The NonProfit Times - December 1, 2008 - (Page 23)

portunities might it afford? For example, consider how changes in the U.S. economy might affect the sector’s leadership gap. Will recent graduates and people considering a career transition feel they can’t afford to pursue a nonprofit position? Or, might people see the needs nonprofits meet and decide to help? Will those who lose jobs in the for-profit sector make a career change or go back to school to prepare to work in nonprofits? Or, will they avoid nonprofit employment at a time when budgets might be down, conditions might be tougher and fundraising even be harder? Perhaps they’ll see an opportunity to redirect valuable skills. For example, financial industry professionals knowledgeable about decision-making by people of wealth might choose fundraising careers. Will the economic downturn contribute to the demise of fledgling nonprofits or those lacking strong management or sufficient investment in effective fundraising? Might it increase nonprofit collaborations and mergers? Would such moves help organizations survive and thrive, or would the economy make mergers harder because of the additional time and resources required at the outset? Will a possible need to increase government revenues due to a faltering economy bring changes to tax rates or tax treatment of nonprofits and charitable deductions? Will policy makers concerned about nonprofits’ accountability further increase scrutiny of the sector and demand that nonprofits do more to prove they deserve certain freedoms or their tax-exempt status? Will it revive interest on Capitol Hill and at the IRS in further regulating nonprofits? Regardless of what comes, nonprofits must not use tough economic times as an excuse to relax standards or retreat from the gains they have made in increasing transparency and accountability. They must press forward with both, because in a time of scarcer resources donors will be even more discerning about the organizations to which they choose to give, and because it’s the right thing to do. Most importantly, the current economic situation presents a tremendous opportunity. In hard times, people need nonprofits more than ever, and nonprofits’ work is more visible than ever.While nonprofits can’t make up the whole difference or meet all the needs, this is an opportunity to demonstrate to donors, community leaders, policy makers, the media and the public how vital nonprofits are to communities and to the country, and to show the nonprofit sector’s unique leadership. NPT Patrick M. Rooney is interim executive director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University in Indianapolis. Red Cross Gets $100 Million From Feds I t might not be the $700 billion that the feds approved to rescue the economy, but the American Red Cross will get $100 million from Congress to help pay off the high costs incurred during disaster relief this year. It still leaves the organization with about $60 million to raise, which it hopes to by the end of the year. Since September 2007, the Red Cross has spent about $263 million responding to disasters while raising $63 million in contributions, according to Laura Howe, director, disaster public affairs, leaving another $100 million still to raise.The organization had raised about $40 million by mid-October. The $100 million from Congress, which will cover costs for any presidential-declared disaster that occurred during 2008, was included in a continuing resolution just before the federal fiscal year ended in September, Howe said. During the severe 2004 hurricane sea- son, the Red Cross raised some $62 million in designated donations and another $36 million for the Disaster Relief Fund. By September, the organization had raised but $12 million for hurricane relief while this past summer it made a plea for donations to the Disaster Relief Fund, which essentially was depleted. Of the $3 billion in total revenue for the Red Cross in Fiscal Year Ending 2007, about $47 million was classified as government support and $600 million in public support. - Mark Hrywna DECEMBER 1, 2008 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.nptimes.com 23 http://www.nptimes.com/survey.html http://www.nptimes.com/survey.html http://www.nptimes.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The NonProfit Times - December 1, 2008

The NonProfit Times - December 1, 2008 Contents A Nation of Volunteers Nonprofits Start Franchising Page 4 Tidings Of Good Cheer Donor-Restricted Endowments Membership Revenue Isn’t Free Divining A Skills Set Special Report: 2008 The Year in Review The Revised 990 Giving And The Economy Annual Buyers Guide Advertiser Index NPT Jobs Resource Directory

The NonProfit Times - December 1, 2008

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