the donors forum blog

latest giving in illinois report shows illinois foundations' giving outpaces u.s. foundations overall

2012-05-30T15:19:05-05:00

Although lagging behind foundations in other states with regard to asset growth, Illinois foundation giving outpaced U.S. foundations overall, says the latest Giving in Illinois report issued today by Donors Forum. This year's report was produced in partnership with The Foundation Center and uses data reported to them by the foundations. The report examines data from 2010, the most recent full year for which data has been reported, and reveals the varying ways in which donors support nonprofits in the arts, health, human services, and several other nonprofit sectors.

"To ensure their effectiveness in Illinois, especially in such tough economic times, many grantmakers are sharpening their focus, and seeking to increase efficiency and impact, while objectively demonstrating value of their support. Giving in Illinois, and Donors Forum's partnership with The Foundation Center, shows how Illinois Philanthropy works to improve the quality of life in communities across the state," said Gregory S. Gross, Ed.D., President and CEO of Michael Reese Health Trust, and a Member of Donors Forum's Board of Directors. "It's an unusually clear and valuable resource for nonprofits, government agencies, policymakers, grantseekers, and other stakeholders," he added.

Key takeaways from the report include:

The giving of 4,031 Illinois foundations reached a record $2.4 billion in 2010, up 81% since 2000 (adjusted for inflation, giving rose 43%). This outpaces giving by U.S. foundations overall, which rose a more modest 66% (31% adjusted for inflation).

The $27.9 billion in assets reported by Illinois foundations have grown more slowly than the national average, although this largely reflects the concentration of new foundations in areas of rapid economic growth, such as the West Coast.

Illinois funders' support of general operating expenses exceeds the national share, and accounted for the second largest share of funding in Illinois -- almost 30%, which surpassed the 22.4% reported nationally.

Independent and family foundations account for the majority -- almost nine out of ten -- of Illinois foundations and resources, including the state's largest foundation by assets -- the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Illinois corporate foundations account for one in ten grant dollars, giving more than $222 million in 2012. Peoria-based Caterpillar Foundation tops that list.

The Chicago Community Trust leads among community foundations in the state, accounting for 86% of all community foundation assets in the state and 91% of community foundation giving.

Foundations in Cook County and surrounding areas control the majority of resources, representing 61% of total giving by Illinois foundations. Similarly, nonprofits in Cook County benefited from the single largest share of Illinois foundation funding, 85.1% of grant dollars.

Education and human services are the top funding priorities in Illinois, with foundations providing just over half of the 2010 giving in Illinois for education (27.1%) and human services (23.5%).

Download a copy of the report here.

~Marilou Jones, Director of Communications, Donors Forum

guest post: independent sector testifies before house ways + means subcommittee

2012-05-25T12:24:09-05:00

The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight held a hearing on May 16, 2012 to examine the operations and oversight of the tax exempt sector, and Independent Sector was pleased to be invited to represent the views of our members and the sector at large.

In his opening statement, Chairman Charles Boustany (R-LA) highlighted the importance of the issue to the Subcommittee, saying, “With so many Americans relying on, working for, and engaged in economic relationships with tax-exempt organizations, taxpayers should have confidence that tax-exempt organizations, especially charitable organizations, are operating efficiently and hopefully using good governance practices to maximize benefits provided to the community.”

In her testimony before the Subcommittee, Independent Sector president and CEO Diana Aviv emphasized the tax exempt sector’s commitment to improving governance, transparency and accountability, and the significant strides that have been made in recent years. She cited the numerous improvements to governance and oversight of the sector since 2006, particularly in the areas of self-regulation, changes in the law, and the redesigned IRS Form 990.

In addition, she asked that as Congress looks toward comprehensive tax reform, they keep in mind the value of charitable giving to the work of public charities and private foundations, and the important role of tax policy in encouraging that giving. As she told the Subcommittee, “Millions of lives are improved every day because our tax laws encourage people to give and I urge you to explore ways to increase the impact of those incentives.”

Click here to learn more about the hearing, including links to the video and the other witnesses' testimony.

~Lois Fu, Vice President of Public Policy, Independent Sector

guest post: strengthen your communications and social media skills at the community media workshop conference

2012-05-11T14:36:29-05:00

We’re big fans of Community Media Workshop, which has its annual conference coming up on Thurs., June 14 We asked them to share more about the event:

“As nonprofit communicators, we face many challenges spreading the word about our missions, informing the public about the work we do, calling advocates to action, and asking for donations. How do you tackle the challenges of keeping up with the changing media landscape? At the dawn of the digital revolution, what innovations will your communications plan include?

At Make Media Connections we address your pressing communications questions, like:

Read more about the Making Media Connections conference here.

Questions about the conference? Call us at 312-369-6400

~Diana Pando, Senior Trainer, Community Media Workshop

have it their way (be more responsive to consumer demands): learn about csr best practices at our upcoming workshop series

2012-04-27T09:53:48-05:00

This morning, I awoke to a highly unexpected story about Burger King ‘s decision to source all of their egg and pork products from cage-free farms. This announcement, from the second largest fast food vendor in the country, really highlights how mainstream corporate social responsibility programs have become, and if this trend continues, all companies may have to prove their commitment to CSR policies in order to remain competitive.

A new Nielsen study entitled “The Global, Socially-Conscious Consumer” highlights their findings on this new demographic. Their research has confirmed that, in general, consumers are more attuned to corporate social-responsibility (66% would select a product or service from a company that is known for their socially responsive policies), and that these global, socially conscious consumers (49% of all consumers) will pay more for these products and services. The study also identifies social causes that resonate most with these consumers and which ones they believe companies should be supporting – environmental causes were considered the top issue globally, and the report also identifies how age, gender, and region of origin affects these consumer preferences. In addition to selecting an issue that aligns with a company’s mission and consumer preferences, companies also need to combine these programs with consumer engagement strategies and communications. The Nielsen report also diagrams which advertising strategies have the highest trust among consumers- recommendations from friends were the most effective, followed by online consumer reviews and branded websites.

If you’re looking for more practical advice to help you design, implement, and measure the effectiveness of a CSR strategy, register now for the upcoming Donors Forum CSR Workshop Series. At this 3-part workshop series, Todd Knowlton of the TCC Group will present, and the first session will be held May 4^th. Hurry – the registration deadline is Wednesday, May 2nd!

~Allison Rosenthal, Member Services Associate

-Image via Creative Commons

budget negotiations heat up in springfield -- where are nonprofits?

2012-04-25T16:01:01-05:00

With the end of the legislative session one month away, the Illinois General Assembly is gearing up for a number of critical votes, including the 2013 F iscal Year budget, a plan to revamp the public employee pension system, and a proposal to cut Medicaid by $2.7 billion -- all aimed at stabilizing Illinois' increasingly perilous fiscal situation. Ensuring our state's budget is fiscally and socially sustainable for the long haul requires a comprehensive solution that draws upon the proven effectiveness of nonprofits to deliver public services and ensure that partnership with the state are well-managed.

The outcomes of the debates over Medicaid spending, pensions, and the state budget have both direct and indirect impacts on the health, effectiveness, and sustainability of Illinois' nonprofit sector and its partnership with state government. There is no easy solution, but with so much at stake, it is imperative that nonprofits be involved in the budget process. The nonprofit sector, as providers of critical services on behalf of government and the "boots on the ground" in communities across Illinois, has a shared interest as well as a mutual responsibility to craft a bipartisan plan that addresses the public's priorities as cost-effectively as possible. Lawmakers and partners from the nonprofit and private sectors must work together to develop a responsive, stable, fair, and diversified solution that would provide immediate relief to cash-strapped nonprofits who await billions from the State in unpaid bills and long-term plan to ensure a prosperous future for all Illinoisans.

~Donors Forum Public Policy Team

Image source via Creative Commons

family foundation ceos are invited to our first-ever family foundation ceo symposium on may 10

2012-04-12T12:43:37-05:00

Donors Forum invites Family Foundation CEO's to attend the first-ever Family Foundation CEO Symposium on May 10 from 8:30am - 4:30pm. This day long interactive event will be co-hosted by the National Center for Family Philanthropy and will take place at Quarles & Brady (300 N. Lasalle St.)

In the video below, Bruce Karmazin,Executive Director of the Lumpkin Family Foundation shares his thoughts on why he's excited to be attending the Symposium.

Guest speaker Ginny Esposito, President of the National Center for Family Philanthropy , will discuss findings from NCFP's recent research on family foundation leadership. The day will also include table-top conversations, panel discussions, and presentations around timely topics central to the unique work and challenges of family foundation CEOs, including leadership challenges, sustainable spending, working with living donors, working with multiple generations, and more.

"Leading a Family Foundation offers some special rewards, but often presents some pretty unique challenges. That's why it's really important to stay focused and stay inspired. For me, the best way of doing that has always been through simple conversations with colleagues." - Bruce Karmazin,Executive Director of the Lumpkin Family Foundation

Connect with your colleagues at this unique, first-of-its-kind event -- and come away with fresh ideas and research findings to discuss with your staff and board. Click here to see the agenda for the day and to register for this exciting networking opportunity.

Presenting Sponsor:

nonprofit foia: donors forum defends transparency + accountability

2012-03-30T13:44:28-05:00

How does one unify a diverse sector and catalyze a grassroots awareness raising effort? Introduce a bill to include private nonprofits in a definition of ‘public bodies.’ Last month, Illinois State Senator Martin Sandoval introduced a bill (SB3773) in the Senate last month that would have expanded the definition of ‘public bodies’ in the Illinois’ Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to include nonprofits who receive state funding. Not only would this bill undermine nonprofit privacy and represent a serious breach in the partnership between nonprofits and government, it is unconstitutional and unnecessary.

Thanks to a concerted advocacy effort led by Donors Forum and a coalition of 75 individual nonprofits and nonprofit associations representing thousands of organizations across the state, SB 3773 has stalled in the Senate Executive Committee. But further vigilance is still needed; the bill sponsor has continued to push for the bill and our advocacy is still needed.

Because much of the sector depends on a strong partnership between nonprofits and government, it is in the sector’s best interests to support efforts to improve transparency and accountability in government through common sense reforms to the budget process and state contracting. At the same time, the OIG Report on DCFS contracting should be recognized for what it is: A failure by state agencies to utilize existing laws and their managerial responsibility to oversee state government contracts.

But while isolated scandals are calls to action for government leaders worried about the loss of taxpayer dollars, they are also opportunities for our sector to educate lawmakers about the many ways the sector is a champion of transparency and accountability. Through federal reporting requirements, the Illinois Attorney General’s charitable registry and the Illinois Charitable Trust Act, which makes our highly detailed tax returns available to the public, among other disclosures and consumer protections, nonprofits meet a high standard for transparency and accountability and ensuring the public trust.

How can you help close the awareness gap of our elected officials?

Become familiar with Donors Forum’s current public policy efforts through our Illinois Nonprofit Principles and Best Practices (2005, updated 2008), the Partnership Principles for a Sustainable Human Services System (2010), our participation on the Management Improvement Initiative (2011) with state leaders, and our advocacy for Budgeting for Results (2012.)
Download and share our fact sheet on Illinois nonprofits leading on transparency and accountability with your Board, staff and representatives.
Track the progress of bills like SB3773 by signing up for Policy Update and stay informed on the latest in Springfield that impacts the nonprofit sector.

Please share your thoughts and feedback at advocacy@donorsforum.org. For more on nonprofit transparency, accountability, and resources for your donors and legislators, please visit the Nonprofit Transparency and Accountability section of our website.

~Delia Coleman, Director, Public Policy, Donors Forum

Image via Creative Commons

donors forum’s march 7 convening engages 235 members + partners

2012-03-27T14:23:44-05:00

The March 7 Convening, engage^n - Community Engagement 2012 brought together 235 Members and Forum Partners, giving grantmakers and nonprofit organizations an opportunity for learning and connecting around an important topic of common concern. Opening and closing keynote presentations by Peter Levine, Director of CIRCLE, The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement and Bruce Sievers, visiting scholar at Stanford University's Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society , can be found on Chicago Amplified, WBEZ radio’s web archive of informative programming in the Chicago area.

In advance of a more complete report that will be shared with all Members and Partners, please see the highlights below:

• At the event, polling by AmericaSpeaks gave participants a voice in identifying the types of community engagement activities they plan to conduct or explore in the coming months. A strong 70% selected “Educate citizens on critical issues” as the activity they plan to pursue. The next most frequently chosen activities were “Promote participation using social media” (63%) and “Recruit volunteers” (53%).

• Nearly half of the participants (114 or 49%) responded to a post-event survey on what they gained through their participation in the convening. Most respondents (71.7% ) said they learned something new about community engagement and the role of foundations and nonprofits in promoting and supporting community engagement. Nearly all respondents (95.6%) indicated that they made new connections to grantmakers, nonprofits, or other colleagues.

• In keeping with onsite AmericaSpeaks poll that showed participants’ interest in “Educating citizens on critical issues,” the greatest proportion of post-event survey respondents (68.2%) identified the same topic as the one they would most like to learn more about. The next most frequently chosen area for learning more about was “Reaching out to citizens to identify the critical issues in the community” (44.3%).

• About 60 people, half of those responding to the post-event survey, expressed interest in continuing to be involved in Donors Forum’s ongoing conversation on community engagement. Three-quarters of those expressing interest are Forum Partners and 25% are Members.

The Planning Committee is keenly interested in concrete next steps for continuing the conversation, and has reviewed the event and participant feedback toward that end. Donors Forum will reach out to those who shared contact information in the survey to get their ideas on next steps. Find more information, including a large photo of the graphic recording of the event as well as photos here.

guest post: daniel clark from americaspeaks on the engage^n convening

2012-03-22T11:27:40-05:00

Daniel Clark, Program Director at AmericaSpeaks, discusses his experience at Donors Forum's March 7 Community Engagement Convening. This post was orginally published on the AmericaSpeaks blog on March 13, 2012.

On March 7, I had the honor of working with the Chicago’s Donors Forum and its partners to facilitate a convening on the power of community engagement. The event was a kick-off for a continuing conversation about the foundation and non-profit sector in the Chicago metropolitan area, also known as Chicagoland. The conversation focused on the opportunities and challenges for utilizing community engagement to achieve organizational missions and build greater social capital in Chicago communities.

I co-facilitated the meeting with Diana Hess, Senior VP of the Spencer Foundation. She is on leave from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she is a professor of Curriculum and Instruction. Her first book, Controversy in the Classroom: The Democratic Power of Discussion, won the National Council for the Social Studies Exemplary Research Award in 2009.

Diana and I got the meeting going with some keypad polling and a quick table discussion about the wide range of definitions that exist for “community engagement.” Recognizing the broad scope of community engagement and the different perspectives people bring to the topic was important for building the foundation of the discussion.

Peter Levine, Director of CIRCLE, The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement at Tufts University (and a member of the AmericaSpeaks Board of Directors) provided valuable remarks based on research he has conducted which links increased community engagement to other indicators of community health, specifically, lower unemployment rates.

We were then treated to three local stories about community engagement:

Agustin Flores, a thoughtful and well-poised young man, spoke about his political action experience with the support of the Mikva Challenge, and his plans to one day become the Mayor of Chicago.
A video highlighted Sweet Beginnings, a workforce development program of the North Lawndale Employment Network that does more than create transitional job opportunities; they produce a successful line of all natural raw honey and honey-infused body care products.
Choua Vue, Assistant Director of Community Engagement at Illinois Action for Children, talked about his organization’s work building connections and community between childcare teachers and other providers.

Participants then had the opportunity for deeper discussion at their tables about the community engagement that their organizations were already participating in, and the opportunities they see for greater community engagement in the future. The Donors Forum staff captured ideas from all of the table discussions for closer review.

Bruce Sievers provided some of the closing remarks. He worked for more than 35 years in philanthropic organizations and is now a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University. He summarized many of the ideas in the convening around how we might respond to the decline in community engagement in four key categories: understanding the constituents, giving people a voice, changing policy, and building civil society.

Finally, check out this great graphic facilitation recording of the event produced by Brandy Agerbeck of Loosetooth and some live tweeting from the event.

Thanks to the Donors Forum, its sponsors, members and partners for organizing an important convening. Good luck to all of them as they continue this discussion and their great work. Visit here for more info about the sponsors, the planning committee, etc.

For photos of the event, please visit the Donors Forum Flickr or Facebook page.

advice for grantmakers on financial analysis of grantees: join hilda polanco on april 18 to learn more

2012-03-14T09:36:31-05:00

For grantamkers, knowing how to evaluate a grantee’s current financial health is more important than ever; in today’s operating environment, even long-standing nonprofits like Jane Addam’s Hull House Association abruptly file for bankruptcy and close.

Hilda Polanco, Founder and Executive Director of Fiscal Management Associates, a financial services consulting agency with a focus in nonprofit operations, is very attuned to these struggles and also has some advice for grantmakers. I recently posed a few questions to Hilda about the importance of reviewing more than just the Form 990 to obtain a comprehensive view of a grantee’s or prospective grantee’s financial security.

Allison Rosenthal: What is the biggest misconception a grantmaker can have after reading a potential grantee's Form 990? Additionally, is reviewing the IRS Form 990 enough to capture the complete picture of a grantee’s financial health?

Hilda Polanco: It’s often assumed that the financial results as presented in the Form 990 tell the operating results for the grantee. They don't! Only the audited financial statements present results of operations in a manner that indicates if the potential grantee had an operating surplus or deficit. In most cases, the Form 990 presents a more favorable picture because it includes restricted funds for future operations as if they were earned in the current period being presented.

AR: In what instances should grantmakers request prospective grantees to provide additional internal financial reports?

HP: Audits and Forms 990 are annual reports and are usually not available for many months after the end of the prospective grantee's fiscal year. If a grantmaker wishes to understand the CURRENT financial health of the prospective grantee, only interim reports through the most recent quarter can actually provide that information. These interim reports should also include the grantee's best information about expected operating results for the rest of the fiscal year as well as the fiscal year for which the grant is being requested.

AR: Can grantmakers overburden grantees by requesting too many reports, too often? What are the potential consequences?

HP: Yes, this is certainly a possibility. The key to successful communication between grantmaker and grantee is that the grantmaker be clear about the financial information that they require to assess the grantseeking organization's financial health. If that information is available in the format the grantee normally reports, then terrific! If not, there should be a clear understanding as to how this information will be presented to the funder, at the onset of the relationship. This should avoid any misunderstandings via differing expectations regarding reporting.

To hear more from Hilda Polanco, register now for her financial analysis training, Assessing Your Grantees' Financial Health, Today: An Advanced Training for Program Officers, where she will cover these topics and more. The class will take place on April 18 from 9:00am-1:00pm at Donors Forum.

~Allison Rosenthal, Member Services Associate