NSC October 2008 Nonprofit Update

Nonprofit Update

NSC Supporting those who help others.

October 2008

"Just wanted to let you know I always appreciate and find value in the articles you send. Thanks."

Karen Nolte, Executive Director
Children's Home Society of Missouri

In This Issue

Carter McNamara Governance Seminar Series

Capacity Building Grant Recipients Announced

Erin Budde, All the Best

Darn This Economic Downturn!

Missouri Program Wins Annie E. Casey Innovations Award

Nonprofits Look to New President for Improved Policies

Philanthropy Guidelines on Mortgage Crisis

IRS Webcast on Form 990 Changes

USPS: New Nonprofit Requirements Coming Soon

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NSC STAFF

Deborah L. Cooper

President

Claire V. Hundelt

Director, Programs and Services

Carmen Garcia

Communications Manager

Kristy Guttmann

Program Manager

Lawrence Ditto

Operations Manager

Stacey Hughes

Administrative Assistant

OPPORTUNITIES:

Job Opportunities

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Post your openings and reach over 6000 nonprofit inboxes throughout Missouri & Southern Illinois! Free! Contact:
carmen@nonprofitservices.org

NSC

1015 Locust

Suite 801

St. Louis, MO 63101

314.436.9580 phone

314.436.0240 fax

www.nonprofitservices.org

Greetings!

NSC is proud to continue to offer quality programs and services that meet the needs of nonprofits throughout Missouri. In fact, NSC has recently been requested to design and present programs for the St. Louis Mental Health Board and Boone County Community Partnerships' constituents. [Read more about our partnerships.]

Workshops were developed in grassroots fundraising, communications, collaboration and volunteer recruitment, among many other topics.

NSC welcomes opportunities to reach nonprofits throughout our state within these partnerships. And look forward to developing more opportunities for nonprofits in 2009.

NSC has also developed more programming for the remainder of 2008 - and be sure to mark your calendars for seminars and workshops developed for 2009!

Strategic Fundraising for Nonprofits

Seminar Series
Health organizations are invited to apply for an additional NSC offering for 2008, Strategic Fundraising for Nonprofits-a four-part seminar with ongoing coaching through the creation of a fund development plan, as well as the potential for implementation assistance. Strategic Fundraising for Nonprofits seminar series will be held in Farmington, Missouri on December 10, January 14, February 11 and March 11.

A commitment to participate in all four sessions of the series is required. There is a nominal fee of $150 per organization. Organizations are encouraged to send two participants. Space is limited to ten organizations to ensure quality of training. Application packets are available online and are due to NSC no later than 5PM on Friday, November 14. (Download Application)

Governance Seminar Series

with Carter McNamara, PhD [bio]

It isn't enough to practice "best practices" -- you need to practice them naturally and in a style that suits your Board. Carter McNamara will cover different ways to structure Boards, how Boards and the CEO can partner for effective Board leadership and operation, and the six most common types of broken Boards and how to fix each of them. Included are numerous assessments and step-by-step materials for every aspect of Board operations.

Session Topics:
January 16, 2009: Building Blocks of High Performing Boards [more info]

February 20, 2009: How to Bring Your Board to the Next Level [more info]

March 20, 2009: What's Possible: Strategic Planning Training [more info]

Don't miss the opportunity to work with Carter McNamara while strengthening your organization's governance and especially strengthening the working relationship between the Executive Director and Board Members.

Registration is per organization. NSC encourages at least two individuals from each registering organization attend (preferrably the ED and Board President). Capacity for each session is limited to 50 individuals.

Cost: $60 per organization per session or $150 for entire series per organization. Register Now!

Capacity Building Grant Recipients Announced

NSC is pleased to announce the 2008 Fall Cycle MFH Capacity Building/Technical Assistance Grant Recipients.

NSC in partnership with Missouri Foundation for Health (MFH) has approved grants to 34 Missouri nonprofit organizations totaling $532,000. NSC serves as the primary contact for MFH Capacity Building - Technical Assistance Grant Program.

The MFH Capacity Building - Technical Assistance Grants Program is focused on specific, discrete, short-term interventions that will help an organization (or coalition of organizations) be more efficient in its mode of operating and effective in accomplishing its mission objectives.

Read the list of 2008 Fall Cycle Capacity Building - Technical Assistance Grantees

Erin Budde, All the Best!

At the beginning of October the Gateway Center for Giving said goodbye to Erin Budde as she embarks on a new and exciting journey as the Vice President, Community Affairs Director for Wachovia Securities.

Erin has been has been a valued member of the NSC board serving as Secretary-Treasurer during her tenure at Gateway Center for Giving. She has also worked tirelessly for NSC serving as a member of a four-person transition board while NSC was moving from a consortium to a working board.

NSC has worked closely with Erin as she has always welcomed collaboration in an effort to form relationships and develop programs between nonprofit organizations and donors. We appreciate her insight, passion and knowledge of the nonprofit community in Missouri and looks forward to working with her in her new role at Wachovia Securities.

All the Best, Erin!

Darn This Economic Downturn! Newest NSC Blog Entry

New NSC Blog Entry: Darn This Economic Downturn! Sluggish Economy. Economic Downturn. Harsh Economic Times. Weak Economic Climate. Uncertain Economy. Any way you say it - it ain't pretty! And it is hitting all of us - individual, nonprofit, funder, alike.

We found in the study by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University that the majority reported the current economy is having a negative impact on their bottom line. They also report that nonprofits are less optimistic about their current and future fundraising climates than they were just six to eight months ago. [Read more]

Share your thoughts and post your comments on the NSC blog...you may win free registration to a workshop of your choice if you comment before November 7!

Missouri Program Wins Annie E. Casey Innovations Award

Missouri's Division of Youth Services was named the winner of the Innovations Award in Children and Family System Reform, funded by the Casey Foundation. The Missouri program, noted for its approach in the treatment of juvenile offenders across 42 locations statewide, will receive $100,000 toward replication and dissemination of its program around the country. The program was highlighted in the 2008 KIDS COUNT Data Book essay for its comprehensive approach to reform and its network of regional facilities that keeps youth close to their families. The awards program is administered by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard Kennedy School.

Congratulations to the Missouri Division of Youth Services!

Nonprofits Look to New President for Improved Policies

With a major economic crisis pressing on America's families and communities, the nation's nonprofit organizations are looking to a new presidency for help in responding. And they have some definite ideas about what is needed, according to a new survey by the Johns Hopkins University Nonprofit Listening Post Project.

Heading the list of priority measures identified by a cross section of nonprofit executives were these four items:

Restoration and/or growth of funds for their field in the federal budget.
Reinstatement and expansion of tax incentives for charitable giving and volunteering, including those embodied in the estate tax.
Federal grant support for nonprofit training and capacity building.
Reforming reimbursements under Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal programs to ensure that they cover the real cost of services.

Read the rest of the story...

Philanthropy Guidelines Address Mortgage Crisis

Smartlink.org has released guidelines to help donors make a difference in communities affected by the mortgage crisis. Smartlink.org is the online resource of the nonprofit Community Giving Resource (CGR) that helps individual donors and small foundations explore community issues and give more strategically. (Registration required to use site.)

Smartlink.org's guidelines address donors' need for reliable information on targeted, strategic giving to respond to the growing demand for services in communities hit hard by home foreclosures. Read more...

IRS Webcast on Form 990 Changes

The Internal Revenue Service will sponsor a free web cast on November 4 to brief you on far-reaching changes they've made to Form 990. That's the form every tax-exempt organization in the U.S. must file each year. Among the changes: you'll be required to list the salaries of your highest paid employees and to provide additional information on conflicts of interest. Find out how to meet the new standards before tax time rolls around. Go to http://www.taxtalktoday.com for details on the web cast.

USPS New Requirements Coming Soon

The U. S. Postal Service (USPS) will soon require nonprofit organizations to update their mailing lists as a condition for keeping their discount rate for service.

Effective November 23, 2008, addresses on all pieces must be updated within 95 days before mailing through a USPS-approved address update method in order to qualify for the discount for nonprofit mailers.

Nonprofit organizations may wish to consider the use of an enhancement service to get change-of-address updates so they may continue receiving the discounted nonprofit mail rate. Other advantages of keeping an up-to-date mailing list include an estimated cost savings of between 7% and 10% on mailings for most organizations each time they send a mailing plus help in maintaining key membership revenue. Keep reading for more information...

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