This is the end... week 10.

In the spirit of Jim Morrison, and a fitting song for my first and last video insert in this blog:

Budget Plan Brings Big Changes to Tax Incentives for Donors

I think that people fail to understand tax percentages. I always hear cries from the ‘wealthy’ saying it’s unfair that they contribute a higher percentage. On the surface, I get it… why make it seem a penalty to make more money?  I hear proponents here on campus crying out for fair taxes – I even heard someone recently say, ‘Just tax everyone 10% across the board – that will be fair!’ I couldn’t believe my ears. Let’s look at that….  if I make, say, $150 a week working part time at a burger joint my Federal tax would be $15 for that week… now if I make only $150 - $15 is a big deal. Now what if I worked in Corporate America and made $6000 a week, my 10% would be a mere $600 – leaving me $5400. Show me how that’s fair?  The wealthy of America don’t owe money to any particular individual. What they do owe is their scaled fair share. When I make $150 a week at a burger joint I’m pretty sure I can’t afford a tax adviser on retainer to help me not pay taxes. Thanks Daddy Bush (and your kid, too). /Rant off.

Donors and Nonprofits Face a Defining Moment in Responding to a Crisis

I have high hopes for continued philanthropy and the ideals that go along with it. A more global community based structure is most certainly what we’re moving toward – the interesting part will be seeing how Americans deal with that. We aren’t exactly used to not being #1, right?

How to Do Good and Prove It: Integrate Social Impact in Your Nonprofit’s DNA

The beginning of this article speaks to a common theme in the last weeks (for me, anyhow) – using technology to stay current and remain interesting. I really like the idea of the 8-word mission statement. We’re all tired of lengthy, vague bullshit anyhow, right? Streamlining – that’s the name of the game these days – not just in the nonprofit world but everywhere. It’s not just cool and trendy, it’s necessary.

A Newly Powerful Grant-Making Force: Artist-Endowed Foundations

Sorry for the big quote here, but this is the important piece of this reading: “All of this suggests that while most still fly below the radar, artist-endowed foundations merit attention. Their increasing numbers combined with distinctive assets and direct engagement in the arts set them apart from the majority of private foundations in the United States. Big national foundations pursue more-abstract agendas, leaving an important role for grant makers that have closer ties to artists and the creation of art.”

I’m all for specific foundations funding very specific recipients – anywhere a niche is found that needs support.

Speaking of international relations....

Just watched this documentary about Wal-Mart and its exploitation of the Chinese industrial workers.

 http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/

Interesting to see the opinion of Wal-Mart executives regarding the effects of cheap imported goods on American society.

Also interesting that the Walton family has a net worth of over 100 billion. BILLION.

In 2008, the average Wal-Mart employee made $10.84/hour and worked  34 hours a week. That means no health insurance and a total income of $19,165 per year - approximately $1,000 below the Federal poverty line.

More info HERE (<--- click)

Week 9 - International Non-Profits

Nonprofit Nation Chapter 9:

I found a lot of the information in this chapter interesting but the section addressing employees and volunteers (specifically volunteers) really caught my attention. There’s a reference from 1998 stating that approximately 5 million US adults in that year reported volunteering time for foreign and international organizations. 5 million! That’s a huge number of people. I had no idea that this niche was so vastly populated with volunteer workers.

Mercy Corps:

What impresses me most about this organization is their philosophy of avoiding the Band-Aid fix. It’s important, for example, to help provide food to those who have experienced a disaster – but it’s even more important to follow that assistance with education and resources in order to minimize future reliance on others. It’s the old ‘teach a man to fish’ concept. I was equally impressed that with a few clicks on the website, an individual can select a project (click HERE to see) to help support and then create a fund raising page that can be shared easily on the web or through any number of popular social media. Good thinking!

William Easterly: Why Does Foreign Aid Fail?

The majority of this reading was not a surprise to me. Americans are well known for our attitude of ‘I’ll help you, sure! But I’m going to get mine, first.’  The following quote pretty well sums it up:

“…the poor have no right to complain and no right to turn down the product if they don’t like it. The poor just get foreign aid foisted on them by these ill-informed “experts”, and there’s no feedback from the poor – whether they’re satisfied or not, whether their money even reached them or not. There’s no accountability on the part of these official aid agencies....”

It’s not surprising that this is the root of much failure in the Foreign Aid bureaucracy. Inexcusable? YES. This just screams of fraud. Reminds me of recent monsters like Halliburton and subprime lending.

 Image borrowed from HERE

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on Aid vs. Trade:

Very similar theme with William Easterly. What I found most interesting here is the reinforcement of the idea that empowering the people is the answer. I couldn’t agree more. People who have lived through adversity are the ones that really know what the problems are. Her statement that ‘Aid cannot solve our problems, I’m firmly convinced of that…’ is evidenced by decades of misspent and misused funds. Removing the corrupt middleman is the only way to successfully empower people to do for themselves rather than being ‘appeased.’ 

Millennium Goals:

What do I think? Culturally appropriate?

I’m going to agree with one of my group mates who posted that this list may be something that a middle class person in a well-developed country would like to hear. Part of my problem with ‘globalization’ of ideas like this list is this: who the hell are we to tell others what to do?  Now don’t get me wrong – some goals like fighting hunger and disease with education and medicine is probably very high on the list of most people… right? Or wrong? What if these ideals were imposed on a community that believes medicine is wrong – and what if that community has held those beliefs for longer than white people have been in North America? What would happen if we made those people take substances that they reject?

What about empowering women? In our culture, of course this is important. What about cultures that do not operate with that kind of open-mindedness?  What about cultures in which we view members of one gender as being oppressed – is ‘freeing’ them from that oppression better for them or does it serve to reinforce our own cultural morality (Or both?) Perhaps we should remember to be aware that not everyone wants to change their culture, ideals, or morality just because someone said to. The issue of human rights is a complex one, that’s for certain.

So, do we have the right to tell other cultures to change their beliefs about food, medicine, education….?

Please understand that I’m neither promoting nor discounting any of the issues that I mentioned above. I’m simply asking you to think about potential repercussions.

Personally, I would love to see the Millennium Goals come to fruition. That’s my personal opinion, and really only taken at face value – a list. A list of ideals that are not black-and-white but that are something to strive toward with cultural consideration – and a SOLID PLAN (infrastructure!) … a way to avoid continuing the horrendous inefficiency that Foreign Aid has wallowed in.

Week 8 - Advocacy and the Arts

Poetry Gives Teens a Voice:

This article was a great short read. I love hearing about people not only expressing themselves but being allowed to do so at an age where being surrounded by emotional open-mindedness is critical (my opinion). I’m not much of a poet but at age 11 our family dog Rosie had to be put down. She was as old as me (parents got the dog when I was weeks old) and it affected me deeply. I wrote a short poem to Rosie which I read when we buried her in the backyard - and found great comfort in doing so.

My Mom later (unbeknownst to me) submitted the poem to the newspaper for a children’s poetry contest… I didn’t win but my poem was published in the Corvallis Gazette-Times.

Arts Groups Pumped $166.2 Billion Into the U.S. in 2005

“The group is pressing Congress for an almost 40 percent boost in funding to the National Endowment for the Arts to reverse a cut made by Republicans after they took over in 1995. Last month, the group released a report saying arts organizations are `` at risk'' due to a drop in corporate giving and lack of growth in giving by foundations and individuals. “

  

OK – this is sad to me. This article profoundly enlightened me. I admit that I’m not a very ‘artsy’ person… I enjoy attending events and productions (especially live music) as well as plays at my local community theater from time to time. In 2008 I attended a massive (80,000 people were there that year) 4-day music festival in Manchester, Tennessee called Bonnaroo. Nearly 150 acts ranging from Pearl Jam, Metallica, BB King, Primus, Yonder Mountain String Band, Willie Nelson, Phil Lesh, M.I.A., and dozens more played over those 4 days. Several comedians were there as were hundreds of people performing in the parking areas, camping areas, etc.

 

Hundreds of people were selling their wares – ranging from t-shirts to beads and “tobacco” smoking devices. I had the time of my life – and my wife and I literally spent hundreds of dollars there on admission, food, and some merchandise.  After reading this article I really opened my eyes to the bigger picture. We NEED the arts and as a nation based on freedom, I fully believe we should do what we can to support not only events like Bonnaroo – but the idea that creative growth is as important (more important?) as financial growth.

Senate Bill 40 / Non-Profit Association of Oregon press Release:

I’m torn here – a little. I’m generally not a person who supports increased Government control for a lot of reasons. However I think we need to consider the socioeconomic situations we find ourselves in these days. Everyone seems to be concerned about minimizing excess (spending, carbon, corporate executive bonuses – you get the idea). I am in favor of streamlining some things – and this bill might be on the right track. Not requiring a non-profit to submit to additional reporting and using their 990 tax form to weed out organizations practicing illegal fund raising is OK with me. My major concern here would be related to how illegally operating agencies would be punished. The bill seems to indicate that it would be forward-acting and perhaps not retroactive?  I think that this needs to be clearly spelled out… unless there’s a specific plan then I worry that this is a ‘political gesture’ to appease rather than impose new policy.

CLICK HERE for a link to a 3-page .pdf of the actual Senate Bill 40 document.

I’m not a law student nor do I pretend to be politically educated so I’ll stop here.

The Power of non-Profits: Proud Tradition of Serving America:

I was glad to find out more about the history of associations in America. People with similar thinking and beliefs have always grouped together for support and ideas – it’s part of Human nature and being social creatures. The fascinating part is how it evolved in the U.S. from churches to community issues and later national issues and how those associations came to find that they could politically influence their environments - like the National Grange organization did.

Week 7 - Education

For-Profit Schools

OK - lots of interesting information in this reading. I was somewhat troubled to read the following excerpt:

            “Proponents of for-profit schools claim business models will benefit students, because financial success depends on providing a quality education.”

Now wait a minute… that’s quite a leap in logic. I’d like to see some statistics that show that people would attend a specific institution solely based on a financial decision. Everyone’s heard about the fly-by-night (or misleading) educational opportunities out there, right? Such as some of those for-profit institutions that advertise degrees in computer information systems (or secretarial work, or whatever!) on those 2am infomercials, right?  I have a hard time believing that any of those “credits” would transfer to a reputable college or university for further schooling. My guess is that many of those ‘colleges’ are financially successful. Some are probably run out of a 1 room office somewhere, right?

I’m not trying to bash all for-profit schools – I just get a little heated about some things.

Sub-prime Opportunity

Wow! OK – here we go. Some hard, solid information about what some for-profits are really doing to people. Talk about an interesting correlation between the sub-prime housing market and loans made to students to attend for-profit schools. It makes me sick when something like higher education is completely money driven. What I mean to say is that I get it – everyone needs to make a buck. That’s cool. But what the fuck is with us treating each other so badly? In the long run is it really cool to screw people who already are hurting?  The same organizations who lent this money are the ones screaming because their taxes are going up to pay for the health care of the people they supposedly educated – and who cannot find jobs. I know the argument to this is, ‘well, we didn’t make them sign up for the loan – they did it themselves!’ Well, that’s true. What’s also true is that those loans were made available when nothing else was. Who’s the bigger asshole?

Fed Up at the University of Phoenix

Not going to comment a whole lot about this one – I’ve already ranted a bunch in this week’s blog post. It’s good to see some hard facts about the truth here. I was astonished to read that Intel removed Phoenix from its employee tuition reimbursement program because of the lack of quality education being provided to students.

Here’s a link (<----click here) to a great article in the New York Times describing how the University of Phoenix has undermined educational quality through their pressure for higher profits, reliance on part-time employees, and other factors.

Will the For-Profit Education Bubble Burst in 2011?

Yet again we have more collaborating information that points to the problems of for-profit schools. I, for one, chose to go to the University of Oregon because of its reputation and because I know that with a degree from this school, my educational experience will not be in question. I could have gone somewhere else that was less expensive or less of a commute (I drive an hour each way to get to class) but I chose to come here because if I’m going to spend the kind of money it takes to get a degree – I sure as hell want it to be legitimate, meaningful, and worth every penny.

Here's a great article supporting my outlook: click this link.

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There’s a huge difference, I think, between for-profit schools providing elementary education (through high school) and those that provide higher education. People seeking higher education typically do so for the opportunities that it will present, right? Higher pay, a good job, new social circles, whatever… and when those opportunities are misleadingly NOT provided… well, that’s when I have a problem.

Week 6 - halfway through.

A Guide to Environmental Non-Profits

I was not aware of specific environmental non-profits that supported protection of the ocean... I’d heard of some of the “big” names like Greenpeace - which I was happy to see wasn’t listed in this reading! Greenpeace annoys me.  I’m appreciative of the measure of awareness that this reading encourages us to employ. Many of the organizations really do have ‘misleading’ names that don’t lend themselves to the real agendas.

McKenzie Watershed Annual Report (Oct. 1, 2007 – Sept. 30, 2008)

Two major things impressed me about this reading. First is the McKenzie Watershed’s mission statement.  This statement is extraordinarily clear and concise – describing in great detail what the Council will do, how it will be done, and with whom. It’s refreshing and easy to get behind an agency with this kind of transparency. Secondly, I’ll quote a portion of the article:

                “Of the total FY 2008 expenditures, over 85% was spent within Lane County through the use of local contractors and ground crews and the purchasing of restoration materials and other program supplies from local suppliers.”

I know that on its own, evaluating a non-profit solely on how it operates fiscally is not a real determination of the agency’s agenda. However in this case with the additional information we have in this annual report, I find the 85% figure impressive and righteous.

The picture below is one that I took myself on the McKenzie River in 2009. I attend a retreat every year in March which is held at St. Benedict’s Lodge – located approximately 45 miles up the McKenzie River from Springfield.

Paul Hawken’s Commencement Address to the Class of 2009 – University of Portland – May 3^rd, 2009

Sorry for the long quote, but here it is:

                

          “You join a multitude of caring people. No one knows how many groups and

organizations are working on the most salient issues of our day: climate change,

poverty, deforestation, peace, water, hunger, conservation, human rights, and more.

This is the largest movement the world has ever seen. Rather than control, it seeks

connection. Rather than dominance, it strives to disperse concentrations of power.

Like Mercy Corps, it works behind the scenes and gets the job done. Large as it is, no

one knows the true size of this movement. It provides hope, support, and meaning

to billions of people in the world. Its clout resides in idea, not in force. It is made up

of teachers, children, peasants, businesspeople, rappers, organic farmers, nuns,

artists, government workers, fisherfolk, engineers, students, incorrigible writers,

weeping Muslims, concerned mothers, poets, doctors without borders, grieving

Christians, street musicians, the President of the United States of America, and as

the writer David James Duncan would say, the Creator, the One who loves us all in

such a huge way.”

Idealistic? Yeah.  Possible? Sure. Happening now? Hell yes. Count me in.

This reading was easily the best out of the four for this week.

Why Mr. Gore Chose Venture Capital and Not the Non-Profit World

I’m not going to have a lot to say about this one – I really don’t know enough about it. What I do know is that any time a Politician gets involved, my skeptical hackles go up. I have a hard time believing that anything Mr. Gore is doing is purely for the good of ‘the people’ – but please let me be wrong. I just need to see it before I will buy it.

Week 5

ADD Grows Up:

OK this is an interesting article. Really the concept of a fad (or a disease du jour as the writer states) is nothing new. We do this all the time, right? Something is the flavor of the month and gets tons of press, public, and water-cooler time before something else moves into the spotlight.

In response to the questions posed this week about this article in particular, I’d like to say that it’s a scary proposition though because with medical issues we’re talking about life and death (recall Phen-Phen?)… ironically, phen-phen was a stimulant drug, too, like are most ADD medications (Strattera is not, however, for the record.)

If we talk about making medicine in the US a complete non-profit, aren’t we really talking about making healthcare a socialist thing? Like Canada, or the UK, or any number of places that take care of their own in an equal way…?

I don’t want to use all of this week’s post up on this article so I’ll just leave it with this cartoon which I borrowed from a blog I found at: http://canamgirl.wordpress.com/2009/10/21/socialized-healthcare/

What do you think?

Green Bay Packers:

First off I want to say that I’m not a football guy. Secondly, WOW – this is very cool. I had no idea. It seems fitting (and understandable) that the fans hold a deep respect for the team. I was struck by the comment made regarding asking the fans for help shoveling snow – how cool is that? I mean, I’m impressed that people are willing to do so much more when they feel they are a “part-of”.

Here’s a related story – the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (a class A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners) are set up as a non-profit as well. http://www.newrules.org/governance/rules/communityowned-sports/community-owned-sports-teams-examples

Merging in Michigan and Value of Non Profit Healthcare

I could go on and on with this one but I’ll keep it short and sweet. Major scale mergers like in the ‘Merging in Michigan’ article have the potential to be hugely positive for the end-user (that’s who’s supposed to be important here, right?) but unless closely managed is also a potentially disastrous outcome. Over inflated charges, lack of personality, cookie cutter office visits… this is what we don’t like, right? Sounds a little bit like waiting in line at McDonalds. Non-profit healthcare is the way to go, if you ask me. More services more of the time for more of the people – that’s what it’s supposed to be about.

Chapter 5:

“Nonprofit general hospital revenue and employment are overwhelmingly larger than either government or for-profit activity – three times larger than government and seven times larger than for-profits.”

As with one of my group mates, this fact really stood out to me. The cost of providing healthcare is never going to drop. What could potentially drop is the charge to the patient. I could spend time going off about insurance companies and drug companies driving the cost of things but I won’t… (Ok, mostly won’t!). I don’t claim to be an expert in this field. I probably won’t ever be an expert in this field. However – what I DO know is that we need to make some changes.

There was a period in my life where 3 or 4 times a year I would get a horrible sinus infection. I was employed and working full time ($9 an hour) without health insurance. Every time I would get this sinus infection I required antibiotics. Not the low-grade ones, I needed a strong prescription (thanks to overuse of antibiotics as a child, I have a high tolerance.) Here’s the problem: I’d go to urgent care because I had no primary doctor. Urgent care would charge me $250 up front, plus $195 in office and lab fees, and then I’d have to fill the prescription which was another $149.

Now let me tell you that at $9 an hour, I rarely had an ‘extra’ $600 laying around for health expenses. In fact, I never did. So here’s the other option: go to the emergency room. $0 up front cost, and I’d be seen by a doctor who would tell me what I already know (that I need antibiotics) and a quick lab culture, and I’d be on my way. Total out of pocket: $149 for the prescription.

Here lies the real problem… two weeks later I get a bill in the mail from the hospital for $825. Well, at least I could see the doctor... but now a simple infection turned into a bill that was roughly 4/5ths of my monthly salary.

$600 up front, or $149 up front and a gigantic bill.

At least the ER would take payments.

Week Four:

Chronic Problems Plague Auburn Family Residence:

First of all, this story is a sad one. I’m going to avoid focusing on any potential reason that the residents of this facility are homeless. I choose to stick to the story and facts at hand.

I wonder where the bias is in this article. All stories are biased, no matter if they claim to be or not. I’m undecided on that point… but back to the ‘meat’ of the story. It seems that there are seriously lacking provisions for the people at the shelter. This story focuses almost entirely on the negative/problem areas. I wonder… what does the shelter provide that the story neglects to mention?

We learn that the budget in that area for homeless services had been drastically cut – leading to loss of security and a rise in criminal activity. I wonder what could be done to help remedy this. I wonder… what other types of revenue could be funneled to this agency?

It appears that the homeless population is growing exponentially while the available funding and budgets are decreasing drastically. There has to be a middle ground… doesn’t there?

Also, please check out this link. I found it while reading the Auburn article for the first time. I was looking for a national source of research results based on homelessness and shelters. I appreciate the factual nature of it. http://www.wsws.org/articles/2007/mar2007/home-m19.shtml

Louisiana will get an extra $10.5 million to help low-income residents pay their power bills:

I had no idea that the need for financial assistance to subsidize heating/cooling was so widespread! I find it upsetting that despite the efforts of many – there will only be funding for this temporarily. What about this summer? What about next winter?

Our country is in a real quandary here – these programs are in place from days gone by when money was more prevalent. We are faced with some tough decisions… do we continue funding these types of programs, or do we look at restructuring the entities that provide the utilities in the first place and work on subsidizing at that level – thus lowering cost for the end-user?

I don’t have the perfect answer for this. All I can really say is that the way our economy is headed, we won’t stay afloat without drastic change – and I hope we take this opportunity to take care of the things that really matter.

Q&A with CEO of MAAC Project:

I’m really not impressed with this interview. For one thing, the interviewer did a very poor job of pinning down Mr. Pizano about anything at all, really. He was given the opportunity to give a political ‘schmooze’ speech and he did so.

For example, when asked very specifically what the MAAC project does in the community, his response was the following:

            “We are in the business of “Maximizing Access to Advance our Communities.” That is the most recent tagline adopted by the board of directors. We are a deliverer of essential services to the less fortunate and/or underserved community throughout San Diego County. MAAC holds the title, and responsibility, of serving over 1 million people since its inception back in 1965. MAAC is indeed seen as “The Beacon of Hope” by those in need and is one of the most reputable and respected organizations in San Diego. Ask anyone.”

Now did that quote really make any sense? It looks like a politically charged statement to me. What is an ‘essential service’? What exactly is being done to serve over a million people since 1965, and what makes that such a large responsibility?

How much of this statement is to appease funding sources?

Understanding the tools in the affordable housing toolkit:

In the interest of avoiding a million page rambling blog post – I will simply respond to this article in the form of a single question.

What can we do as a society to prevent long-term use of funds and facilities that were originally intended for short-term use?

Finally, I'll make a quick comment about the reading for this week; Chapter Four in Non Profit Nation. In the second paragraph, there is a statement that stopped me in my tracks. Please see sentence number four. It reads: "For this reason, social service may be the most widely accepted and admired part of the nonprofit sector." This is after stating that nonprofits serve to do what all religions have commanded (feed the hungry, take care of the sick, etc). WHOA, wait a minute. This is a very odd reference to me.

Is the writer here saying that social service nonprofits are admired by the general public, or by other nonprofits? I'm mentioning this because I can list off by name probably dozens of people I have been in contact with who believe otherwise and chastise or look down upon those who work in this sector.

Please don;t take me wrong here - I'm not attempting to play the martyr. What I'm saying is that this viewpoint appears to be highly biased.

Another thought about that...

I just wanted to throw one more thing out there - I don't necessarily oppose the idea of people out there on the street seeking to raise funds in a face-to-face way. What I do find fault in is people doing so in such a way as to impose on others. It is a good thing to get out there and educate others - but what about those who won't take no for an answer?

We've all experienced that person knocking on the door with a bible (or a magazine sales catalog, or a whatever...) in hand, right?  I can't begin to describe how many times I've encountered this - in fact I have tried all types of imaginative ways to prevent their return - to no avail, of course.

Anyone else think that these types of tactics help to reinforce the public's idea of what non-profits are? Inevitably these folks play the 'but we give XX cents from every dollar directly to the butterflies!' card. Has this face-to-face interaction helped to drive the notion that non-profits' success is based on the level of the workers sacrifice?

Just an idea.

Week Three...

Wow - so I don't know about anyone else but I'm really concerned about the potential outcome of reducing the tax write-off from donations to 501(3)c organizations. In one of the readings from this week (Tim Harford's blog) I was particularly struck by the comment, "What I'm foreseeing is a lot of people volunteering to serve at the soup kitchen, but less food." - the comment was in reference to people having 'spare time' in a recession due to unemployment and such.

This kind of thing scares me! I mean, it's pretty logical to see the obvious meaning of that quote - but what about a deeper issue? What about the idea (idealistic?) that non-profits fill a niche and exist to serve a population that is not currently getting what they need? Shouldn't we continue to focus on the purpose before predicting the outcome?  What I mean is this: what is the ultimate purpose of taking one of non-profits' biggest  revenue streams and shooting it in the foot? To save the Government? To save lost tax dollar revenue? Sure, I get it.

However, I will repeat myself: shouldn't we continue to focus on the purpose rather than predicting outcome? What about the people? Wouldn't it benefit American society as a whole to allow non-profits to preserve their organizations and allow more folks to 'live the American dream' and do things like learn a new job skill, become employed, rely less on the welfare system, pay taxes, become more educated, and generally contribute more to society?

On a somewhat unrelated note, I had an interesting experience this week on campus. I was walking to class and was approached by a young woman asking if I had a minute to spare... I told her yes and she proceeded to do her best to 'guilt' me into donating to her organization (Greenpeace) by showing me pictures of dead birds and turtles who had been suffocated by plastic objects (such as bags and bottles) in the ocean.  She challenged me - asking if I cared enough to stop the plastic waste in the ocean.

My response: "Sure, I do - but what about that plastic water bottle you're drinking from right now? Where is that going to end up?"

She didn't have much to say about that - and proceeded to try to convince me to sign up for an 'easy, small, automatic monthly donation.' I told her that I would be happy to consider it - and could I please have some more information before making a commitment - she refused, saying signing up now is the only way to, 'ensure than the most possible money goes to saving the turtles.'

Guess what she did next...  yep, you got it, pulled out a pie chart and began to explain that if I would give today that 86% of every dollar would go directly to saving that turtle. I asked her what would happen if I signed up online or waited until tomorrow - would that percentage decrease? Again she was unable to respond.

Here's where the story relates back to PPPM 280:  This experience speaks directly to the first sentence in Dan Pallotta's Blog:

"Anyone who's thought about it for more than 15 seconds has realized that the administration-to-program ratio ("What percentage of my donation goes to the cause versus to overhead?") is a useless measure for making good donation decisions."

Just because a non-profit exists doesn't mean it's a good one, or has particularly effective fund raising practices. I'm not using this blog to bash Greenpeace - only to paint a picture of what happened to when I interacted with one of the organization's fund raising people. Despite the really obnoxious experience I had this last week, that organization is doing what it can to lobby for it's cause.

That is what I want to do, too.

But I'm not going to show pictures of dead things to get where I want to go.

OK so here's the post for week one/two...

First of all, in reading the first few pages of chapter 1 in our book, Nonprofit Nation, I was surprised to learn that nearly 10 percent of our nation's economy is made up by the non-profit sector. All of my personal experience with non-profits have been with small agencies employing 5 or less with very small budgets ($200,000/fiscal year or less). I am encouraged by this new information as I find one of the federal requirements for a non-profit being to provide a service to the public. This relates directly to my educational and career aspirations. I hope to learn more as this classes progresses about how non-profit organizations can benefit from their status in the form of potential income from government funds as well as from private 'giving' from philanthropists and other philanthropic organizations.

I am also deeply interested in the reason(s) that non-profits tend to be of service to those in our society that are unable to be served through conventional means. Take, for instance, a man who has been convicted of a crime and has served his sentence in prison. That man, upon being released from the institution, typically has little to no resources available to him financially, emotionally, or otherwise. This person inevitably winds up working with local organizations who can help him with food, shelter, job searching/training and perhaps even to further his education. The question I ask is this: why is it that non-profits typically do this kind of work? Is it because non-profits are seen as less 'money driven' and more 'helping driven'? Do people gravitate to non-profits because of ethical reasons? Why is it that people who are employed by said non-profit agencies are sometimes not compensated for their expertise in the same way other occupations might be?

Now don't get me wrong - I'm not using this as a venue for complaints! I merely seek to raise the questions. I am thoroughly and fully committed to working and existing in the non-profit sector. I have a deep desire and drive that's fueled by personal experiences that push me to help others. I fully intend to do that. I hope that some of the myths and stereotypes (mine?) of non-profit work will be cleared up for me as this term progresses.

Wow, I sound a little bit like a fanatic here. I guess I'm not, really, but just passionate about diversity and equality. I suppose it's unrealistic to think that a Government as huge as ours could even come close to meeting the needs of all of us - religiously, morally, culturally... giving us the opportunity to create organizations to meet these individual needs in our communities is a wonderful blessing that many countries to not have the opportunity to experience.

I guess to sum it up: I'm a person who has gained great respect for non-profits and their ethical ideals. I have benefited personally from my experiences with several non-profit agencies and have seen first hand the impact on individuals. I would not be where I am today without some of the amazing people out there who seem to care more about the well-being of human kind than the upward movement of our Gross National Product.

Introduction Blog Post

Hi folks. Nick here. This is my first blog so bear with me. I'm a new student at the U of O (Watching the BCS Championship game as I post this!) and am taking PPPM 280 not only as an elective/general ed credit but to further my knowledge in the area of non-profits. My wife spent nearly 10 years working for two different non-profit agencies and I have seen and heard a lot about them through her experience.

I have been working for the last several years as a Chemical Dependency Counselor outside of the local area and am very interested in human/social services. I hope to further my education and am seeking a degree in Sociology.

My intention is to complete my degree and continue working in social services; particularly in the field of addictions and criminal rehabilitation. I would love to be an on-site case manager for a transitional housing facility for ex-offenders re-entering society.

I will most likely be using this blog for this class only but more will be revealed. It's very possible that I may include a link from time to time relating to my career choice.

To be continued as soon as I can read the first two chapters!