Giving. Claire is currently an adjunct professor at Washington University's George Warren Brown School of Social Work teaching "Grant Writing and Trends in Philanthropy."

You will be able to reach Claire at claire@nonprofitservices.org when she arrives at our offices on February 19! Welcome Claire!
NSC has been very fortunate to have had the assistance of four outstanding Coro Fellows these past few weeks. Balin Anderson, Andrew McIntire, Ben Richey and Jennifer Fernandez walked in to the NSC offices with tremendous enthusiasm, eager to put in motion the skills learned at the Coro Leadership Center.

By asking insightful questions, seeking thoughtful answers and developing group action plans they implemented a successful information gathering project regarding various aspects of the nonprofit sector in Missouri.

Their contribution to NSC is greatly appreciated and we will miss their energy and talent. Thank you Balin, Andrew, Ben and Jennifer.
Federal Policy News
Senator Feingold (D-WI) has introduced a bill (S. 403) that would raise the mileage reimbursement rate for volunteers who use their vehicles for charitable purposes from 14 cents to 40.5 cents per mile. The proposal would make the volunteer rate equal to that of businesses.

Missouri Policy News
SB 46 requires the director of the Department of Social Services to appoint regional faith-based organization liaisons.
The Internal Revenue Service has launched a new Web-based version of its popular Exempt Organizations Workshop covering tax compliance issues confronted by small and mid-sized tax exempt organizations.

The free online workshop – Stay Exempt – Tax Basics for 501(c)(3)s – consists of five interactive modules on tax compliance topics for exempt organizations:
  • Tax-Exempt Status – How can you keep your 501 (c)(3) exempt?
  • Unrelated Business Income – Does your organization generate taxable income?
  • Employment Issues – How should you treat your workers for tax purposes?
  • Form 990 – Would you like to file an error-free return?
  • Required Disclosures – To whom do you have to show your records?
Users can access this new training program at www.stayexempt. org. Users can complete the modules in any order and repeat them as many times as they like. The online training website does not require registration and its visitors will remain anonymous.
Report from the Johns Hopkins Center for Civil Society Studies prepared by
Lester M. Salamon and S. Wojciech Sokolowski

The study shows that employment in the U.S. nonprofit sector has grown faster than overall employment in 46 out of the 50 states.

As of the second quarter of 2004, the latest year for which data on nonprofit employment are available, American charities employed 9.4 million paid workers and engaged another 4.7 million full-time equivalent (FTE) volunteer workers for a total workforce of more than 14 million workers.


Between 2002 and 2004, the nonprofit workforce, including paid and volunteer workers, grew by 5.3 percent, with both the paid and volunteer portions of the nonprofit workforce growing by more than 5 percent. By contrast, overall employment in the economy declined by 0.2 percent during this same period.

The nonprofit workforce, including volunteers, now represents 10.5 percent of the country’s total workforce. Other findings of the report include:
  • The nonprofit share of the total workforce is especially high in the Northeast and Midwest, where it ranges from 10.7 to more than 14 percent.
  • Nonprofit-paid workers received $321.6 billion in wages in 2004, more than the wages paid by the utility ($50.1 billion), construction ($276 billion), and wholesale trade ($283.7 billion) industries, and almost as much as the finance and insurance industry ($355.8 billion).
  • The average weekly wage in the nonprofit sector, at $627, was well below the $669 average in the for- profit sector. However, in the fields where nonprofits and for-profits are both actively engaged, average nonprofit wages were actually higher. For example, average wages among nonprofit hospital workers were 7 percent higher than they were among for- profit hospital workers, and average wages among nonprofit social assistance workers were 25 percent higher than their for-profit counterparts.
To view the entire report, including a state-by-state breakdown of nonprofit employment, visit www.jhu.edu/ccss/research/bulletins.htm.
Bank of America Accepting Applications for Neighborhood Excellence Initiative
Bank of America is committed to the economic strength and stability of the communities in which it does business.

The Neighborhood Excellence Initiative, Bank of America’s signature philanthropic program, focuses on developing relationships with and investing in strong nonprofits/charitable organizations with great leaders. The program offers leadership training and general operating support for growing nonprofits, recognizes a community's local heroes, and embraces the next generation of student leaders. The program is offered in Bank of America's forty-four markets. This year, the program goes international with a new market in London, England.

The Neighborhood Excellence Initiative invites applications for the following program components:
Neighborhood Builders - deadline June 29, 2007
Local Heroes - deadline June 29, 2007
Student Leaders - deadline March 9, 2007

Read the Complete RFP or go to visit the Bank of America website for more details.


The United Way of Greater St. Louis Announces One-Time Grants
The United Way is pleased to offer one-time grants to non-profits, community agencies and churches within our service area. Below is the listing of one- time grants available in 2007. Unless specified, the grants are available to both United Way member and non-member agencies.

One-Time Grants Now Available with Applications due by March 20, 2007for Childhood & Family Obesity, College Preparatory for Urban Youth, Increase Capacity of Food Pantries, Infrastructure Enhancement of Non-Profit Agencies, Medical Screenings for High Risk People, and Senior Services. Click here for a PDF of services and click here for the application.

One-Time Grants Available with Applications due by July 9, 2007 for Indigent Elderly, Infrastructure Enhancement of Non-Profit Agencies, Language Translation, Peer Harassment, and Senior Services. Click here for a PDF of services. Application for round two not yet available, please check back at a later date.

Contact Vanessa Wayne at 314-539-4084 or waynev@stl.unitedway.org



Tony Hawk Foundation
The primary mission of the Tony Hawk Foundation is to promote high-quality, public skateparks in low- income areas throughout the United States. The principal focus of foundation grants will be to encourage and facilitate the design, development, construction, and operation of new quality skateboard parks and facilities, located in low-income communities in the United States. Grant Amounts are a minimum of $1,000 and maximum of $25,000.

DEADLINES
March 1, 2007 (for awards announced in April 2007)
October 1, 2007 (for awards announced in December 2007)
For more information go to: http://www.tonyhawkfoundation.org/gra nt_application.asp



Children's Theatre Foundation of America (CTFA) Announces Founders Grants
CTFA is concerned solely with theatre for children and youth, the utilization of drama/theatre in education for children grades K-12, and artist- teacher training. Founders grants support diverse projects of national significance, including, but not limited to: national and international theatre festivals; research in theatre education and theatre practice; publications; U.S. representation abroad in theatre festivals and symposiums; scholarships, playwriting and other work of theatre artists and scholars. Grant Amount: $5,000. Closing Date: April 30, 2007

For more information go to http://www.childrenstheatrefoundation.org/g rants.html



Be a Celebrity for Your Cause
Kevin Bacon and Network for Good announced the creation of SixDegrees.org in partnership with the AOL, and Entertainment Weekly. Bacon will match the charitable dollars raised by the top six non- celebrity fundraisers with grants of up to $10,000 each. Visit www.sixdegrees.or g for more information.

Thank you for spending a few moments with us today.

Until next month...

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Nonprofit Services Consortium

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