Q: Help — We’re losing ground fast and we need professional marketing help. How do I get the budget and support to get it?

My organization has been in existence since the 1960s, longer than any other environmental group in the state.

But, like many other nonprofits, we have never been good at marketing ourselves, and therefore don’t have the membership base that we should. Of course, the situation is more dire than ever right now.

As a result, we’re beginning to lose our historical advantage. For example, our state Audubon Society is developing a national audience and now has the funds to market themselves even more effectively. Our state’s Heritage Trust hired a marketing group that has helped them grow exponentially over the last year. And we’re being left behind.

We clearly need professional marketing help. We have a board member with marketing expertise (but, like most board members, he can’t give 100% of his effort to our marketing agenda) and a marketing committee, comprised of directors of communications (my boss), development and membership.

I’m an implementer and do most of our print and online graphic design and Web development and outreach. But I would be even more effective working with a marketing expert who has analyzed our challenges and designed a strategy for me to implement. So we’re doing more than treading water. But, I’m just not that person.

While leadership recognizes our need for professional marketing help, they are not moving forward in that direction. My boss agrees 100% but can’t get anywhere either. In the end, while we are stalled marketing-wise, our competitors are moving forward. Help!

I’ve passed on information on nonprofit marketing specialists and asked these specialists to contact our management too. Nothing has made a difference. I want to be more effective but don’t know how to get here.

I think my creation of a marketing plan would help, but don’t know where to start. What should I do?

— Jessica, Outreach Manager
State Natural Resources Council

A: Jessica, you’re in a challenging situation, and I admire the determination you are bringing to solving it.

The situation you face is a common one. Every nonprofit organization should beproactively marketing itself to develop and strengthen relationships with members, supporters, donors, volunteers and other stakeholders. But doing it right means more than just cranking out the direct mail and updating the Facebook page.

Effective marketing comes from clearly defined goals and objectives, the audiences you need to target to reach them and then the marketing strategies and hands-on tactics that will engage that network and motivate them to act. The process necessitates ongoing conversations with your base to get to know their needs and perspectives, analyzing what competitor and colleague organizations are doing marketing wise.

My recommendations:

1. Stop asking marketing firms to call your decision makers and stop passing on firm materials as well. Just stop right now.

Jessica, your intentions are great but at this point it’s clear that this strategy isn’t going to work. As a matter of fact, it’s likely to drive the decision makers away from funding marketing work. 

2.  Build understanding of the value of marketing for the Council. And, flip it to showcase what the Council WILL LOSE without it.

It’s all too easy for nonprofit leadership to nix marketing expenditures when they don’t get how vital marketing is to the ongoing health of their organizations. The most common “logic” is that program comes first, then vital support functions like fundraising.

I bet that’s what’s happening at the Council. But, it’s up to you (working with your boss) to build the understanding that there are no program participants without marketing, and limited fundraising if it isn’t done right (prospective donors need to know what the Council is and the value of its work to even consider giving).

Dig out a few concrete case studies that demonstrate the power of marketing on organizational success. Begin by sharing case studies from your counterparts in other state councils, so decision makers can identify with these success stories.

Unwrap the entire marketing process in each case, beginning with the fact that marketing goals are designed to support organizational goals. Explain the drivers of each campaign as well as its execution, and highlight the expertise required to shape and implement it successfully. If possible, have hard data on hand to show return on investment.

Make sure to include case studies from a few competitors—fire up some productive fear by showing non-believers how well organizations competing for the same attention and dollars are marketing. You’ll be less likely to get the hows and whats from the marketing folks in these orgs, but effective end products are a great supplement to the in-depth case studies you’ll gather from other councils.

3.  Come to the table with a clear right-now marketing project in mind.

Work with your boss (you need to be a team on this one) to figure out what needs to be done first and what you need (money, human resources and/or training) to make it happen. Be prepared to distribute a brief written recommendation, with budget figures, a timeline and roles and responsibilities. Whatever the request is, do your homework.

I suggest that you propose something concrete and on a finite timeline (not a marketing plan as a first step). Are you launching a new program? Honoring the Council’s 20^th anniversary? Or trying to engage a new group for the first time?

Make sure you and your boss have the skills (or know where to hire them) to succeed. It’s best to pick a project where you’re confident that you can generate results. You want to use this success to motivate confidence and ongoing support and budget for more strategic marketing.

4. As you implement your initial marketing project, keep management and board posted on your progress.

You want them to be comfortable (or at least accepting) with the process (so that they get the budget and timeframe) and maintain their interest in the project. It’s up to you to demonstrate how you can put marketing to work to meet the Council’s goals.

5. Serve as an ongoing marketing mentor to your management and board.

As you and your boss come across great marketing models or ideas that are relevant to Council marketing, share them out (include colleagues here too) with a cover note that frames their value and relevance.

When you participate in marketing training, summarize key content in an email and share it with these folks and/or drip it out in casual conversations. They’ll begin to see you as an expert, while you continue to build their understanding of how marketing is an essential part of doing business.

6. Once you have one or two successful marketing projects under your belt, then it’s time to develop a comprehensive marketing plan, derived from the Council’s goals.

I recommend that you ask other Council marketers to help here or bring in an expert at this point to guide you in creating the plan. This is the critical juncture when experience with multiple nonprofit organizations (or ones just like the council), facing varied marketing challenges is a huge benefit. You have one chance to convince your leadership of the value and process of real marketing. Do it right.

The plan development process itself will raise many questions and issues to be worked through with your management,board members and colleagues. Include everyone in your process to cultivate buy-in and understanding of your focus and efforts.

Tell folks what you’re doing and why right up front (including how your marketing planning work will benefit each one of them), and ask them for their insights as part of your situation analysis. Make sure to keep them posted along the way—ask for feedback as you progress—and ask them (formally) to join your all-org marketing team,  as spokespeople and insight providers.  (Later you’ll want to train them to do so and provide ongoing support.)

At this point, Jessica, you’re ready and set. Now just go!

Let’s get fearless, readers. If you were to try this approach tomorrow, which steps would you be confident in, which would you fear and how would you conquer those fears to move forward? Please share your thoughts here.

The Vermont Community Foundation presents free storytelling workshops across the state in June.  Please register in advance because there is limited seating available.

REGISTER TODAY

Workshop topics and details:

The Art of Storytelling

Rutland: Franklin Conference Center, 1 Scale Avenue

(in partnership with United Way of Rutland County)

June 5, 2013

8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Effective Storytelling and Connecting through Social Media

Craftsbury: Sterling College, 16 Sterling Drive

June 6, 2013

8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Digital Stories to Tell the Nonprofit Story

Norwich: Norwich Congregational Church, 15 Church Street

June 19, 2013

10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

More about Barbara Ganley: Barbara directs Community Expressions, LLC, dedicated to helping communities improve communication, creativity, and collaboration through narrative-making approaches. Previously she taught writing at Middlebury College where she co-founded and directed a leadership development program, pioneered the integration of digital narrative-making in the liberal arts, and mentored faculty in arts-based learning. Learn more about Community Expressions, LLC.

The Violet Jabara Charitable Trust provides support to improve the lives of the people in developing countries of the Middle East and to foster greater understanding of Middle Eastern culture in the United States. The Trust makes grants to organizations which work in developing countries in the Middle East, including Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Palestine (Occupied Territories), Yemen, Egypt, and North Africa. Countries further afield, such as the Gulf countries, Sudan, or Afghanistan, may be considered, but will not be given priority  (Given the precarious political state of many of these countries, and U.S. Government guidelines in regard to global grantmaking, it may not always be possible to work with or in all of these countries.)

Within this geographic focus, the Trust welcomes innovative ideas in the fields of international economic development including, but not limited to, health, environmental issues, peace initiatives, microfinance, social entrepreneurship, and education, as well as all aspects of reproductive health and women’s welfare. The Trust also makes grants to U.S. organizations which promote deeper understanding of Middle East issues and culture in the United States.

U.S. and foreign nonprofit organizations may apply. Letters of inquiry may be submitted at any time.

http://www.jabaratrust.org/

Grant Range: $10,000 – $35,000

Eligibility Requirements:
Women age 18 and older

Application Deadlines:
June 14, 2013
(The 2014 application period will be available in the spring.)

Areas of Interest:
The L’OREAL Women of Worth program honors women in the United States whose volunteer work serves their communities.
Ten Women of Worth honorees will be recognized at an awards event in New York City and L’Oreal Paris will donate $10,000 in each honoree’s name to a charitable organization of her choice.
Additionally, one National Woman of Worth honoree selected by online public votes will receive an additional $25,000 donation from L’Oreal Paris for her cause.
The nominee’s volunteer activities must have occurred in the continental United States and have primarily benefited domestic American needs. To be eligible, the volunteer activity should have lasted for at least six uninterrupted months and should be ongoing.

Award nominees must consent to be nominated, be legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia, and be 18 years of age or older at the time of nomination.

Application Procedures:
Online nomination guidelines are available on the website.

L’OREAL Women of Worth
c/o Points of Light and Hands On Network
600 Means Street, NW
Suite 210
Atlanta, GA
30318

Phone: 404-979-2900
Email: womenofworth@pointsoflight.org 
Url: http://www.womenofworth.com/

The most shameful and best-kept secret in the U.S. military? The epidemic of rape and sexual assault within the ranks. An American female soldier in a combat zone is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire. A culture of privilege and impunity has resulted in few prosecutions, and the systematic isolation of women — and men — who dare report the crimes.

Watch Coming to Independent Lens: The Invisible War on PBS. See more from Independent Lens.

About the Film

The Invisible War is a groundbreaking investigative documentary about one of America’s most shameful and best kept secrets: the epidemic of rape within the U.S. military. The film, a nominee for the 2013 Academy Awards, paints a startling picture of the extent of the problem: Today, a female soldier in combat zones is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire.

The Department of Defense estimates there were a staggering 22,800 violent sex crimes in the military in 2011. Among all active-duty female soldiers, 20 percent are sexually assaulted. Female soldiers age 18 to 21 accounted for more than half of the victims.

From TCC, by Peiyao Chen.

Funders and nonprofits alike cite evaluating the impact of their work as their greatest challenge. So, what’s really getting in the way of nonprofit evaluation capacity? According to Associate Director of Evaluation PeiYao Chen, “The reasons are the usual suspects: limited staff time, insufficient financial resources, and limited staff expertise in evaluation.”  In a recent article for the Minnesota Council on Foundations, Chen discusses how funders and nonprofits can work together to “Build Evaluation Capacity That Sticks.”

Read More.

Not only is WordPress the most popular blogging tool around (powering over 60 million websites and blogs worldwide), it’s also incredibly easy to use. So if you’re looking to start a new blog, or use a new blogging platform for your business that makes publishing simple, WordPress is worth considering. In this quick guide, we help you decipher WordPress options and show you how to get started.

Read More.

From the National Council for Nonprofits.

The National Council of Nonprofits has created this Nonprofit Audit Guide to provide charitable nonprofits with the tools they need to make informed decisions about independent audits. Because state laws vary in the scope of their regulation of charitable nonprofits, this Guide includes a 50-state chart that shows whether there is an audit requirement in each state, and if so, under what conditions.

The Guide will help you understand what independent audits are, and help you prepare your nonprofit for an audit. The Guide will also tell you about the role of the board in the audit process, and shares tips and tools to help your charitable organization manage the audit process — from hiring an auditor and preparing for the audit, to evaluating the audit firm’s work. Additionally, the Guide includes information about special audit requirements that apply to nonprofits that receive funding from the federal government.

Acknowledgement: This Guide was made possible by the First Nonprofit Foundation, whose mission is to further effective risk management practices and the overall development and advancement of nonprofits through unique, creative initiatives, such as this Nonprofit Audit Guide.

Table of Contents

• What is an independent audit? This section will help you understand what an independent audit is, and what it is not, as well as what alternatives to independent audits exist.
  • What is a financial “review”?
  • What is a “compilation”?
• Does your nonprofit need to have an independent audit? Not every charitable nonprofit is required to conduct an independent audit. Some nonprofits, because of the size of their annual budgets, or because of the sources of their funding, are required by state or federal law to conduct an independent audit. In other situations, a charitable nonprofit has a choice whether or not to conduct an independent audit. More…
• State law nonprofit audit requirements: Learn about the audit requirements for charitable nonprofits in your state. This 50-state chart shows which states’ laws require a charitable nonprofit to conduct an independent audit.
• Federal law audit requirements: If your nonprofit receives federal funding, whether directly or through a pass-through entity, it may be required to conduct an independent audit. Learn about the requirements of the Single Audit Act.
• Why a nonprofit might conduct an audit even when the law doesn’t require it.
• Board’s role and audit committees
• Managing an independent audit: a step-by-step approach. This section of the Guide will help you understand what happens before, during, and after the audit, and the roles that staff and board members play in the independent audit process.
  • Step 1: Selecting an audit firm
  • Step 2: Preparing for the audit
  • Step 3: After the audit
• Myth: Audits uncover fraud.
• FAQs
• Glossary
• Additional Resources
• Acknowledgements
  

Disclaimer: The resources in this Guide are offered for informational purposes only. The National Council of Nonprofits recommends consulting a lawyer or accountant who has expertise in accounting rules for charitable nonprofits so that you can be confident that your charitable nonprofit is in compliance with all legal requirements. And, when your organization is looking for trusted information about financial management practices, good governance, and accountability, don’t overlook the resources that membership in your State Association of nonprofits can provide.

Marketing Wisdom From Pop Culture

There’s a lot that movies, YouTube and even infomercials can teach us about effective marketing and storytelling.

• Story-telling Tips from Star Wars
• How to Win the Story Wars
• Love Pitch Perfect? 5 Ways Your your Nonprofit is Like an A Cappella Group
• How to Build Compelling Marketing Stories that Work
• 12 Ways to Hook An Audience in 30 Seconds
• A useful Digital Storytelling Wiki

Prospective board members will learn:

• The basics about Strategic Plans and Development Plans
• How to understand financial statements
• Conflict of Interest laws
• How to ensure the organization’s financial sustainability
• Key fundraising roles for board members
• How to assess whether an organization is the best fit for you
• Tips for the most productive board meetings ever

Two workshops to choose from in June:

Tuesday, June 18 from 4:30pm to 7:30pm

Wednesday, June 26 from 7:30am to 10:30am

Both workshops will be held at the American Cancer Society

2 Commerce Street, Suite 11, Bedford, NH 03110

The cost of a three-hour Essentials for New Board Members workshop is $50 per person, which includes customized take-aways and a light meal. It is suggested that this fee be shared between the participant and his/her employer whose company will benefit by being able to offer well-trained board members to the community.

This investment could make you the most sought-after board prospect in town! You will be able to present yourself with confidence to those nonprofit organizations seeking new board members through Leadership New Hampshire, Stay-Work-Play and the Council on Fundraising.

For more information and to register, contact CONFR Executive Director Pam McDonald at 603-724-6741 or pmcdonald@confr.org.

Wednesday, June 5, 11-11:30 a.m.

Without a well-designed change process and know-how about guiding people through change, how can businesses ever expect to adapt in order to remain competitive? Pose your questions to Merryn Rutledge, a longtime CLI instructor, in this free Webinar offered by CLI and the Vermont Chamber of Commerce. Register Now…

Strong organizations begin with effective governance, management and planning. This toolkit contains several role description templates for attracting and developing your board members. These versions of Vantage Point’s role descriptions can easily be adapted to fit your situation.

Board Toolkit

The numbers aren’t insignificant. According to the BoardSource Nonprofit Governance Index 2012, during the past two years

• 25% of nonprofits dipped into reserves or endowment
• 25% lost revenue due to diminished public funding
• 19% downsized operations or reduced services
• 22% cut staff

Every nonprofit board is making critically important decisions about its organization’s reserves, resources, and overall financial health. What is yours doing to ensure that it has the financial expertise and oversight that it requires?

Who’s Minding the Money? An Investment Guide for Nonprofit Board Members is designed to make it easier for you to wrestle

with the economic world in which we now live. it is written for anyone involved in managing the

financial assets of a nonprofit organization — as well as those who want to be well-versed enough to ask good questions, challenge assumptions, and engage in healthy dialogue about high-stakes financial decisions. It helps ensure that your board has the information and tools it needs to make critical decisions that affect your organization’s financial health, now and in the future.

Members: $36
Nonmembers: $54

The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for April 2013 was 4.0 percent. This represents a decline of one-tenth of a percent from the prior month’s estimate of 4.1 percent. The comparative national average was 7.5 percent which was down one-tenth of a percent from March. April 2013 represents the ninth consecutive month without an increase to the unemployment rate in Vermont. As of the prior month’s data, Vermont’s unemployment rate was the third lowest in the country.

As with March, all the major components in April were down month-to-month and year-over-year, but not as severely. The unemployment rate fell as the number of unemployed fell more precipitously than the drop in the number of employed, relative to the decrease in the labor force.

“The Vermont unemployment rate is the lowest it has been since late 2007, and it has been a slower than normal recovery due to the depth and length of the national recession. We are still very pleased to have the third lowest unemployment rate in the country. Of course, we recognize that Vermont is not immune from future economic downturns, and for this reason, we are continuing our work to promote a skilled and job ready workforce to fill the many job openings posted by Vermont employers. We want to reach all Vermonters who are unemployed or under-employed, as well as new graduates and those who want to make Vermont their home, to help them connect with Vermont employers. The Department of Labor’s 12 regional Career Resource Centers can provide information about which companies are hiring, as well as what job skills will be in demand in the future. Vermont must build a workforce resilient to economic contractions; and education and job training for all workers are keys to this goal”, said Labor Commissioner Annie Noonan.

Governor Shumlin said in a statement: “It is great news that Vermont’s unemployment rate has dropped yet again, and we continue to have the third lowest rate in the nation. The unemployment rate traditionally fluctuates, but this steady decline reflects what I’m hearing from employers as I travel the state – that they are looking for skilled workers to fill their job openings. Vermont’s 4 percent unemployment rate, 3.5 points lower than the national rate, makes clear that Vermont is a great place to live and work.”

The seasonally adjusted Vermont data for April show the Vermont civilian labor force decreased by 600 from the prior month estimates. The number of employed decreased by 50 and the number of unemployed decreased by 550. No over-the-month changes were statistically significant.

April unemployment rates for Vermont’s 17 labor market areas ranged from 2.9 percent in Hartford to 7.3 percent in Newport (note: local labor market area unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted). For comparison, the April unadjusted unemployment rate for Vermont was 4.6 percent which reflects no change from the March level and a decline of five-tenths of a percent from a year ago. (SEE TABLES BELOW)

Total private employment was up slightly for the month, while government was down slightly, resulting in a marginally lower nonfarm total.

Not Seasonally Adjusted

The preliminary ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ jobs estimates for April show a decrease of 3,650 jobs when compared to the revised March numbers. This reported over-the-month change does not include the 400 job increase between the preliminary and the revised March estimates due to the inclusion of more data. The monthly decrease seen in the April numbers was predominately attributable to seasonal decreases in the Leisure & Hospitality sectors. The broader economic trends can be detected by focusing on the over-the-year changes in this data series. As detailed in the preliminary ‘not seasonally adjusted’ April data, Total Private industries have increased by 2.0 percent (4,850 jobs) and Government has increased by 0.6 percent (350 jobs) within the last year.

Seasonally Adjusted

The seasonally adjusted data for April reports a decrease of 100 jobs from the revised March data. As with the ‘not-seasonally-adjusted’ data, this over-the-month change is from the revised March numbers which experienced a 100 job increase from the preliminary estimates. The seasonally adjusted over-the-month changes in April were mixed at the sectorial level. Those with a notable percent decrease include: Construction (-900 jobs or -6.3 percent), Financial Activities (-300 jobs or -2.5 percent) and Manufacturing (-500 jobs or -1.5 percent). Sectors with notable percent gains include: Leisure & Hospitality (700 jobs or 2.1 percent), Professional & Business Services (400 jobs or 1.5 percent) and Trade, Transportation & Utilities (600 jobs or 1.1 percent).

Source: VDL 5.17.2013. The Unemployment and Jobs Report for May is scheduled to be released on Friday, June 21, 2013 at 10 am.

Earlier this spring, the Partnership’s Community-Based Learning and Family-School Partnerships Implementation Teams announced that they were accepting proposals for mini-grants that build community-school connections and involve families in student learning. Through these mini-grants, the Teams are helping students, teachers, and community partners to implement innovative ideas and build a foundation on which more widespread change can grow.

Expanding learning opportunities across the community and giving families a voice in education are two main goals of the Partnership for Change. Brain research reveals that students retain new concepts when they are relevant to the real world. Similarly, research shows that student outcomes improve when families are engaged in the learning process. As a result, enhancing our schools’ connections with families and the community is essential as we work toward an educational system in which all students graduate well prepared for success in today’s world.

Thirteen mini-grant proposals have received funding for activities to take place before June 30, 2013. The approved proposals seek to address a variety of goals, from better supporting the transition from high school to postsecondary life to providing innovative opportunities for teacher learning. The projects engage a wide range of stakeholders, including students, parents, teachers, local colleges, area businesses, and other community partners. These projects support work that is happening in both Winooski and Burlington, as well as work that strengthens the partnership between the two communities.

“There is a wide diversity of interest and motivation to take a step in changing our schools’ culture and methodology,” said Kim Ead, Community-Based Learning Implementation Team Co-Chair and Career Development Coordinator at Winooski High School. “I think [these mini-grants] will expand what teachers, students, and community members see as possible.”

Below is a short description of each project that is being funded by a Partnership for Change mini-grant.

Spring into Arts

From May 20 through May 23, community partners are supporting learning in the arts by showcasing the artwork of WMHS students in downtown Winooski businesses and community centers.

Homework Help at the O’Brien Community Center

In May and June, community members are providing homework support for ELL students at the O’Brien Center. This project is an exciting step toward the implementation of a sustainable, yearlong tutoring program at the O’Brien Center.

Vermont Youth Conservation Corps Internships

Thirty WMHS students are celebrating how food brings communities together through a six-week afterschool program at Vermont Youth Conservation Corps. Participating students will gain real-world skills, build strong relationships, and have the opportunity for further learning through a 12-week farm share.

Peace Jam!

Throughout the month of May, the WHS Peace Jam! Club is conducting participatory action research to report on the club’s experience, interests, and goals. This research will inform the creation of a cross-district Winooski-Burlington Peace Jam! Club.

Burlington-Quebec Partnership

At a two-day conference with the Quebec Association of Teachers of French as a Second Language, a BHS French teacher built relationships with students and French partners abroad. She will share her learning with our local communities and is eager to implement what she learned in the classroom next year.

YES Yoga

In Yoga Basics, a course in the Year End Studies program at BHS, students will be able to take yoga classes at various local studios. Not only will this opportunity introduce students to the health and relaxation benefits of yoga, it will begin to build a connection between the school and Burlington’s yoga community.

ELL Summit

On May 14, community and higher education partners joined secondary educators for a summit on how to bridge the gap between high school and college for ELL students. This conversation is a first step toward building stronger relationships with the postsecondary resources in our community.

Vermont Teacher Internships

Navicate (formerly Linking Learning to Life) is offering teachers the opportunity to participate in credit-bearing summer internships with local businesses and organizations. Through these internships, teachers will develop connections with community partners and return to their classrooms with a new perspective. Learn how to apply.

Opening Doors to Postsecondary Options

Starting in mid-May and continuing through June, ELL parents have the opportunity to participate in informational trips to Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC), Vermont Adult Learning, the Community College of Vermont, and other area resources that can provide students with increased postsecondary opportunities.

Learning Walks

Throughout June, parents, administrators, guidance counselors, teachers, family-school liaisons, community partners, and others are coming together for learning walks that aim to build bridges between Winooski families and schools. To learn more, contact Winooski Family School Partnership Coordinator Anera Foco at afoco@winooski.k12.vt.us.

Family Friendly Progress Report for ELL Students

ELL teachers, multi-lingual liaisons, and Principal Amy Mellencamp are working to develop a new progress report for ELL students at BHS. Based on feedback from New American families and students, the new report will be designed to illustrate how a student’s progress relates to college and career readiness.

“Make a Change” Community Night

On May 21, English classes in the BHS 9th Grade Academy are inviting teachers, families, and community members to celebrate student work for a unit of study entitled “Making a Change.” Students will present work they have completed over the past month to research and address issues of race, gender, sexuality, and class.

Anti-Bullying Play at Milton Middle School

Under the guidance of a local parent and theater expert, a group of 9th-grade students at BHS performed an original play about bullying for middle school students in our community. This experience helped build a connection between BHS and the district’s middle schools as well as a strong partnership with an expert in the community.

Are you committed to the mission and vision of the Partnership for Change? Do you want to get more involved in our work? Apply to join our Steering Committee!

Steering Committee Role Definition

Steering Committee Connection to Implementation Teams and Fellows

Steering Committee Member Application

FUN-raise with Crowdrise
Are you on a mission to save/change the world, but lack the funds necessary to take things to the next level?

Fear not… We are here to help.

Here at the Race To The Top Of Vermont we’ve got your back. We have this amazing, well established event that’s headed into its sixth year and regularly attracts over 1000 participants, spectators and volunteers. And because we’re interested in helping organizations doing good here in our state… We are extending an invitation to all Vermont based non-profits to use The Race To The Top Of Vermont as a fundraising platform.
For those new to fundraising we are offering Crowdrise, a fundraising tool that makes raising money enjoyable, easy and fun, to help you achieve your fundraising goals. If you can spare 5 minutes you too can start your very own fundraiser and still have enough time to check out the latest round of cute kitten pics or see what your friends ate for lunch on Facebook… It’s true.

For those organizations that already have a successful fundraising system in place, feel free to use whatever has been successful in the past. There is no obligation to use Crowdrise, it’s just another option in the fundraising toolkit. We’re not here to reinvent the wheel… We’re here to help.

To get started all you need to do is:

1. Download, fill out and return our Fundraising Application Form

2. Once approved, goto our Crowdrise Page and setup a fundraiser for your organization

3. Start Fun-raising!

Every organization that is approved through our office will receive a spot on our Official Charities Page which includes a logo, and information about your mission and fundraising goals.

You can find out more about fundraising in conjunction with the North Face Race To The Top Of Vermont on our Official Race Website.

Please check it out and do not hesitate to contact us with questions.

Be well, and may all your financial dreams come true!

Civility and Free Expression in a Constitutional Democracy — A National Dialogue

Breakfast and Political Discourse

When: June 1, 2013 8:30 am

Where: Capitol Plaza, Montpelier

Cost: FREE

Learn More

REGISTER HERE

Following a keynote address by Jim Leach, the chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities who just stepped down from that position last week, an excellent panel of distinguished Vermonters will assess the state of civility in today’s Vermont. What is the state of civility in political discourse in Vermont? How does it compare with national politics?

The day will begin with breakfast followed by panelists’ opening statements and audience discussion.

As the attached link makes clear, the panel consists of:

• ·         Moderator: Chris Graff. Chris Graff is vice president of corporate communication at National Life Group. He joined the company in 2006 after 30 years in journalism, most of which was spent working for The Associated Press. For 15 years Graff also hosted Vermont This Week, a public affairs program on Vermont Public Television. He is the author of Dateline Vermont, a history of modern politics in Vermont. He serves as a gubernatorial appointee on the board of the Vermont Disaster Relief Fund, which over-sees relief and recovery work from Tropical Storm Irene. He is a trustee of Vermont College of Fine Arts and was a member of the Council on the Future of Vermont.
• ·         Hon. Jeffrey Amestoy.  Jeff Amestoy is a Fellow at the Center for Public Leadership, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He has lectured and written widely on issues of law and leadership and was an initiator of “The Executive Sessions on State Court Leadership in the 21stCentury”, a Harvard based project to bring together leading scholars and state judicial leaders. He served as Chief Justice of Vermont from 1997-2004 and as Attorney General of Vermont from 1985-1997.
• ·         Paul Burns.  Paul Burns is executive director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group, a position he has held since 2001. VPIRG is Vermont’s largest nonprofit, consumer and environmental advocacy organization. Paul leads a team of advocates and organizers on a range of public interest issues, including clean energy, climate change, consumer protection, toxics use reduction, health care, food safety, and fair elections. Previously, he worked as an attorney, advocate and organizer for PIRGs in New York and Massachusetts. He earned his undergraduate degree from the State University of New York at Oswego, and his law degree from the Syracuse University College of Law.

• ·         Paul Costello.  Paul Costello has served as the Executive Director of the Vermont Council on Rural Development since 2000. VCRD runs an annual Rural Summit, and conducts “Community Visits” that help rural communities build priorities, set action plans, and build connections to resources. It also provides customized facilitation on rural development policy questions at the local, regional and state level. In the last few years VCRD has founded and produced the Vermont Agriculture Viability Council, the Vermont Forest Products Council, the Vermont Council on Culture and Innovation, the Vermont Council on Planning, the Vermont Rural Energy Council and the Council on the Future of Vermont and has led statewide policy discussions around rural telecom and built strategies to support community-based aggregation.

• ·         Paul S. Gillies, Esq.Paul S. Gillies is a partner at the law firm of Tarrant, Gillies, Merriman & Richardson in Montpelier. Paul joined the firm in January of 1993 after 12 years as Deputy Secretary of State for Vermont. Paul’s practice involves most of the usual civil areas of law, including municipal, zoning and land use, property, appellate, and trial work. He has a special fascination for old roads, boundary lines, rights-of-way and other easements, and that special land where history collides with law.

• ·         Emerson Lynn.  Emerson Lynn is the Editor and Publisher of the St. Albans Messenger

Register Today!

The program is presented Vermont Bar Association and is made possible through a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Vermont People With AIDS Coalition seeks a half-time Program Administrator.

We are looking for a socially-conscious individual, who wants to make a difference in the lives of Vermonters living with HIV, to run our programs and grants. 20 hours per week; flexible schedule; convenient Montpelier location.

The ideal candidate would have the following skills:
·       Good communication skills – written and verbal
·       Good computer skills – Word, Excel, QuickBooks
·       Ability to prioritize, to organize tasks, and to be self-motivating
·       Good people skills
·       Ability to see both the big picture and details
·       Bookkeeping/office skills
·       Web/social media experience a plus

What the PWA Coalition does: The Vermont People with AIDS Coalition is an organization that seeks to improve the quality of life for people living with HIV and AIDS through mutual support and empowerment, exchange of information, and advocacy; by being a watchful member of the team of AIDS organizations around the state; and by serving as a unified voice of the HIV+ community.  We are guided by the belief in the importance of inclusiveness in our membership and activities.

Send a letter of interest and resumé by June 3 to vtpwac@sover.net
or to Vermont PWA Coalition, P.O. Box 11, Montpelier, VT 05601.

Financial Futures / Growing Money Program

The Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO) Growing Money Program assists low-to-moderate income Vermonters in Northwest VT Counties improve their financial understanding and skills in order to support household financial stability and opportunities for building assets.

The Financial Educator assists people to increase their financial capability within the context of CVOEO’s mission to serve vulnerable and disadvantaged Vermonters. She/he furthers this mission by teaching financial classes and providing one-on-one financial coaching with a focus on improving spending, banking, credit and savings skills and behaviors. Working with the Financial Futures Program team, this position will also have responsibilities in the areas of marketing, recruitment, and administrative and program support.

Successful candidates, at a minimum, have an Associates degree in Business, Human Services, English, Math or a relevant field, although a Bachelors degree is preferred; excellent communication and people skills; experience with Microsoft Office Suite; and a valid driver’s license and reliable transportation. This 40 hours/week position requires a very self-directed individual with a strong capacity for teamwork. We seek a committed professional who shows a real passion for learning more about their own financial issues as the basis for working with others, and who understands the importance of supporting household financial capability building within the context of CVOEO’s mission. Please send a cover letter explaining your interest and resume by email to: ffjob@cvoeo.org by June 2, 2013.  No phone calls, please.

Funding is now available for Vermont child care centers to support children of preschool age in need of assistance through the Edwards Child Care Scholarship at the Vermont Community Foundation.

With funding from the O.P. and W.E. Edwards Foundation, the Vermont Community Foundation has been providing qualified child care centers with scholarships for underserved families since 1990. The Board of Directors of the Edwards Foundation intends for the scholarship program to benefit children of preschool age who seem to be getting “lost in the cracks” when the day care subsidy is not enough or the child falls just outside of federal or state program eligibility criteria. The fund was established to help those who, as a result of geographic or economic isolation, may face difficulties preparing for elementary school.

Any nonprofit child care center in Vermont with demonstrated participation of children from economically stressed families is eligible to apply. Grants up to $2,000 are awarded. Applications will be accepted through 5:00 p.m. on June 10, 2013. Visit www.vermontcf.org to learn more.

Contact
Carolyn Fox

Vermont Community Foundation

802-388-3355 ext. 285
cfox@vermontcf.org

Review comments from recent participants:

Anne Lezak is a great instructor!

Anne is great at fielding so many different questions and has so much knowledge.

Quite frankly, I don’t see how this class could have been better.

 

Content

This full-day workshop provides concrete, practical guidance for preparing successful grant proposals.  Participants will learn how to organize proposals, find and use pertinent facts and data, and build compelling cases to effectively “sell” your proposal.  We will discuss strategies to fully meet common proposal requirements, the importance of appearance, how to get excellent letters of support, and how to search for grant opportunities. You will learn to avoid common errors that keep many applications from being funded.   Participants are welcome to come with actual proposal ideas; we will draw from these for some small group work. To sign up, you need to be comfortable expressing your ideas in writing.

Workshop Leader

Anne Lezak has extensive experience preparing applications for federal, state and foundation grants.  She has written successful major federal grant applications and numerous smaller proposals, primarily in human services and education.  Ms. Lezak regularly leads grant-writing workshops and courses at the local, state and national levels, including nine training sessions for applicants to major national grant programs sponsored by the federal Center for Mental Health Services.  She also provides agencies with targeted grant-writing consultation.

Cost

$95.00 – Includes materials packet

Space is limited – Please register early
REGISTER HERE: The Science & Art of Grant-Writing, June 26

For more information, contact Anne Lezak, Principal, ADL Consulting, annelezak@gmail.com or 802.775.1695

VICTOR R. SWENSON HUMANITIES EDUCATOR AWARD

Do you know a Vermont teacher who has inspired you and who deserves statewide recognition? Since 2003, the Vermont Humanities Council has honored such teachers with the Victor R. Swenson Humanities Educator Award, which recognizes a Vermont educator in grades 6 through 12 who exemplifies excellence in the teaching of the humanities. VHC seeks nominations for the 2013 award. Nominating letters are due July 1.

The recipient receives a $1,000 check and public recognition at VHC’s  fall conference on November 16 at UVM’s Dudley Davis Center. Last year’s winner was Gary Johnson, who teaches humanities courses at North Country Union High School in Newport. The first recipient of the award was

 Graham Newell of St. Johnsbury Academy in 2003.

The award is named for Victor Swenson, VHC’s first executive director, whose twenty-eight years of service helped nourish the humanities across thestate.

“For more than ten years the Council has been pleased to honor Vermont teachers whose distinguished teaching and passion for their humanities subject area inspire their students in profound ways,” said VHC Executive Director Peter Gilbert. “Such teachers truly change lives. . . .  I hope that former and current students, parents, principals, and others know and have been inspired by such teachers, and that they will nominate that outstanding teacher to receive the Swenson Humanities Educator Award. It’s a wonderful way to let them know what a profound difference they’ve made.”

VHC seeks an educator who inspires his or her students and encourages in them intellectual curiosity and a lifelong love of learning. The teacher should possess extraordinary knowledge, ability, and accomplishment in the teaching of language, literature, history, social studies, or other humanities fields. The educator should exhibit infectious enthusiasm for his or her subject and learning in general, and embody a commitment to the highest standards of achievement, for him or herself and students.

Any community member may make a nomination, including parents, coworkers, current and former students, and school administrators.

The nomination process begins with a letter of nomination due at VHC’s Montpelier office by July 1, 2013. (Individuals may not nominate themselves.) Nominations may be made online atwww.vermonthumanities.org or mailed to Vermont Humanities Council, Victor R. Swenson Humanities Educator Award, 11 Loomis Street, Montpelier, Vermont 05602 or e-mailed to info@vermonthumanities.org. To learn more, visit vermonthumanities.org.

 Letters of nomination should be at least one page, but not more than two. The nomination letter shouldthoroughly describe the accomplishments that qualify the nominee for the award, including his or her passion for teaching, achievements, and professional experience. (Current members of the VHC board and staff and members of the judging committee are not eligible to receive the award.) After reviewing the nominations, the judging committee will seek additional supporting material. The award will be announced in October 2013.

For more information, contact the Vermont Humanities Council at info@vermonthumanities.org, call802.262.2626, or visit vermonthumanities.org.

The Vermont Humanities Council is a private nonprofit working to bring the power and the pleasure of the humanities to all Vermonters—of every background and in every community. The Council strives to makeVermont a state in which every individual reads, participates in public affairs, and continues to learn throughout life.

“I am looking forward to working in the community where I live and with an Agency that supports the home health and service needs of the people of Franklin County,” said Ann.

Ann comes to the Agency with almost twenty years of experience in human resources from the hospitality, retail and manufacturing sectors. She has worked for businesses in both Vermont and Arizona and brings with her a depth of experience that will support all of the Agency employees.

For over forty four years, Franklin County Home Health Agency has provided home health care and hospice to County residents of all ages and incomes. Services include both long and short term care as well as services that help people live independently, such as the Choices for Care, CareNet and Homemaker programs as well as rehabilitation therapies for children and adults. FCHHA also provides childbirth education courses, skilled pediatric nursing and support for new mothers and free support groups for caregivers and those in grief. The Agency also offers flu and foot clinics throughout the year.

For more information about the Agency, please contact Mary Harwood, Community Relations Coordinator, 393-6717,mharwood@fchha.org. Visit our website, www.fchha.org, or our Facebook page for more information on our programs.

This article from BoardSource has insights, tips and tools for board recruitment, including:

Identifying the Need.

Finding the Candidate.

Help  Board Candidates Find You!

and more…Read On!

The Berghof Foundation, based in Germany, supports conflict stakeholders and actors in their efforts to achieve sustainable peace through peace building and conflict transformation.

The Foundation’s 2013 Grant for Innovation in Conflict Transformation focuses on the roles and nonviolent strategies by which young people contribute to constructive conflict transformation. Support will be provided for projects based on research, education, arts, and practice that empower young people to act as agents of conflict transformation and to become actively engaged as change-makers and motivated peace builders.

Proposals that offer creative ideas and innovative approaches in the following areas are of special interest: fostering nonviolent strategies and approaches of youth to resist repression, injustice, or foreign occupation; developing applicable youth-specific approaches to post-war reconciliation, conflict transformation, and peace building; dealing constructively with youth-related violence and its root causes; strengthening youth organizations as bridge-builders (across borders, ethnic barriers, cultures, or social classes); and empowering youth as agents for a culture of peace.

Both organizations and individuals may apply, and there are no geographical restrictions on applicants. Initial applications are due by May 31, 2013.

http://www.berghof-foundation.org/en/grantmaking/call-for-proposals/

Grant Details:
Grants of up to $50,000 are provided.

Eligibility Requirements:
U.S. community and place-based foundations

Application Deadlines:
June 1, 2013
(The 2014 deadline will be available in the spring.)

Areas of Interest:
The Knight Community Information Challenge, an initiative of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, helps U.S. community and place-based foundations have an impact on issues they care about by funding news and information projects.

Launched as traditional media models began to falter, the Challenge encourages local foundations to step in and take a leadership role in ensuring that residents are informed about and engaged in issues important to them.

While the Challenge is an open call for all kinds of community news and information efforts, priority in 2013 will go towards Open Government projects that improve the way people and their governments interact. Knight’s definition of Open Government is broad, and can include projects that range from data transparency to using technology to increase citizen participation.

In 2013, the Challenge will provide matching funds up to $50,000 in seed money to community and place-based foundations. (Open Government projects may be considered for larger grants.)

“Each week, 8,200 Vermonters will request food assistance at food shelves, meals sites, senior centers, shelters, and after-school programs in Vermont,” says Judy Sterner, Director of Communications and Public Affairs of Vermont Foodbank, who was thrilled to be selected and featured in the contest. “Every action, big or small, is important in the fight against hunger.”

For every dollar donated to the Vermont Foodbank, $.92 goes directly to programing. For more information, please go to http://www.vtfoodbank.org.

Nan Bambara also made Green Mountain Academy for Lifelong Learning happy with a $500 donation from JobsInVT.com made in her name.

“I am thrilled to pick GMALL to receive a $500 donation from JobsInVT’s Live, Work, Give 10 year Anniversary campaign,” said Nan. “GMALL is one of our community resources that allows us to never stop learning. Their program offerings are interesting, intellectual, varied and, best of all, available to everyone.”

The Green Mountain Academy for Lifelong Learning encourages intellectual enrichment and personal growth through courses and workshops in art, music, philosophy, theater, literature, history, cooking, bridge, photography and more. They provide accessible, diversified, and high quality educational programs to the public as a community service to all adults living in the Northshire region. For more information, please go to greenmtnacademy.org.

The VT Live Work Give campaign contest allows both individuals and employers to enter and, if chosen in a quarterly drawing, each of the two winners can select one Vermont nonprofit charity to be the recipient of a $500 donation from JobsInVT.com. Contestants can enter once at any time during the contest and will be considered for each drawing thereafter. At the end of the contest, in February 2014, JobsInVT.com will double their donations when they pick a final job seeker and a final employer to select the two final nonprofit recipients, and each nonprofit will receive a $1,000 donation. See contest rules for details.

About JobsInVT
JobsInVT.com, Vermont’s #1 employment resource, has been connecting job seekers and employers to fill real, local, quality jobs within the state of Vermont since February 2003. What initially began as a free service to employers, JobsInVT.com built a steady flow of job seeker traffic and today sees over 34,000 unique visitors per month, lists more than 1,000 real, local Vermont jobs and hosts more than 500 Vermont company profiles on their website. Vermont Employers who wish to post an unlimited number of jobs can do so by subscribing to the service for a flat fee, and nonprofits who wish to post their volunteer positions and a company profile can do so for free. JobsInVT.com works with every type of employer from all regions of the state who wish to post jobs located within Vermont.

For more information on JobsInVT.com’s 10 Year Anniversary Celebration, the VT: Live Work Give campaign or JobsInVT.com in general, please contact Tom Hinman, Director of Sales and Marketing at 1-877-374-1088 x2073 or thinman(at)jobsintheus(dot)com.

Join us for Divas Do Good, a night of comedy to support VWW’s programs on Friday, May 24th, 7:30 PM at FlynnSpace in Burlington.

Divas Do Good is the brainchild of the Vermont Comedy Divas stand-up comedy group which uses humor to give back to local non-profit organizations. Vermont Works for Women is the first beneficiary of the Divas Do Good program.

The Divas were founded by local comedian Josie Leavitt as way to showcase female comics. The Divas are the nation’s only all-female touring comedy troupe. Amy Judd – co-founder of Lewis Creek Builders, VWW Board Member and comedian in her own right – will emcee the evening.

Tickets are available for $20 at the Flynn Center Box Office.

Home Share Now’s Program Manager will start full time in mid July, answering inquiries about home sharing, overseeing enrollment, and carrying out the dynamic process of making home share matches. The candidate will have a Bachelor’s degree plus five years professional experience, understand and love the complexities of people, and be willing to travel the central Vermont service area.

The right person is a team player, willing to learn, able to meet outcome goals, a self-starter, an out of the box thinker, and knows that good things don’t come easy. In addition to being fun and nice, the ideal person is comfortable working with people of all backgrounds and ages, has case management experience, and is at ease with issues of aging and health.

Full job description can be found under News & Updates at Home Share Now’s website. Please email cover letter and resume by June 1, 2013 to Christina Goodwin, Executive Director. cgoodwin@homesharenow.org No walk-ins. ADA/EOE

A Request for Proposals for REV’s 12th Annual Renewable Energy Conference is due May 20. This event, held at the Sheraton Conference Center in Burlington, will take place on October 28 & 29.

Due: May 20, 2013

2013 Vermont Renewable Energy Conference & Expo

Learn more about the conference and the RFP.

Conference Title: “Renewable ENERGY: Community Solutions for Vermont”

Conference Theme: Vermont’s “90% renewables by 2050″ goal requires significant change in how we approach energy, mandating that we build more renewables, upgrade distribution and transmission systems, transfer towards electric vehicles, heat efficient buildings with renewables, and deploy real-time energy consumption through advanced meters while developing storage solutions. How does your business take advantage of this change? What do towns and school facilities need to know in order to save money and energy? What are the latest developments and trends in the renewable industry? How do you grow your small renewable business?

Burlington, VT October 28 & 29, 2013 www.revermont.org

About the Conference:

The 2013 Vermont Renewable Energy Conference and Expo is expanding to include town and city managers, regional planning committees, Vermont businesses, local energy committees and environmentalists, while continuing to bring together key players in the renewable sectors: renewable energy business leaders, system operators, manufacturers, engineers, scientists, policy makers, and regulators. The conference, typically drawing hundreds of attendees and exhibitors, is consistently the largest renewable energy event in Vermont. Highlights include technical workshops and industry presentations on community involvement, policy, regulatory, and financial issues. The event focuses on how efficiency, solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and bio-technologies will provide our total energy needs from power, heating and transportation sectors. This 12th Annual Conference is hosted by Vermont’s renewable energy trade association, Renewable Energy Vermont (REV).

RFP Submissions Due to julie@revermont.org

May 20th, 2013 at 11:59 PM EST.

* * *

Renewable Energy Vermont (REV)

info@revermont.org

(802) 229-0099

www.REVermont.org

Green Mountain Farm-to-School seeks a dynamic, mission-driven educator with strong communication and strategic organizing skills to join our effort to promote the health of Vermont’s children, farms and communities. The primary responsibilities of the Education Director will be to develop, manage, grow, and evaluate GMFTS’ educational programs and provide general operational and administrative support. The Educator Director will lead our Education Team as GMFTS grows to serve schools across northern Vermont in 2013.

A complete job description at www.gmfts.org

TO APPLY: Please submit a resume, cover letter, and writing sample to jobs@gmfts.org. Position open until filled. EOE

Smokey House Center (SHC), a non-profit organization located in Danby, Vermont, invites nominations and applications for the position of its new Executive Director. Today, SHC encompasses 5,000+ acres of conserved forest and farmland in Southern Vermont nestled between the communities of Dorset and Danby. SHC has matured in its 40 years of existence but has remained committed to its long-standing focus on land conservation, agriculture, youth and learning. In addition to managing conserved forest and farmland, SHC’s fundamental purpose is to maintain a working landscape that promotes sustainable agricultural and forestry practices while engaging young people in meaningful educational programming that enables them to develop the skills needed to be self-sufficient and productive members of their communities.

As Smokey House Center emerges from a challenging economic period, it aims to develop an organization with the leadership and financial stability that builds on its rich history. SHC recognizes the natural resources it has in its land, water, timber, and gravel and continues to explore how to best use its working landscape. Currently 4,500 acres are conserved with forest or farm easements, with additional conservation easements set to be negotiated. SHC’s commitment to agriculture has led it to enter into lease agreements with three independent farming ventures for 500-plus acres and the accompanying buildings. SHC is dedicated to working with these famers to provide resources and maintenance to help their ventures thrive. This spring SHC took the first steps to re-introduce education to its operations by establishing a partnership with The Tutorial Center (TTC), a non-profit organization that provides essential, quality educational support to individuals and families in the region.

The next Executive Director will work closely with the Board of Directors to ensure that SHC continues to fulfill its mission to land conservation and agriculture while working with TTC to integrate education back into the working landscape of SHC. A general knowledge of these three areas along with business acumen and entrepreneurial spirit is preferred. One of the first tasks of the Executive Director will be to work with the Board in identifying a 3-Year Strategic and Sustainable Financial Plan and begin its implementation. The Executive Director will also be responsible for managing the working landscape of SHC and overseeing its multiple operations. The Executive Director will be required to develop working relationships with the lessor farmers, TTC, and other partners to understand each of their needs and how and why they will contribute to the mission of SHC. In order to work effectively with SHC’s multiple partners, as well as with the Danby community, the Executive Director will need to be an excellent communicator and negotiator. S/he will also need to be an active participant in the rural Southern Vermont community, celebrating its traditions and successes while empathizing with its struggles. As SHC transitions into its next chapter, the Executive Director will also be required to engage in grant solicitation and fundraising on a local and regional level with the goal to re-establish the annual fund in the next several years.

Smokey House Center has retained the services of Isaacson, Miller, a national executive search firm, to assist in this critical effort. Confidential inquiries, nominations, referrals and resumes with cover letters should be sent in confidence to: David A. Haley, Vice President & Director or Leslie C. McCarthy, Associate, Isaacson, Miller, 263 Summer Street, 7th Floor, Boston, MA 02210, 4799@imsearch.com. Electronic submission of materials is strongly preferred. Smokey House Center is an EEO/AA/ADA employer and proudly values diversity.

Get an overview and analysis of the year in global threat activity with the Symantec 2013 Internet Security Threat Report. This report provides commentary on emerging trends in the dynamic threat landscape, covers the key findings and provides best practice guidelines. Learn about strategies to combat security risks that threaten your organization.
Read the report now.

Measure, Monitor, Report

When: 5/15/13  1:00-2:00pm

Cost: Free

Register Today

This webinar rounds out our strategic planning series with a look at selecting what to measure and how to use, track and report the data. Conducted by Sam Frank of Synthesis Partnership.

Learn more.

Download the State of Grantseeking Spring 2013 Report

A Workshop for Women Leaders to Deepen Your Impact in the World

When: May 16, 2013, 3 to 5pm

Where: Hildene in Manchester

Register Today!

Regardless of whether we have a management role and a big title or a supporting role and lesser title, each of us possesses personal power that supports us to make our way in the world. Yet sometimes we leak our power, our “voice,” unintentionally, and this gets in the way of us having the impact we want in our professional and personal lives.

Join us for an engaging, thought-provoking session on where and how women give up their power, or voice, and how they can reclaim it on an individual, interpersonal and/or community level. Take a break from your day to be a part of a community of learners and leave more energized and with concrete actions to support you going forward.

Kerry Secrest of Watershed Coaching, LLC, is the founder of the Women’s Leadership Circles of Vermont program, a partnership between her company and The Snelling Center. Kerry a leadership coach for individuals and organizations– she focuses on one-one-one manager and executive coaching, team coaching, and leadership training. She is committed to supporting women leaders.  To that end she facilitates national corporate courses for women in leadership, provides individual coaching for professional women, leads an annual women’s retreat, and personally experiences the power of being in the tenth year of her own women’s circle.

Learn More.

YOUNG WOMEN & GIRLS, ESSENTIAL PARTNERS IN GROWING VERMONT’S ECONOMY

…yet they tell us they are ill-equipped and under-prepared,
according to new research by Vermont Works for Women

VWW released a report today at the Vermont State House, revealing that many young women across the state consider themselves ill-equipped and under-prepared for the challenges of school, work, career, economic independence, and adulthood – absolutes that await them in the not-to-distant future.

The report, which incorporates national research and references best practices, is entitled, “ENOUGH SAID – Young Women Talk about School, Work and Becoming Adults: Why We Should Listen and What We Can Do.” It is the result of in-depth interviews, surveys, and listening to more than 210 young women and girls, ages 15-25, from 28 communities, Brattleboro to St. Johnsbury, the majority from families of limited financial means.

The report provides a qualitative snapshot of the current concerns that young women in Vermont hold, which focused in these primary areas:
Lack of practical skills related to personal finance;
Fears around how to live independently;
Relational aggression among female peers;
Few personal allies or networks to provide support;
Minimal exposure to a broad range of careers and professional female role models;
Limited expectations for work that taps into talent and passion.

Learn More

Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA) celebrated its 48^th Anniversary on Monday, April 29, from 5:00 to 8:00 PM at the American Legion Post #67 in Chester. This annual event celebrates the extraordinary efforts of SEVCA’s staff, volunteers, community activists and partner agencies, and the individuals and families we serve in Windham and Windsor counties. It also kicked off May as “National Community Action Month,” which was established to focus attention on the complex problems low-income households face and how Community Action Agencies across the country help low-income people change their lives for the better.

Keynote Speaker Jack Hoffman, Senior Policy Analyst at the Public Assets Institute–discussed Governor Shumlin’s budget proposal, and the potential impact of re-allocations and cuts to programs that serve low-income Vermonters. The former head of the Vermont Press Bureau, Hoffman covered politics and state government in Vermont for 20 years before joining the non-profit think tank. Hoffman pressed the importance of shifting the current budget approach and conversation away from “money first” to “people first”, prioritizing human dignity and equity, and responding to the needs of people during times of deep economic crisis.

A number of awards recognizing this year’s accomplishments by various individuals and organizations were presented during the evening. They included: The “Going Beyond the Call of Duty” awards to staff who have gone the extra mile to achieve excellence in serving SEVCA’s clients ─ this year’s winner was Darline Rhoades, Thrift Store Manager, and SEVCA’s Finance Team (Vern 

Lindamood, Judy Trow, Jane Skubel, and Somsai Bolavong); the “Community Catalyst” awards to those who have demonstrated an ongoing commitment to alleviating the causes and hardships of poverty and improving the quality of life in our communities ─ Glen Cordner,  Andy Majka, and the SMCS Board for establishing the Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) covering the region served by Springfield Hospital and SMCS physician practices; and Rob Schultz and COVER – for his / their ongoing efforts for many years to provide volunteer-based home repairs and renovations to needy residents of the Upper Valley and Windsor County; and “Personal Achievement” awards to clients who have improved their quality of life and made notable strides toward self-sufficiency ─ Weatherization / Emergency Home Repair clients Carl Long and Melody Coutu of Athens, and Family Services client Stephanie Hewitt of White River Junction.

SEVCA is the Community Action Agency created in 1965 to address the needs of low-income residents of Windham andWindsor Counties. It is perhaps best known for its assistance to people experiencing health- or even life-threatening emergencies, through crisis resolution programs that provide financial assistance, case management, service linkage, and advocacy to low-income households facing lack of food or heat, eviction, foreclosure, illness, and other serious emergencies. But beyond providing the “safety net” for households in crisis, SEVCA services also help them stabilize their lives, make their homes safe and energy-efficient, and take steps to become self-reliant. These goals are achieved through such programs as Housing Stabilization, Weatherization, Emergency Home Repair, Food Stamp Outreach, Budget Counseling, Micro Business / Workforce Development, Individual Development (Matched Savings) Accounts, Income Tax Preparation Assistance, “Good Buy” Thrift Stores, Parent Education, and Head Start. Additional information about SEVCA may be obtained from its web site (www.sevca.org).

If you have rural mail delivery, you may hang your food donation from your mailbox. Your postal carrier will pick up your donation during their regular Saturday morning delivery. A drop box will be placed in the lobby of your local post office for the convenience of those who pick up their mail.

Only non-perishable items will be accepted. Items most requested at food shelves are: peanut butter, jelly, tuna, toilet paper, cereals, canned fruits and vegetables, spaghetti sauces, cake and baking mixes and hamburger helper, but any non-perishables will be greatly appreciated.

Please help those with food insecurities in our community by supporting this event. For more information, contact Joy at the United Way office at 888-3252

Are you a federal grant applicant or would-be applicant who’s ever found the process daunting and difficult, no matter how often you’ve applied? You’re not alone! Even though requirements rarely change much year to year, most applicants struggle with the process, regardless of experience. And, simply deciding to apply can require a substantial commitment of time and money and difficult resource allocation decisions.

When: Thursday May 16, 2:00-3:15pm

Where: Audioconference

Sign Up Today!

That’s why we encourage you to join us for this information-packed audioconference that will save your organization time and money while increasing your grantseeking effectiveness. Veteran grantwriter and consultant Glenda O’Neal will draw on 35 years of federal grant experience to share best practices and proven techniques to help you streamline the application process and improve your chances for success.

In this 75-minute event, she will address how to ease the process, avoid common pitfalls that can harm your efforts, and tackle common challenges such as:

• Overcoming difficulties getting information
• Ensuring your project’s budget and available funding are in sync
• Keeping the process on time and on track
• Maximizing your ability to work with a partner
• Minimizing costly modifications
• And, getting the process off the ground on the right foot in the first place

Tuesday May 7 The Vermont Foodbank held a conference at the Sheraton Hotel in Burlington.  The conference was great, CommonGood Vermont was a sponsor and vendor at the event!

This year’s conference was designed to help us discover “what works” to create positive change around complex social issues, and today was filled with ideas and experiences that are sure to move us from inspiration to action. We hope you had a great day, full of new learnings.

The Foodbank is looking forward to continuing the conversations that was started today at the conference. Starting in August, we will hold follow-up sessions for conference attendees to continue the conversation and continue to move forward with plans and take-aways from the conference. We hope you will plan to join us on August 14^th, September 11^th, and October 16^th at 1PM for an 50 minute conference call.

To learn more about these conference calls and to see a full agenda of what will be discussed during each call, please visit the Hunger Action Conference page on our website later this week.

And when you visit the link above, you will see photos, videos, and learning’s from today’s conference. Hear what your colleagues said about their experience and continue the learning!

Spread the word about all the great work your organization is doing in Vermont for Vermonters!

Find out what is happening in your sector, your region and in your community!!

ACLU Vermont: Annual Report 2012

Cathedral Square Corporation: Annual Report 2012

Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity: Annual Report 2012

Green Mountain Farm-to-School:  Annual Report 2012

Homeshare Now: Annual Report 2012

Northwoods Stewardship Center: Annual Report 2012

Salvation Farms: Annual Report 2012

Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA): Annual Report 2012

United Way of Chittenden County: Annual Report 2012

Vermont Public Television: Annual Report 2012

Need a website?   Updating an old website?

This Handbook offers an overview of the website design and development process and information helpful to nonprofit staff during a website project. From the organization’s capabilities to design and from launch to post-launch training, this handbook provides essential steps and real-life examples to guide you in what can sometimes be a confusing process.

View and Download this Handbook for FREE!

2012 has come to close. The annual reports are in the mail, industry standard reports are hitting inboxes, and experts are revealing their New Year predictions on all things nonprofit. As we peruse through the whitepapers, videos, and articles, We’ve noticed one topic dwindling in popularity in the nonprofit world over the course of 2012 – MOBILE.

View and Download this FREE Resource.

Prevent Child Abuse Vermont has two positions to fill in its innovative and comprehensive child sexual abuse prevention department. Both positions involve training adults in child sexual abuse prevention, outreach, evaluation, statewide travel, and administrative details. Bachelor’s in education or human services field required. Master’s preferred. Positions are based in Montpelier:

·         The Early Childhood Sexual Abuse Prevention Coordinator/Trainer will rovide on-site training and support to early care and education providers implementing Care for Kids, an early childhood healthy sexuality and abuse prevention program. Candidate must possess: skills to train staff and parents, and experience and knowledge in early childhood education. Half-time position that may become full-time. July 1^st start.

·         The Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Coordinator/Trainer, will provide training to adults including early care and education providers, parents, case managers, and others who serve children and families. We are looking for someone with experience that includes adult education, social work, and knowledge of child development. Skill serving children and youth with special needs helpful. This is a full-time position. August 1^st start.

Learn more. 

Reliable transportation necessary.

Send cover letter, resume and

3 references to:

PCAV Search, PO Box 829,

Montpelier, VT  05601-0829

Email: pcavt@pcavt.org

Website:  www.pcavt.org     EOE

The Drucker Institute at Claremont Graduate University is accepting applications for the 2013 Peter F. Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation, an annual award that recognizes a nonprofit organization which best demonstrates Peter Drucker’s definition of innovation: “change that creates a new dimension of performance.”

Deadline: July 1, 2013

The award, which includes an unrestricted cash prize of $100,000, recognizes an existing program that has made a difference in the lives of the people it serves and will be granted to the nonprofit organization that best demonstrates innovation.

To be eligible, organizations must be tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

See the Drucker Institute Web site for eligibility and application guidelines.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

Save money and increase productivity. Receive donations of furniture that includes free delivery!

These gift-in-kind donations ensure that perfectly good pieces of furniture and equipment don’t end up in the landfill, and instead find a new home… with you!

Green Standards is a socially and environmentally conscious organization committed to helping non-profit organizations benefit from the goodwill of local companies through the donation of their no-longer-needed assets.

When Green Standards acquires a new project, they determine which items meet our standards for donation, and then they recycle the rest. Since the inception, they have had a 99.6% landfill avoidance rate. After they compile an inventory of all of the donate-able items, they take photos of them and put together a Donation Alert e-mail. This e-mail is sent to the local members of our Charitable Network. Any non-profit organization is able to become a member of our network and there is never any cost to them. Green Standards keeps all projects within the local community because, along with being a socially conscious company, they are an environmentally responsible one as well. They have also found that strengthening the community resonates more with corporations and entices them to donate more often.

Sign-up for the Green Standards Charitable Network!

Learn more.

After the Donation Alert has been sent out, the non-profits are free to place their requests. Once the furniture has been divided up, they ship to the non-profit’s door, for free.

Green Standards is already building popularity in Vermont and has donated to organizations like Vermont College of Fine Arts, Mount St. Joseph Academy, Central Vermont Community Action Council, and much more.

What’s the catch? All they ask from the non-profit is to take some photos with the furniture in its new home, and a quick testimonial to thank the corporate donor. This is a great opportunity for the non-profit to share their story, usually with some high-level executives.

Sign-up for the Green Standards Charitable Network!

Learn more.

The Foundation Center is offering a webinar series starting Tuesday May 7 and running every Tuesday of May.  This is a great opportunity to dig into the sticky area of outcomes and management.  Don’t be frightened away, get help from the experts. It doesn’t matter if you are  a master of frameworks or just a beginner, this series will offer you something new.

A Series of Four Webinars
Learn to shift your nonprofit organization’s focus and communication tactics from project activities to outcomes. This course is offered in partnership with the Center for What Works at the Rensselaerville Institute.
Register Now for the Complete Series and Save Over $80!

or Sign-up for individual webinars…

Want Results? Then You Need to Shift to Outcome Thinking and Management

Outcomes, outcome thinking, outcome management—these are no longer just buzzwords, but they can still make your head spin. This session will help you make sense of it all.

Tuesday, May 7 | Register Now»

Getting Started: Prototyping an Outcome Framework

Start down the road of real learning by crafting and implementing an outcome management prototype.

Tuesday, May 14 | Register Now»

Verifying Results: Finding the Evidence of Program Success

Learn how to define and verify success and how to gather the evidence you need to show you’ve achieved it.

Tuesday, May 21 | Register Now»

Using Data for Improvement (Otherwise There’s No Point in Collecting It!)

Gain insights and tools for using the different types of data generated in an outcome framework.

Tuesday, May 28 | Register Now»

Grant Details:

Eligibility Requirements: K-12 schools and after-school music programs

Application Deadlines: Pre-Qualification Forms: August 1, 2013
(The 2014 deadline will be available in the spring.)

Areas of Interest: The Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation donates instruments to school music programs that lack the resources to keep up with equipment loss due to attrition, depreciation, and wear over time, and to accommodate students on waiting lists or who have to share instruments.

The Foundation currently offers the following program:

Michael Kamen Grant Program: This program helps K-12 school music programs that take place during the regular school day. Schools must have an existing inventory of instruments. Public, private, and charter schools may apply; however, schools must be Title 1 or be able to demonstrate financial need. Music programs must be at least three years old to apply.

Cash grants are not given. Other exclusions include:

• programs outside the United States;
• teacher salaries or music lessons;
• events, concerts, or festivals; or,
• summer camps.

Application Procedures: Pre-Qualification Forms are available on the Foundation’s website.
Primary Contact: Ms. Tricia Steel, Program Director Email: tricia@mhopus.org 

This past year has been full of growth.  Thank you.  We could not have done it without you – our partners, donors and other supporters.  We hope you enjoy reading about our statewide Support And Services at Home (SASH) initiative, our newest community Thayer House in Burlington, the 80th Anniversary of the Ruggles House Foundation and much more in our 2012 Annual Report - Cathedral Square’s 2012 Annual Report. Vermont is on the forefront of change and we are happy to be a part of it with you.

Common Good Vermont invites other nonprofits to send their annual reports to us at coordinator@commongoodvt.org and share what you are doing!

Amy Sample Ward offers the following tips for nonprofits that are just getting started to those interested in fine-tuning their communications outreach.

Sign-up Today for Common Good Vermont’s upcoming Media Maven with Amy Sample Ward on Social Change Anytime, Everywhere on May 23d (in Burlington and webcast!)

Do your homework

Creating social media pages and posting clever content won’t yield results if you don’t first do some homework. Ward says this can be as simple as asking for a show of hands in response to questions at your next constituent meeting.

“You might find, for example, that no one says they use Twitter. Or every single person says they use it,” Ward says. “It’s not enough anymore to know someone’s mailing address. You need to know where they live online.”

An online survey also may be used to learn about who follows you, what they like and – perhaps even more importantly – what they don’t like. If what they don’t like is essential to your mission, find a better way to position and share it.

Like what you are reading?  Come See Amy Sample Ward on LIVE webcast 5/23 in Burlington!

Create personal accounts

If you are completely new to social media, create personal accounts in the platforms your audience likes so you can practice before posting on behalf of your agency.

“Inevitably, you learn some things the hard way in the beginning,” Ward says. “You don’t want a lot of ‘test’ posts, and you need to learn how to ‘like’ pages and communicate with friends. Watch for what hashtags work on Twitter.”

Hashtags connect your Twitter content to other users who are interested in that topic but may not be aware of your role. If you click on terms like #nonprofit or #volunteeer, you will discover a huge audience with common interests.

Know that people who follow your agency’s accounts may follow your personal ones as well, so consider carefully the image you present. It’s one thing to share a recipe or a video of your adorable cat; it’s quite another to engage publicly in disputes or endorse political views inconsistent with your nonprofit’s mission. Consider a social media policy for your agency and, at least initially, limit who may post on its behalf.

Frequency of posting

“Focus on the quality rather than the quantity,” Ward says. “Be responsive to the community.”

Again, review your survey results. Does your audience check posts first thing in the morning before getting down to business? Are you communicating primarily with parents who go online after they’ve put their kids to bed? Just before noon is a great time to reach a broad base of followers who scan postings during their lunch break.

Ward strongly recommends using a platform’s scheduling feature to place messages at key times or throughout the day. “You can spend five minutes setting up multiple messages at one time and schedule them to move when your audience needs it,” she explains.

Have a reliable set of “evergreen” messages on topics that can be posted at any time to keep your feed active. Philanthropy Journal, for example, uses social media to foster registration for our free weekly e-newsletter and to draw readers to nonprofit sector job postings.

Don’t auto-post everything, however, and be especially sensitive if major news breaks. Many organizations were criticized in the wake of the Boston bombings for not suspending cheerful messages, fundraising pitches and other content that suddenly seemed inappropriate.

Use analytics to measure success

Most free social media platforms include built-in analytics to help users gauge the relative success of different types of postings, as well as when they are opened or shared. Paid services also are available.

“A lot of the technology out there is free, but the staff time you invest is not,” Ward says. “Our technology and staffing surveys shows increases each year that organizations are investing in technology. You need to review analytics to make sure that time is spent creating connections, building community and adding value overall.”

Set modest goals in the beginning but increase them over time, Ward says. “Just as you have deliberate goals that come from your mission and strategic plan, you can be doing that as part of your social engagement. Tie everything you do directly to what you’re talking about online.”

Resist judging your success by the number of likes on your page. “It’s the people who comment, who read something and react, that’s important,” Ward says. “If you are posting information that your community finds useful, they will share it with their network. That’s when you know people are excited about what you are doing.”

Create expectations

After you establish a loyal audience, consider engaging them in content that seeks and values their feedback. On a consistent schedule, pose a question or comment – What inspires you to action? Share an example of observed kindness – and solicit replies. Another option is to post a short “snapshot” poll one morning and share the outcomes the next day.

“There is value in creating the expectation, but not if it’s something you can’t hold up,” Ward warns. “It can’t be dependent on a big news story that day. You need a good list of ideas that can be rolled out easily and by anyone in your operation.”

Ward credits @idealist as being especially good in generating user feedback about its resources and for responding to questions and comments. “No one goes into these conversations thinking they will change the world,” she says, “but it does affect perceptions when people know your agency is responsive.”

Ward suggests recruiting a supportive group to help launch such features and ensure replies. After all, if a message is posted in the social media forest and no one sees it, it exists forever as a flop.

“Reach out to that core group of people in your community that are always there,” she suggests. “Let them know, ‘We’re putting up a question today and want to give you a preview.’ It gives them recognition, it ensures that you get a few replies – and it sets the example for the community, which will want to be part of this positive thing.”

Sign-up Today for Media Maven with Amy Sample Ward on Social Change Anytime, Everywhere

1. Post content that demonstrates the utility of the products or services you’re selling in a fun way.
2. Create Facebook-exclusive offers.
3. Keep an eye on your Facebook Insights and adjust accordingly.
4. Understand why people are liking your content.

Get more details. Read More.

The game has expanded considerably from last year, so even if you played, don’t think you have Vermontivate! down cold!  And it’s designed for a wide range of ages and experience levels, so you could be a kid, an adult, a lighbulb-changing virgin or a burlap-wearing back-to-the-lander and we’ll still have something fun and engaging for you!

If you’re curious, but need a little more convincing, check out these short videos that will hopefully inspire, amuse, amaze, and render you utterly incapable of not signing up!

The view that economic growth improves our lives is the opinion of a the vast majority economists and the general public.

But for nearly two hours Wednesday afternoon, those who question the benefits of growth got equal time.

If the idea of four University of Vermont professors debating economic growth sounds sleep inducing – it was dispelled by the informal title of the debate:  “The Rumble in the Econ Jungle”.

Debate – Public – Economists Debate Economic Growth: Good or Bad? – Univ. of Vermont from Alfred Snider on Vimeo.

This was an energetic and entertaining event for the benefit of the crowd of students who came in out of the sunshine to listen.

In one corner were two representatives of the pro-growth, neoclassical school of economics.

“Do you think your parents want you to be worse off than they were?” professor Bill Gibson asked the students during his presentation.

In the other corner, a pair of ecological economists that included Gary Flomenhoft who argued that continued economic growth is good or that it can be sustained.

“If we follow the neoclassical prescription we’d be like bacteria in a dish or scum in a pond. They reproduce until their food supply is gone and then they die,”Flomenhoft said.

His argument is that growth is good for developing nations, but past a point and for countries like ours, it’s not beneficial.

According to Flomenhoft’s debate partner, economics professor John Farley, there’s no correlation between growth and human welfare.  In fact economic growth is actually hurting our quality of life.

“When the economy grows, it doesn’t grow into a void,” Farley told the students.  “ It grows into a finite planet. The economy is a physical system.  It consumes real resources, burns real energy.  Generates real waste.  Endless growth is impossible on a finite planet but also undesirable.”

The counter argument, made by Gibson and  economics professor Art Woolf, is that only through growth can a country have the economic resources necessary to improve our lives.

“Economic growth has been the most effective, indeed, the only way that the scourge of poverty can be eliminated,” argued Woolf. “ It’s growth that has enabled people to afford better sanitation, more and better food and housing and better health outcomes.  The environment is getting better, not worse.”

This may have been a debate among academics, but it was far from an academic debate to one of the events organizers.

UVM Junior Greg Bove studies economics.  He agrees that growth in a world with limited resources is impossible and will ultimately lead to a weaker economy.  That prospect concerns him because someday he wants a job that reflects his values.

“I am a little bit worried,” says Bove. “ When the economy is not strong people do have to sacrifice their own values.”

Bove says what’s needed is a more humanistic approach to the study of economics that includes teaching about alternative business models and calculating social benefits along with profits.  He says those ideas are lacking in the education he’s received.

“How come we’re only taught one form of an economy?” he asks. “ Shouldn’t that first class be the history of economics to show that it is an evolving study?’

Bove has helped organize the series of events that included this week’s debate and culminates Saturday at UVM in a summit called “Owning the New Economy”.

The Vermont New Economy Series

Video Recording of Economic Growth debate

Norwich University’s President Richard W. Schneider announced today that the University has received the largest gift in its 194-year history. At a dinner for the board of trustees on April 25, 2013, COL (IL) JN Pritzker, IL ARNG (Retired), President of the Tawani Foundation, committed $25 million in advance of the University’s bicentennial campaign.

Construction under way in March. Norwich University is undergoing several major construction projects totaling approximately $41 million. Photo Jordan Silverman

“It gives me great joy to support Norwich’s upcoming fundraising campaign with this gift to ensure that it has the facilities and resources to meet every challenge as it begins its third century of service to the nation,” said Pritzker. “There is no other place like Norwich University. This gift demonstrates my dedication to the University, its mission and my faith in its leadership.”

“This gift will transform the University and have an impact on future generations of students and faculty,” Schneider said. “We are all here at Norwich for one purpose: to educate America’s future leaders. We are humbled by this charge and grateful for the support as we prepare to celebrate in 2019 the 200th anniversary of our founding.”

Norwich will publicly launch its bicentennial campaign in October 2014, when it will also announce the campaign’s overall goal.

“This gift is a challenge to current, former and emeriti trustees to collectively match my contribution in order to successfully position the University for the public launch of the campaign in 2014,” Pritzker added.

Colonel Pritzker served on Norwich’s Board of Trustees from 1997-2007, is a trustee emeritus and is the founder of the Pritzker Military Library in Chicago. The historic donation was made through the Tawani Foundation.

Founded by COL (IL) J. N. Pritzker, IL ARNG (Retired), Tawani Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) grant-making organization whose mission is: to enhance the awareness and understanding of the importance of the Citizen Soldier; to preserve unique sites of significance to American and military history; to foster health and wellness projects for improved quality of life; and to honor the service of military personnel, past, present and future, through an awards program that includes the JROTC/ROTC Award for Military Excellence, the William E. Colby Award and the Pritzker Military Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing.

At the recent Nonprofit Technology Conference, I was asked about donor premiums — those return address labels, mugs, etc. given to people in exchange for making a donation.

From the research I’ve seen, premiums can work to boost giving in the short term but also create some problems long term, especially if the premiums are positioned as a quid pro quo for a gift and have limited resonance with the cause. (For more on the deleterious effects of premiums, read the Agitator.) So I’m not a huge fan, because the evidence suggests these trinkets crowd out a deeper, lasting and emotional connection with a cause.

So what approach might be better? The Agitator post has ideas. Here’s another one, from Mercy Corps. This nonprofit chose to surprise donors with a gift tightly aligned with their cause, AFTER the donors gave. It was rooted in social, not market norms. The gift delighted donors without crowding out their emotional connection to Mercy Corps. It’s an example of excellent cultivation.

Annalise Briggs shares the story: “I ordered handmade rams from a beneficiary in Kyrgyzstan named Batina. Batina struggled to feed and support her family, and so Mercy Corps gave her a microcredit loan that allowed her to turn her hobby of sewing into a small business. She can now support her family and send her children to school. I mail the notecard with her story and the below photo and one of the little rams she sews to monthly donors within the first 90 days to help with retention (no ask, no BRE). The response has been overwhelming! We have sustainers writing and calling us all the time to thank us for the wonderful gift. Below is just one of the emails we’ve received:

“Thank you for the little wool ram & note card about Batina. It has greatly personalized my sterile, monthly donation made through my credit card… and to remind me of why I’m making a monthly donation. The world just became a little smaller.”

As you know, it’s so important to connect supporters with the mission and this is so much better than any random premium or swag. It directly relates to the field work we are doing. With our mission of working in other countries around the world, this connection is even more critical.”
This is a great example of what we should do far better in our sector — thank donors and give them a vivid sense of the impact they have on real lives.

This month, Common Good Vermont partners with Davis & Hodgdon Associates, a Vermont based CPA firm specializing in the nonprofit industry, to better identify the financial management priorities of Vermont’s nonprofit organizations. Complete the Survey

The results will pinpoint the specific accounting services that will assist nonprofits as they strive for financial sustainability. Results citing general trends and requirements will be published in May, and no individual organizations will be identified.

Plus: Organizations that complete the survey may choose to enter a drawing in order to win $1,000 in accounting services from Davis & Hogdgon Associates CPA. The Deadline: May 31st.

Enter to Win $1000 in financial services by completing this short survey!

The digital age has profoundly changed the function and future of media, journalism and democracy. In the wake of the dramatic restructuring of how we communicate and define our communities, what are the implications for democracy? How can alternative media awaken, educate and engage the electorate?

Don’t miss this year’s Goddard College Alternative Media Conference.

When: May 18, 2013 9am-5pm

Where: Goddard College, 123 Pitkin Road, Plainfield, VT

Register Today!

You will receive Half Off the current price of the conference by entering the code: AMC2013

Learn More

Join top progressive radio and television talk show host Thom Hartmann; Goddard alumna, former board member, and White House Correspondent and Bureau Chief for the Talk Radio News Service, Ellen Ratner; former President & Chief Executive Officer for the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, Maxie C Jackson III; and Bitch Media’s co-founder and editorial/creative director Andi Zeisler while they, and others, talk about issues of ownership, community and activism in today’s media landscape at the upcoming Alternative Media Conference at the Plainfield, VT campus.

I’m a native Bostonian, born and raised in the city that is now emerging from its greatest modern-day trauma. The streets where the surreal events of mid-April unfolded are familiar territory. I’ve been at the marathon finish line more than once to cheer on runners from around the world as they complete their epic run. One of our TSNE co-workers was locked down in her Watertown home at the center of the action, first sent by police to her basement for safety, later watching SWAT teams out her window as they methodically swept her neighborhood.

So this feels personal. I’m shocked that such a senseless act happened here but I’m also intensely proud of the character my fellow Bostonians showed in response to such horrific events. Despite our differences, in this crisis our common humanity took over. People who are notoriously independent minded and skeptical of authority, who treat routine traffic laws as affronts to personal liberty, made no complaints about the citywide lockdown, “not out of fear but out of civic respect” as one citizen told a Boston Globe reporter.

In times of crisis, one hopes for civic leadership that reflects the best in us, that speaks not to our fears but to our highest values, that reminds us what it means to be part of a true community. In my experience those hopes are not often realized but this week was different. I was moved and inspired by the words of Gov. Deval Patrick and President Obama, first at the interfaith service on Thursday and later, after the capture of the perpetrator on Friday night.

It wasn’t just that they spoke compassionately about the victims or that they effectively marshaled the resources necessary to maintain public safety and capture the evildoers. Important as those things were, what was most remarkable to me was both men’s references to the rule of law, to the values that have made this country unique, a destination of choice for so many immigrants for so many decades. Governor Patrick spoke of “accountability without vengeance”. President Obama reminded us that “the American sprit includes staying true to the unity and diversity that makes us strong” and that we should “take care not to rush to judgment … certainly not about entire groups of people.”

The robust nonprofit sector – here in Massachusetts and all around the country – is also a reflection of those values. We enable, reflect and express the best impulses of the communities we serve, day after day. That’s why I’m honored to be part of our nonprofit community and to lead an organization whose mission is securely grounded in principles of equity and social justice.

When:   June 7 & 8, 2013

Where:  Camp Yavneh, Northwood, NH

Workshops:  Personal Leadership, Group Development, Community Building

Register Today!

WHAT: Join fellow community innovators & activists for a day of skills-sharpening, designed especially for the grassroots! Come celebrate community action, share stories, learn and reflect on different skills that make us successful. We’re excited to be partnering with the New England Environmental Justice Forum this year!

On Friday, join us for delicious dinner, a grassroots reception (cash bar!), story-telling from grassroots groups, and plenty of time to hike, hang out around a campfire, and make awesome friends.

On Saturday, join fellow community innovators & activists for a day of skills-sharpening, designed especially for the grassroots! Full-day workshops are designed in a way to have different exercises and assignments build on each other so once you’re in a track, we ask that you remain there for the day. Click Workshop Tracks on the left for more details.

Make rootSkills fit your needs: come early on Friday to have fun & relax, or come just for Saturday’s inspiring & intensive workshops. Bring other members of your groups to get the most out of all three workshops offered!

WHY: The rootSkills retreat is intended to re-invigorate us all, gives us a chance to reflect on our work, and work on the skills we need to be successful. It is also a great chance to connect with other community leaders, share ideas, and relax in a beautiful New England setting.

WHO: You and up to 5 other members of your group

WHEN: Friday June 7 Dinner & Reception & Saturday June 8 day-long Workshops (click Agenda on the left for more details)

COST: NEGEF heavily subsidizes this event to make it affordable for grassroots volunteer groups. The registration fee is $65 which includes all of the events (Friday dinner, reception, lodging, Saturday breakfast, lunch & workshops) OR $25 for Saturday workshops & lunch. Scholarships are available! Email callan@grassrootsfund.org for more information.

WHERE: Located at Camp Yavneh on 65 acres of woodlands and waterfront in Northwood, NH, the event site is 30 minutes from Concord and Manchester, 90 minutes from Boston and Portland, and just 2 hours from Brattleboro, VT and Springfield, MA. Click Location on the left for more details.

TRAVEL: We want to work with you to make it as easy as possible for you to get to Northwood. We offer travel incentives for folks willing to drive a carpool, and will help you find a ride if you need one.

WHAT TO BRING: Coffee/tea mug, water bottle, and anything else to keep you comfortable in June summer camp weather (hat, sunscreen, eco-friendly bug spray, etc.). For folks staying on Friday night, don’t forget: personal bathroom items, a pillow, sleeping bag, towel, flashlight or head lamp (there is electricity in the buildings but it will be helpful for walking on the paths at night) fleece or sweatshirt (it can get chilly at night).

Office experience in a health care setting desired.

Please send a cover letter and resume to Karen Alcorn, Rutland Free Clinic, 145 State St., Rutland, VT 05701 or email to pksthealthshare@yahoo.com by May 10^th

Mail resume to John Weatherhogg at 8 Court St., Rutland, VT 05701.

Email questions to johnw@sover.net by May 10^th.

The Rutland County Humane Society Auction Is Officially Open!

View Auction Items!

Place Your Bid.
Whether you’re looking for something unique for yourself, searching for a gift for a special someone, or looking to add a little excitement to your life, you’re sure to find something in our auction catalog. Every bid helps support our cause.

Tell Your Friends.
The success of this online auction depends on spreading the word to as many people as possible. We need your help. Please Refer a Friend and encourage them to participate so they don’t miss a single moment of the fun and excitement.

Federal spending for community programs has been cut in recent years as Washington tackles federal deficits. Now, with sequestration and more cuts looming, nonprofits and local governments are increasingly looking to the private
sector for critical program support.

Register Today!

That’s why we invite you to join veteran federal and foundation grants consultant Glenda O’Neal as she presents an information-packed audioconference geared towards organizations and agencies moving their funding emphasis from federal to foundation. You’ll get answers to questions including:

• What support do foundations offer government or government-funded agencies?
• Can I use information in my federal applications to write a foundation proposal?
• Will foundations pay for operating costs?
• How do foundation recordkeeping and reporting requirements compare to federal?
• How do I answer questions about a program that is currently federally funded?
• How does the foundation process compare to the federal?
• And, of course, what’s the best way to begin?

Plus, she will cover many more areas of interest, which will make all the difference in grantseeking success, such as the “5-Step Grantsmanship Process”….How to conduct more effective prospect research…Understanding and making the most of the foundation process…Appropriately responding to “maintenance of effort” queries…Asking for support for program components versus entire programs…And so much more!

Register now for $89 to benefit from this information-packed discussion and get the following:

• Opportunity to email us topics of importance to you that you want to see covered
• Join us for a live Q&A session following the presentation to get live answers to your questions
• Ability to contact our presenter with your questions anytime after the event

Special Offer: Add a 3-month subscription to Private Grants Alert to your order for just $49!

• Click here for quick, secure registration on our website
• Call us at 1-800-666-6380, ext. 2 with your credit card, check or PO information
• Email us at info@cdpublications.com

Accion’s 2012 microTracker study highlights the critical role that U.S. small businesses play in building our economy. Conducted in partnership with the Aspen Institute and California microlender Opportunity Fund, the study takes a rigorous look at microloan outcomes for loans disbursed in 2010. Key findings point to microloan recipients contributing to local economies in three key areas: job creation, business sustainability and growth, and income generation.

View the Report!

Disaster preparedness isn’t just about being ready for a fire or earthquake; it’s a nimble, flexible approach to your organization’s day-to-day programs and operations. A natural disaster may never hit your office, but by adopting certain technologies and strategies, you can deepen your nonprofit’s impact and make your work faster and more efficient. The resources in this toolkit will not only prepare you for a crisis, but also deepen the impact of your nonprofit or charity in times of health.

• Keep your systems backed up with software from TechSoup’s Symantec donation program.
• Find out how we turned the Resilient Organization into a Kindle- and iPad-friendly e-book.
• The Mobile Beacon donation program is offering up to 25 devices to residents in states affected by Hurricane Sandy.
• Disaster preparedness apps can help you stay organized and updated during times of crisis.

Creating a Work Plan Without Starting from Scratch

For many nonprofit communicators, planning more than a few weeks or months at a time is a luxury. You just do the work, and roll with the changes as you go.

But that approach can leave you wondering what you are missing, and if you are doing the right things at the right times. So how can you take the time to create a real work plan without starting from scratch? How do you accept the reality that you will need to keep doing most of what you are doing now, while being more strategic and thoughtful moving forward?

I’m helping a client work through these questions right now, and we’ve come up with a basic framework that I thought might be helpful to others.

1. Identify basic housekeeping or good habit building opportunities that you may have overlooked.

Start by figuring out what basic best practices for your communications channels you may have overlooked while you were growing organically and just doing it. For example, are your email newsletter sign-up forms everywhere they should be? How about links to your Facebook and Twitter profiles? When you update your website or blog, are you in the habit of tagging posts properly so your site is well organized and search engine optimized? Are you communicating regularly internally with your program and development offices? Double check that all those basics are really taken care of and that you have good habits in place to support the fundamentals.

2. Take what you are doing up a notch.

You’ve probably been plugging along just fine with various communications tactics like your newsletter, Facebook, direct mail appeals, etc. and likely working off your intuition about what works and what doesn’t. Now it’s time to get more methodical about collecting data and integrating that into your thinking. You think certain kinds of posts generally do well on your Facebook Page? Go dig into your Insights and see what you find. Same thing for your website and email analytics. What do you see there that could help you take what you already do up a notch or two?

3. Plan to experiment

Now comes the really fun part. With your basic systems in place, and some improvements on what you are already doing, what can you experiment with to really learn something new? Maybe it’s creating a whole different category of content, or the way you share certain types of content (e.g. being more opinionated or funny). Maybe it’s exploring a new social media site, or A/B testing elements on your website landing pages. This is where you can plan to stretch a bit.

Think of it as buying an old house. You aren’t going to tear it down. First, you make sure the basics are covered — the lights, plumbing, heat, etc. all work. Then you spruce up the basic living space, maybe painting and replacing the carpet. Then you can be more creative and experiment with new home accessories or landscaping.

Read online or share this article here

Senior Solutions (Council on Aging) is seeking a case manager for the greater White River Junction, VT area. Successful applicant will be experienced in assessing “fee for service” long term care needs of elders, carrying out short term interventions, and using Microsoft office 2010. Person-centered approach a plus. Strong receptivity to change, and ability to work independently. Bachelor’s degree required.
32 hours/week with full benefits package. Salary commensurate with experience. EOE
For full detailed job description, click here.

To apply, please e-mail cover letter and resume to jhall@seniorsolutionsVT.org and be sure to include “SSU” in the subject line.

Or you may mail resume and cover letter to:
Senior Solutions
Council on Aging for Southeastern VT
Attn: P. Richotte
56 Main Street Suite 202
Springfield, VT 05156

NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE

Join Paul Costello and the Vermont Council on Rural Development on Thursday, May 2nd at 10 am in the Vermont State House (room 11, first floor) to celebrate the Working Lands Enterprise Board’s awards. This celebration marks the first round of awards from last year’s allocation of one million dollars to the Working Lands Enterprise Fund.

The award recipients were chosen from 191 applications for the “Enterprise Investments” area of the Working Lands Enterprise Fund. Twenty grantees will receive close to $220,000 in awards. The award recipients represent the agriculture, forestry and forest products sectors. We can’t wait to find out who they are and hear about their projects – please join us!

Please come to the State House, meet some of the award recipients, thank Governor Shumlin and his team for their strong support for Vermont’s working lands, and take a few moments to speak to your legislators to urge them to ensure that the Governor’s recommendation of $1.5 million goes to the Working Lands Enterprise Fund in FY14, to keep this good work going. The legislators are in the final days, and these decisions are being made now – so your voice will make a difference on this day.

Please Come to the State House:

- May 2, 2013

- 10 am

- Room 11 (first floor)

Plan to stay for a bit to talk with legislators about the importance of the Working Lands Enterprise Fund!

Thank you for your support and action. Your voice has made a difference already – the Working Lands Enterprise Fund is the first new economic development program created in Vermont since the recession began, and we can see that it is having an impact. The Working Lands Coalition continues to believe that we need a “5-by-3″ investment in the coming years to boost the Rural Renaissance and create hundreds of jobs across the state. The celebration on May 2nd is in part a culmination of our efforts so far, and the beginning of the real work that lies ahead. Please join us!

How It’s Changing the Way We Think About the World

Everyone knows that the Internet has changed how businesses operate, governments function, and people live. But a new, less visible technological trend is just as transformative: “big data.” Big data starts with the fact that there is a lot more information floating around these days than ever before, and it is being put to extraordinary new uses. Big data is distinct from the Internet, although the Web makes it much easier to collect and share data. Big data is about more than just communication: the idea is that we can learn from a large body of information things that we could not comprehend when we used only smaller amounts.

In the third century BC, the Library of Alexandria was believed to house the sum of human knowledge. Today, there is enough information in the world to give every person alive 320 times as much of it as historians think was stored in Alexandria’s entire collection — an estimated 1,200 exabytes’ worth. If all this information were placed on CDs and they were stacked up, the CDs would form five separate piles that would all reach to the moon.

This explosion of data is relatively new. As recently as the year 2000, only one-quarter of all the world’s stored information was digital. The rest was preserved on paper, film, and other analog media. But because the amount of digital data expands so quickly — doubling around every three years — that situation was swiftly inverted. Today, less than two percent of all stored information is nondigital.

Given this massive scale, it is tempting to understand big data solely in terms of size. But that would be misleading. Big data is also characterized by the ability to render into data many aspects of the world that have never been quantified before; call it “datafication.” For example, location has been datafied, first with the invention of longitude and latitude, and more recently with GPS satellite systems. Words are treated as data when computers mine centuries’ worth of books. Even friendships and “likes” are datafied, via Facebook.

Often lack of good marketing strategies are significant reasons why a nonprofit has difficulty raising funds. A marketing plan, including brand identification, can be an aid in fundraising efforts. Buying more than one guide?

Get the Plan Now!

Save money with the complete Hours Series Guides to Nonprofit Management, including all 15 guides!

The 2 Hour Marketing Plan is only $5 and is a great way for nonprofits to tackle marketing in a manageable way.

Marketing for nonprofits is simply the communication of the mission to the community and to current and potential clients and donors. Nonprofits can do a better job of marketing their message to their neighborhoods and membership by using some basic marketing strategies. It does not do a lot of good to have great programs and then fail to develop marketing strategies for publicizing them.

This article discusses several easy steps for any nonprofit to develop a marketing plan: assessments and audits (including program evaluations), brand identification, and marketing and publicity strategies.

Vermont Interactive Technologies is offering a gardening workshop series.

Register Today!

Container Gardening:  Thursday 5/9/13 6:00-7:30pm

A container garden or hanging basket is a wonderful way to bring the beauty of ornamental plants, their colors, fragrances, shapes and textures, up close to you. A garden in a container is easy to care for, mobile and can be quickly changed out as the seasons progress.
Join Sabrinajoy Milbury for a fun and inspirational workshop on the joys of container gardening; from the basics and beyond.
Sabrinajoy Milbury owns Just Dancing Gardens & Greenhouse in Williston. She specializes in offering a beautiful, eclectic collection of flowering annuals, herbs, and veggies. She sells gorgeous and unique container gardens and hanging baskets for your home, business or special event.
Hardy Roses for Vermont:  Tuesday 5/14/13 6:00-7:30 pm

Learn about the types of roses that can grow well in Vermont with little care. From old fashioned fragrant beauties to modern shrub roses, I’ll cover a whole range of easy to grow roses. Plus, I’ll talk about organic fertilizing, insects and disease controls for all roses.
Charlie Nardozzi is a nationally recognized garden writer, speaker, radio, and television personality. He has worked for more than 20 years bring-ing expert gardening information to home gardeners through radio, television, talks, on-line, and the printed page. In Vermont he hosts the Vermont Garden Journal on VPR, In the Garden with Sharon Meyer on WCAX-TV, and a call-in Gardening Q/A show on WJOY-AM. He’s author of Vegeta-ble Gardening
For Dummies, Urban Gardening for Dummies, and Northeast Fruit and Vegetable Gardening. He’s a sought after public speaker.
Go to charlienardozzi.com for more information.

Edible Landscaping:  Wednesday 5/22/13 6:00-7:30 pm

Edible landscaping integrates artful, ecologically-inspired landscape design with productive, dynamic, multi-functional plantings. Using the struc-ture of forest ecosystems as a model, edible landscapes take on a layered form, making optimal use of space, while integrating plants that express mutualistic relationships with each other. Join ecological designer Mark Krawczyk of Keyline Vermont LLC to learn about the fundamental principles of edible landscape design, explore a palette of some of the most exciting plants for Vermont edible landscapes, examine some edible landscape case studies in Vermont, and learn how to transition an existing lawn or field into a thriving edible landscape.

Mark Krawczyk juggles a multi-faceted livelihood along the shores of Lake Champlain in Burlington, Vermont. After discovering permaculture design at the University of Vermont in 1999, he spent four years traveling and apprenticing with leaders in the fields of agroforestry and forest gar-dening, natural building, coppice forestry and traditional woodworking. Today, he owns and operates Keyline Vermont LLC, a permaculture and keyline design, consultation and installation business. Mark is currently in the process of co-authoring Coppice Agroforestry – Perennial Silviculture for 21st Century with Dave Jacke.

Choosing and Caring for Trees:  Tuesday 5/28/13 6:00-7:30 pm

In this workshop we will cover the selection and care of trees for the home landscape. Participants will learn how to evaluate a proposed planting site and then choose a tree that is compatible with that site. We will also cover what to look for and what to avoid in selecting a tree from your local nursery. We will then focus on proper planting techniques as well as subsequent care including mulching, watering, fertilization, and the basics of pruning to ensure that your tree thrives in it’s new home.V.J. Comai is owner and manager of the South Forty Nursery, a wholesale nursery in Charlotte that produces shade and flowering trees and decid-uous shrubs. He has been in this role for the past 25 years after earning a BS from the University of Vermont in Community Forestry and Horticul-ture. Since 1988 he has been a member of Green Works, The Vermont Nursery and Landscape Association and currently serves as the associa-tion’s president. He is also a member of the International Society of Arboriculture, (ISA) and is an ISA certified arborist.

Workshop Locations and Registration Information
These interactive workshops will take place at Vermont Interactive Technologies across Vermont including:

Williston, Newport, Middlebury, Montpelier, Middlebury,
Springfield, Johnson, Lyndonville, St Albans
White River Junction, Randolph, Rutland, Brattleboro and Bennington
For directions: www.vitlink.org
Register Today!

View Flier

Cost is $10 for each workshop or all four for only $30
For more information call Michelle at 802-558-9238 or email at mparent4@vitlink.org

The Patrick and Catherine Weldon Donaghue Medical Research Foundation in West Hartford, Connecticut, is accepting Letters of Intent for research projects with the potential to improve the quality of care and life for the elderly in nursing homes or other care facilities.

Through its Another Look: Better Health for Elders in Care Facilities program, the foundation will award grants totaling $450,000 for projects that address a particular problem affecting the elderly in care facilities with data that already exists. (New data collection will not be supported by the program.) Researchers applying for a grant must identify a stakeholder in the care delivery or policy arena with whom they will either consult or collaborate and who is willing to work with the researcher to develop a research product that may be readily used to improve care or quality of life.

Investigators at nonprofit institutions in New England and New York that are considered tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code are eligible to apply. The applicant must demonstrate how his/her research question is important to the stakeholder and propose a rigorous research design. Grantees may use their award to augment funding for a project already funded through another grant.

LOIs must be received no later than May 10, 2013. Upon review, select applicants will be invited to submit full applications, which will be due on July 26, 2013. The grant term begins in January 2014.

See the Donaghue Foundation Web site for eligibility and application guidelines.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

The Wounded Warrior Project is accepting Letters of Interest from nonprofit organizations that provide direct programming and services to the current generation of wounded veterans.

Grants of between $5,000 and $250,000 will be awarded for projects that enhance the lives of injured service members and their families by supporting programs that fall into four service areas: mind, body, economic empowerment, and engagement.

Mind programs should enhance the mental health of wounded service members and help foster their healthy readjustment to civilian life.

Body programs should provide unique sporting, fitness, and wellness activities for warriors and their families. Preference is given to programs that engage warriors over a sustained period of time and facilitate opportunities for leadership and peer mentoring.

Economic empowerment programs should provide programs or services to warriors in the area of employment, higher education, financial literacy, or other opportunities that enhance economic empowerment among wounded veterans and their families.

Engagement programs should empower injured service members by connecting them with their peers and continued opportunities to serve and engage with their larger communities.

Priority will be given to projects that offer innovative programming and unique opportunities, fill service gaps by offering programming or services where demand outpaces supply or services do not currently exist, reach veterans and family members in underserved geographic areas, and foster continued leadership, mentorship, and sense of purpose among injured service members.

To be eligible, nonprofit organizations must be considered tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, be able to submit evidence of their tax exempt status, and be committed to honoring and empowering veterans and service members who have incurred a physical or mental injury, illness, or wound coincident to their military service on or after September 11, 2001, and their families. In addition, the organization must demonstrate a clear plan for warrior, family, or constituent recruitment and provide programs and services at no cost to individuals served.

Letters of Interest must be received no later than June 1, 2013. Upon review, selected organizations will have until July 8, 2013, to submit complete applications.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

Start:

End: May 1, 2013 4:00 pm

Cost: FREE

CRESH’s Small Grants Program provides support to teachers, counselors, and other health care providers to bring evidence-based programs into the real-world so that children and families can directly benefit.

Grants of up to $1,000 are provided for projects that:

• implement a new evidence-based social-emotional health intervention within the applicant’s service setting:
• target social/emotional health for children and families; and,
• evaluate the benefits of the intervention by measuring outcomes for children.

In addition, projects must fall under one of the following program areas:

• Bully Prevention;
• Social Skills;
• Emotional Literacy; or,
• Social and Emotional Learning.

Grants are not provided to/for:

• projects that use non-evidence-based interventions;
• projects conducted outside of the United States;
• projects outside of the specified program areas; or,
• budgets that include travel or food.

Application Procedures:
Application guidelines and forms are available on the CRESH website.

Center for Research in Emotional and Social Health: Small Grants Program
1901 North Harrison Avenue
Suite 200
Cary, NC
27513

Phone: 888-882-3530
Fax: 919-677-0112
Url: http://www.cresh.org/apply-for-grants

Geographic Scope:
National

Type of Organization: Other Sources

Total Annual Giving:  Not Available

Grant Range: $100 – $1,000

Eligibility Requirements:
Teachers, counselors, and other health care providers

Application Deadlines:
May 10, 2013
(The 2014 deadline will be available in the spring.)

Join us & get a handle on conflict!
If you must manage conflict in your work, are exploring mediation as a possible future vocation, or want to learn about mediation as a resource for clients, this workshop in basic mediation techniques is for you. A mediator guides difficult discussions, encouraging people to find a satisfactory outcome. Mediation can help resolve disputes among co-workers, neighbors, landlords and tenants, business partners, or business owners and clients.
Participants in this dynamic three & a half day workshop learn and practice skills in:

• Identifying and framing issues,
• Listening for interests,
• Controlling the process,
• Helping disputants solve problems,
• Finalizing agreements,
• Handling special problems in mediation.

This workshop has been approved by the Vermont Board of Mandatory Continuing Legal Education for 26.25 hours. Tuition for this course can be applied towards the Mediation Certificate Program or Master’s in Mediation Program.
Cost & Schedule

•  May 15-18, 2013
• $945
• (Discounted tuition—$756 for participants employed in a 501c3 nonprofit organization with 50 employees or less.)

For more information, please visit our website www.champlain.edu/mediation or contact
Denise Smith at: dsmith@champlain.edu or 802-865-5735.

Vermont Health Connect is conducing public information forums across the state over the next month. Find a location near you!

If you can’t make the forum but you want more information, you can go the Vermont Health Connect Website to learn more.

Public Forum in Springfield 

You’re invited to this community event, facilitated by the Agency of Administration Health Reform staff, to learn about Vermont Health Connect.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013: 6:30 to 8:00 pm
First Congregational Church, 77 Main Street, Springfield, VT 05156
Click HERE to learn more.

Public Forum in Manchester
Join a community forum with Robin Lunge, the Agency of Administration’s Director of Health Reform, to learn about upcoming health reforms.
Tuesday, April 30, 2013: 6:30 to 8:00 pm
Mark Skinner Library, 48 West Rd., Manchester, VT 05254
Click HERE to learn more.

Medicaid & Exchange Advisory Board (MEAB) Monthly Meeting  
The MEAB was created to advise and inform the Department of Vermont Health Access on policy development and program administration for the state’s Medicaid-funded programs and Vermont Health Connect. This meeting is open to the public.
Monday, May 6, 2013: 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
10 East Allen Street, Winooski, VT (Community Conference Room)
Click HERE to learn more about the MEAB.

Public Forum in Grand Isle
You’re invited to learn about upcoming health reforms with Robin Lunge, the Agency of Administration’s Director of Health Reform.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013: 6:30 to 8:00 pm
Grand Isle Elementary School, Grand Isle, VT
Click HERE to learn more.

Public Forum in Rutland
Join Robin Lunge, the Agency of Administration’s Director of Health Reform, to learn about Vermont Health Connect.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013: 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm
Rutland Free Library (Fox Room), 10 Court Street, Rutland, VT 05701
Click HERE to learn more.

Small Business Forum in Montpelier
Join Deputy Commissioner Lindsey Tucker and the Vermont Chamber of Commerce to learn what Vermont Health Connect means for Vermont’s small businesses.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013: 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm
Kellogg Hubbard Library, 135 Main Street, Montpelier, VT 05602
Click HERE to learn more and register for the event.

Visit the VermontHealthConnect.gov Events Calendar to see all upcoming events.

The winner, Nicole Krotinger of Hannah’s House has received her laptop!

Nicole is a therapist at Hannah’s House, a place for mental health services for the whole family for the Mad River Valley area.  

Nicole’s Vision:· “I believe that people are inherently good, and that therapy can help people to realize their own abilities, to accept themselves, and to become self-actualized.·As a therapist I see it is my role to help a person young or old become more in charge of who they are and who they want to be. Through a trusting relationship, one can begin to assert themselves, and feel independent and in charge of who they are and their choices in life. Ultimately, this feeling is strengthening, and will help to guide change and understanding in their relationships with others as well.”

Nicole’s practice incorporates elemental ideas from· Narrative Therapy,·Family Systems or Bowen Theory, Play Therapy and Psychodynamic theory.  She is currently taking new clients, and can accept insurance or sliding scale for payment.

We would like to thank Pine Computers for donating the laptop and all the participants in this years conference for making it a success!

Franklin County Court Diversion and Community Justice Programs is hiring an Executive Director!
Do you have management experience in the nonprofit human services sector?
Do you have a passion for community-based restorative practices?

If so, put your skills and experience to work with this successful and dynamic nonprofit agency in St. Albans, Vermont. As leader of a small skilled and successful staff, you will be responsible for fund raising, development of community relations, grant writing and program development in this full time position. The ideal candidate will possess strong communication skills and a facility for developing relationships with participants, donors, legislators, grantors, and community partners; enjoy a fast-paced collaborative and creative work environment; and have a personal embrace of a restorative justice philosophy.

Preferred qualifications are a graduate degree in human services or a related field and at least four years managing in a nonprofit organization, including demonstrated experience in working with a board of directors, as well as in planning, personnel, fiscal management, and fund raising.

Apply by sending a cover letter and resume stating salary expectations and also including contact information for three professional references (no letters of recommendation or reference please) to the following address: Hiring Committee, Franklin County Court Diversion, 5 Lemnah Drive, St. Albans, VT 05478

No calls or drop-ins, please.

Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.
FCCD/CJP, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. More information about Vermont Court Diversion is available at http://vtcourtdiversion.org

Program Director-  Master of Science in Leadership

The MSL degree may be completed in less than two years and is substantially online. We are seeking a director with demonstrated academic and administrative leadership; experience in a leadership position in the private or public sectors is highly desirable. We are seeking a person with a desire to build upon and improve an established and respected leadership program. This is a full-time, non-tenure track position with limited graduate teaching responsibilities and faculty rank contingent upon experience.

Please visit our website: www.norwich.edu/jobs for further information and how to apply for these and other great jobs.

Norwich University is an Equal Opportunity Employer offering a comprehensive benefit package that includes medical, dental, group life and long term disability insurance, flexible-spending accounts for health and dependent care, retirement annuity plan and tuition scholarships for eligible employees and their family members.

Outright Vermont, VT’s only queer youth serving organization, is hiring a part time Director of Events and Marketing. We’re looking for someone to:

• Lead our annual fundraising events (including the always hilarious Fire Truck Pull, the fabulous Outright Awards, and more)
• Manage our year end campaign
• Lead our marketing efforts (including online and print materials)

The ideal candidate will be knowledgeable about the queer community, have some solid event planning experience, some experience fundraising in the nonprofit world, and excellent communication skills. This position provides an excellent opportunity to think creatively, use humor, and support the mission of Outright (to build safe, healthy, and supportive environments for queer youth, ages 13-22). More details available via our website: outrightvt.org

Outright Vermont is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Please email cover letter and resume by responding to this post or mail to Outright VT, PO Box 5235, Burlington, VT 05402. Resumes will be accepted until May 13th.

Responsibilities: Central Vermont Humane Society’s Major Donor Coordinator works closely with the Executive Director to develop and implement strategy for cultivating individual major gifts to meet short and long-term goals of the organization. The primary objective of the Major Donor Coordinator is to develop long-term relationships built on a firm understanding of donors’ interests, passions and values.

Qualifications: The ideal candidate will have previously demonstrated success in major donor relationships, solicitations and planned giving and a proven record developing significant gifts from high net worth individuals. Must have outstanding interpersonal and organizational skills; strong written and verbal communication; computer skills, including the ability to analyze data and produce useful reports; and the ability to maintain confidentiality. Working knowledge of constituent management systems is a must.

To Apply: Interested candidates must email a cover letter, resume and contact information for three professional references to director@cvhumane.com

CVHS’s Adoption Center is located in East Montpelier, VT.
Position requires work at home and extensive remote activities
Compensation: salary commensurate with experience
CVHS is a non-profit equal opportunity employer
For more information about CVHS, please visit: www.cvhumane.com

If you have a tool that you can’t work without, please email us at coordinator@commongoodvt.org. We’d love to hear what Vermont’s nonprofits are using to get their work done!

Prezi

Prezi is a presentation tool that helps you organize and share your ideas. This tool is both on and offline and is free. This is Powerpoint 2.0, the newew, flashier version of those boring presentations we’ve all sat through.  Prezi allows you to put movement and flow to your presentation, making it more enjoyable, interesting and relevant for your viewers.

• —Create prezis online or work offline with Prezi Desktop
• —Start with 100 MB cloud storage
• —Present online or off
• —Free iPad app
• —Collaborate with Prezi Meeting

Workflowy

Organize your brain.  This is an interactive list creator that allows you add, edit and tag everything you do and think about. For busy nonprofit leaders that have to wear many hats, this program allows you to make those to-do lists but even more usefulness, information and ease. The reviews for this are amazing and it is really easy to use with videos available to show you how to do everything. And of course there is an app for that!

CauseCast for Nonprofits

Offers fundraising support, volunteer management and direct connections between nonprofits and businesses.  They supply non-profits with promotion, fundraising tools, and an extensive resource library. That pretty much takes care of the gamut of a non-profit’s purpose, well besides helping people. Out of the 1,589 nonprofits they serve.

Doodle

Doodle is the scheduling solution that can free you from the tedious email threads that clutter up your inbox with eight different people conferring on their respective availability. Identify a few potential windows for the call or meeting you’re trying to schedule, and ask everyone who needs to be there to identify all the times that could work for them (not just their preferred windows). Doodle makes it easy to spot the time slot that works for all of them, or as many as possible. Reduce the stress of scheduling with other busy nonprofit leaders and focus more on the content of the meeting.

Hootsuite

It’s a social media “dashboard” that allows you to monitor and post to all your networks simultaneously. This  is a huge timesaver. When you’ve written something new, or read something you want to share on my networks, you can let everyone know with a single entry, rather than having to log on to each network separately. You can use it to manage my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+ accounts, and you can also use it with Tumblr, WordPress, and Foursquare. It’s free for up to 5 social profiles.

MONTPELIER –

The selected districts and schools are being honored for their exemplary efforts to reduce environmental impact and utility costs, promote better health, and ensure effective environmental education, including civics and green career pathways.

“These schools serve as a model for how small schools can do big things to protect the environment, use less fossil fuel, and engage students in achieving important environmental goals,” Gov. Shumlin said.

“Students are a large part of the solution, they are full of creative ideas and energy,” said Vilaseca. “Our schools have been successful at collaborating and partnering within their communities and throughout Vermont in making their schools more environmentally friendly, and now they are being recognized nationally for the great work they are doing.”

Reading Elementary School students presented at the Vermont State Science Teachers Conference and won the Governor’s Award citing their commonsense solutions to eradicate poison ivy on the school’s playscape — using locally-owned goats to eat the plant. Staff and students at the Reading school partnered with Spring Brook Farm in Reading, Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Parks in Woodstock and Shelburne Farms in Shelburne on the project.

“Our small community school in Reading makes huge efforts to lead by example,” said Dr. Lou Lafasciano, Principal of Reading Elementary School. “This GRS award is yet another testament to all those hard-working students, staff, community members and local partners who are setting an example for the future through the rural sustainability model we are establishing today!”

Shelburne Community School provided numerous opportunities to observe a Green Ribbon School in action. The Staff Wellness Committee successfully promoted walking/biking/ hiking to school as a viable option both impacting health through fitness and lessening the impact of buses and cars. Parents and students maintained flower and vegetable gardens – one for each grade level team. The school actively partnered with Shelburne Farms, Four Winds, New Village Farms, and their parent directed FEED program (table to farm school-wide composting program).

“A fundamental part of the mission of Shelburne Community School is to develop citizens who live responsibly and respectively, and contribute positively to their community,” said Allan Miller, Co-Principal of Shelburne Community School.

“We are so proud of each of our students, staff, and volunteers because this Green Ribbon School recognition has grown from their persistent commitment to this mission and acting it out at the school on a daily basis,” said Pati Beaumont, Co-Principal of Shelburne Community School.

St. Albans City Elementary retooled their school, a building that was constructed in the 1960’s. They insulated the windows with thermal shades, converted to energy efficient lighting, re-roofed (with added insulation) the entire building, and installed up-to-date electrical, heating and cooling systems that can be controlled by their Building Supervisor on his laptop. As a result, the environmental impact of the school is smaller and the building more comfortable to be in. Students have been an important part of the school’s transformation. Students suggested a compost plan that led to a school-wide program that sends 100 percent of compostable food to a local organic farmer; students have been working with IBM engineers and the local Solid Waste District to ‘invent’ a method of compacting school milk cartons efficiently; and there is a school-wide Energy Committee, run by students that meets on a regular basis with experts from Energy Efficiency Vermont to review staff and student practices and behaviors.

“Our school, with the energy of our students and staff and the support of our community, has worked on becoming greener and healthier for nearly five years,” said Joan Cavallo, Principal of St. Albans City Elementary. “It will remain a focus for us. This award is a wonderful acknowledgement of the efforts of an entire school community.”

The list of Green Ribbon school selectees includes 54 public schools and 10 private schools.  The public schools include seven charter, five magnet and four career and technical schools.  The schools serve various grade levels, including 40 elementary, 23 middle and 19 high schools are among them, with several schools having various K-12 configurations, from 29 states and the District of Columbia.  Over half of the 2013 honorees serve a student body more than 40 percent of which is eligible for free and reduced price lunch.  The list of all selected schools and districts, as well as their nomination packages, can be found here.  A report with highlights on the 78 honorees can be found here.

“Today’s honorees are modeling a comprehensive approach to being green,” said Secretary Duncan in a release. “They are demonstrating ways schools can simultaneously cut costs; improve health, performance and equity; and provide an education geared toward the jobs of the future. In fact, the selected districts are saving millions of dollars as a result of their greening efforts. And the great thing is that the resources these honorees are using are available for free to all schools.”

Learn more about Vermont’s GRS program here: http://bit.ly/WZhhpb.

I’ve been struck by census data on rural communities that shows that some rural towns across the country are rapidly urbanizing and others are losing population, especially young people. Vermont is ranked as one of the two oldest states in the nation and one of the two most rural states in the country. The two go together. If you ranked Vermont against rural parts of western states which have rapidly urbanized over the last 20 years, however, you’d find that Vermont is actually doing much better than many other rural parts of the country in attracting and retaining youth.

As a state we’re a net exporter of young adults, and there are towns 40% below national averages in the number of young people between the ages of 20 and 35. This marks a devastating loss of the energy, innovation and initiative that come from youth.

But Vermont is a net importer of college-aged youth, and Vermont towns have an enviable vitality compared to small towns in many parts of the country. There’s a strong sense of community, neighborliness and innovation that makes rural Vermont a dynamic place to live, work and raise a family.

Everywhere VCRD goes to manage town-wide conversations or to convene public policy discussions, these issues are front and center for everyone thinking hard about their town or the future of Vermont. Manchester this week set priority goals for the future of their town: they will work to incubate new young businesses, advance biking and outdoor recreation, reopen the town’s riverfront as a dynamic and beautiful place for stimulating activities, and attract higher education opportunities. There is a fundamental dedication to the future in all these directions that intelligently and systematically will make the town a vital place for the next generation. Similar conversations are happening in Cabot, Poultney, Bennington and Swanton…probably they are happening at one level or another in every town in the state.

I have to say that with all the challenges in the world, I’m convinced we have a creative edge and a down home power of community that will keep Vermont strong and green for the future.

In Manchester they talk about becoming even more authentic to their place and as a gateway to Vermont. We have the capacity to deepen the Vermont identity and to renew it with a new generation of creative Vermonters.

When: Wednesday, April 23rd 3:oo-4:00pm

Register Today

What is SEO and what does it mean for your organization?
SEO or Search Engine Optimization is simply the process of getting your website found more easily on the internet, and with more traffic from search engines you have an opportunity to get more clients, members, supporters, partners, volunteers and donors.

While SEO can be a powerful force, many nonprofits find it confusing and complicated. As you start to research the subject you may get overwhelmed with differing opinions and complicated technical explanations. Don’t fear, we are here to help.

Join us for this jam packed webinar where we break down the basics of SEO and cover:

- Search engines – how they really work and what they really want
- Keywords – what they are, why they are important and how to use them in your campaigns
- On-page optimization – how to build your webpages the right way
- Off-page optimization – the right way to use link building to show your authority
- How to stay on Google’s good side and avoid getting “Google slapped”

Takeaways:

• A better understanding of exactly what SEO is and how it applies to your nonprofit
• Basic understanding of search engines, keywords, on-page and off-page optimization
• An SEO action plan that you can start using today

Register Today

Richard Dietz began his nonprofit career when he was the director of a mentoring organization in college. He has spent the last 20 years working both in and with a wide variety of nonprofit, political, and government organizations as well as technology companies focused on the nonprofit sector, including Convio, KIMBIA and Sage Nonprofit Solutions.

It is this unique background and experience – working directly in nonprofit organizations AND working on the technology side – that allows him to better understand and assist nonprofit organizations with their technology needs.

Richard holds a M.S.W. from the University of California – Berkeley as well as a B.A. in Political Science from UCLA.

Talking about risk is essential to fortifying your nonprofit’s reputation and mission, and providing a safe environment for the people who serve and those who rely on you for services. Yet starting a conversation about “what could go wrong” isn’t always easy to do. During a recent conversation with a client, we agreed that a candid conversation about downside risks can be comforting to some, but frightening to others. Leaders who find comfort in the conversation may believe that you can’t take action in the face of risk without first acknowledging your fears and concerns. Candid conversations about risk lead to action. Leaders who are put-off by risk talk may believe that acknowledging the potential for failure, loss, harm or injury could “jinx” a heretofore perfect safety record. Yet when team leaders aren’t talking openly about risk, that doesn’t mean they aren’t talking. Ignoring the downside risks you face is a sure-fire guarantee that you’ll be surprised and unprepared when a risk event or crisis occurs.

Chances are you have both types of leaders in your nonprofit. Consider the following tips to turn unproductive jive talkin’ into productive risk talk.

• Look on the bright side – Don’t limit conversations about risk to “what could go wrong?” Engage your team in a discussion about the potential for better-than-hoped-for outcomes when you take risk.
• Separate apples and oranges – One of the challenges in risk talk is agreeing on what we mean by the word “risk.” Although most of us think of a “risk” as an event with the potential to affect objectives (e.g., a decision by a funder to discontinue support), others see risk as an underlying condition (e.g., the nonprofit’s reliance on one or two institutional funders) or a potential outcome (e.g., the need to cut services after a grant is non-renewed).
• Invite participants from every floor – The perspective from the leader in the corner office on the top floor is bound to be different from the perspective of the leader working out of a basement office, or the staff member serving clients from a field office in a far-off country. Limiting participation on the risk management team to senior managers is a sure-fire way to overlook key operational and strategic risks. An added benefit of engaging a diverse team in your risk talk is that you’re creating a go-to team to disseminate the team’s findings and engage support.
• Send sacred cows out to pasture – In every nonprofit there are topics that make leaders uneasy. Perhaps it’s a rumor about a rift between the CEO and board. Or maybe it’s a concern that spending patterns aren’t consistent with donor impressions of how the nonprofit spends the money it raises online or through direct mail appeals. Get your risk talk off to a hopeful start by agreeing that sacred cows have no place in the conversation.
• Embrace the newcomer and the curmudgeon – Most nonprofits are blessed to have newcomers and many also have a curmudgeon in the ranks—someone who sees the dark cloud behind every rainbow, or the potential lawsuit looming in the shadow of a cool product or service idea. These leaders are valuable participants in a risk talk because they don’t carry our standard institutional philosophy of “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” Questions from newcomers force us to re-examine the why and how of everyday life in a nonprofit, and feedback from a curmudgeon demands that we put aside our optimism bias and get real.

The subject of “risk talk” is one that comes up in everything we do. If you’re ready to start talking, check out a few resources from the Center that may be helpful:

Risk Communication – Webinar

7 Risk Questions for the Board – Article

Fiscal Oversight, Risk and the Nonprofit Board – Webinar

When: May 14, 7:30-5:30pm

Where: UVM

Register Today!

Details:

Morning Keynote Address:

Judy Wicks – Author, “Good Morning, Beautiful Business”; Founder, White Dog Café, Co-founder, Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE)

Morning Workshop Options:

• Just Good Business: Family Friendly Work Policies
• Utilizing Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to Develop Environmentally and Socially Responsible Products and Energy Solutions
• Show Me the Money: The New World of Capital Raising in the JOBS Act Environment
• Bright Ideas:  Alternative Marketing Strategies that Rise Above the Clutter

Afternoon Keynote Address:

Bart Houlahan – Co-founder, B-Lab; Former CFO, COO & President, AND 1

Afternoon Workshop Options:

• Health Insurance Evolution: Understanding and Preparing for Changes to our Healthcare System
• Metrics that Matter: The B Impact Assessment Tool for Measuring and Monitoring SR Performance
• Walking the Talk: Next Generation “Green” Employee Benefits
• Big Ideas: Key Features and Building Blocks of the “New Economy”
• Into the Cloud: Digital Resilience & Security Training for Small Business

Late Afternoon Workshop Options:

• Strategic Insights: Demystifying the Vermont Brand
• Workplace Design: Creating Workplaces that balance Collaboration, Concentration, Teamwork and Privacy
• Report from the Golden Dome: VBSR Public Policy Update
• Emerging Trends:  Warming Up to Fossil Fuel Divestment
• Keeping it Real:  Sustaining Values and Mission During Organizational Transition

The Vermont New Economy Series

When: Saturday, April 27 8:00am- 6:00pm

Register Here

Location: UVM, Check-in at Billing’s Lecture Hall

Directions

Conference Schedule:

8:00-9:00     – Breakfast & Registration

9:00-10:10   – Opening Keynote

10:20-12:10 – Morning Sessions: Envisioning

-Envisioning the Cooperative Economy

-Best Practices in Divestment: Solidifying a Student Network

-Aligning Values: Financing the New Economy

12:10-1:35   – Lunch

1:45-3:35     – Afternoon Sessions: Acting

-Building Vermont’s Cooperative Economy

-Investing a New Economy: Activating Portfolios for Postive Change and Postive Returns

-Acting on our Values: Financing the New Economy

-Vermont’s Energy Choices: Old Dirty Problems, Clean Energy Solutions

3:45-4:50     – Closing Keynote: Driving towards Vermont’s New Economy

5:00-6:00     – Springboards + Snacks!

]]> http://blog.commongoodvt.org/2013/04/conference-owning-the-new-economy-427/feed/ 0 http://blog.commongoodvt.org/2013/04/6-inexpensive-employee-benefits/ http://blog.commongoodvt.org/2013/04/6-inexpensive-employee-benefits/#comments Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:55:09 +0000 CommonGood VT http://blog.commongoodvt.org/?p=18184 Originally posted on The Nonprofit Times on 4/16/13. Employee benefits are a necessary but expensive part of any nonprofit. Depending on what you offer your workers, these benefits can add a hefty amount to base salary you pay them. These costs make it essential for you to get the most from the dollars you spend. [...]]]> Originally posted on The Nonprofit Times on 4/16/13.

Employee benefits are a necessary but expensive part of any nonprofit. Depending on what you offer your workers, these benefits can add a hefty amount to base salary you pay them.

These costs make it essential for you to get the most from the dollars you spend. Yet the desire to save can lead to costly errors that can get your organization in financial trouble. The most common mistakes are absorbing the entire cost of benefits, covering non-employees, not telling workers the cost of benefits, and providing unnecessary benefits.

Thankfully, there are plenty of benefits you can provide your employees that are inexpensive, effective, and meet legal requirements. Here are just a few of them:

• Discounts from local merchants.
• Free lunch-time seminars for employees.
• Supplemental health insurance plans that are administered through payroll but are paid for by the employee.
• Pre-paid legal services plans administered through payroll but paid for by the employee.
• An interest-free computer loan program.
• Allow employees to  buy excess inventory from your organization at a significant discount through sample sales or employee auctions.

by Alicia Freese April 9, 2013 vtdigger.org The state’s family welfare program plans to eliminate 14 job counselor positions.

The Department for Children and Families has contracts with 53 job counselors who serve participants in the Reach Up program, and Commissioner Dave Yacavone says that’s more than they need.

DCF gives a $1.2 million grant to the Department of Labor to employ the 14 counselors. Shumlin administration officials told lawmakers last week that they will pull half of the money at the end of fiscal year 2013, and the elimination of the funds will result in eight layoffs. In the following year, all 14 of the Labor positions would be eliminated.

Department of Labor Commissioner Annie Noonan said she is hopeful she can rehire the laid-off employees within the department.

Annie Noonan, right, Lawrence Miller, left

“We are working with them to get them reabsorbed in other vacancies within the Department of Labor,” Noonan said. “That’s our goal. These are folks that are very well-trained in our work. I think they will be very adaptable to other positions within the department.”

DCF plans to reinvest the money to hire substance abuse and mental health counselors for the Reach Up program.

The decision comes on the heels of Gov. Peter Shumlin’s plan to cut the welfare-to-work program by $6 million in fiscal year 2014. Under the governor’s proposal, more than 1,000 welfare recipients will be cut off. The House of Representatives rejected the governor’s proposed Reach Up reduction last month. It’s unclear, at this point, where the Senate stands on the issue.

According to Cassandra Magliozzi, legislative specialist for the Vermont State Employees Association, the job counselors who are losing their jobs are more effective than their counterparts, and caseloads for counselors are too high. Under the terms of the contract between the Department for Children and Families and the Department of Labor, counselors are supposed to have a maximum of 35 clients. According to the VSEA, counselors employed by the Department of Labor often serve between 40 and 60 people.

In a statement, the state workers’ union said, “VDOL Reach-Up Case Managers get more Vermonters back to work, and VDOL Reach Up Case Managers are more effective than their private contractor counterparts at helping program participants find unsubsidized, competitive employment. The VDOL Reach-Up proposed layoffs will hurt program participants who are trying to move off of state benefits and get back to work.”

Christopher Curtis, an attorney with Vermont Legal Aid and an outspoken critic of the Shumlin administration’s proposal to cap Reach Up benefits, also has concerns about the impact of the layoffs.

“Losing specialists who help these people get to work is going to have a really negative effect on families who are doing their best to find employment,” Curtis said, adding that layoffs could leave already overburdened counselors picking up the slack.

Yacavone is confident the layoffs won’t harm the program. “I wouldn’t do this if I felt it was going to injure our program or diminish it in any way.”

Yacavone said it’s misleading to look at counselor-to-client ratios because DCF uses a “teaming” model, meaning that Reach Up beneficiaries are sometimes served by multiple counselors.

Franklin County Home Health Agency, Inc. has named Ela Dupont, OTR/L, CAPS, as Rehabilitation Manager. In this position, Ela will oversee the work of a staff of physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech language pathologists who provide home-based therapy to adults and children in Franklin County.

“I look forward to working with the rehabilitative services staff at Franklin County Home Health Agency to fulfill our mission to provide high quality health care services to the Franklin County community,” said Ela.

Ela comes to Franklin County Home Health Agency, Inc. with a broad background in both supervising and providing occupational therapy in home, rehabilitation and skilled nursing settings, most recently with the Rutland Area Visiting Nurse Association and Hospice and St. Albans Healthcare and Rehabilitation. She is a licensed occupational therapist and a member of the American Occupational Therapy Association, Administration and Management Special Interest Section. She is also a Certified Aging in Place Specialist with experience in home accessibility and modification. While at St. Albans Healthcare and Rehabilitation, she worked on the planning committee for the St. Albans Alzheimer’s Walk.

For over forty four years, Franklin County Home Health Agency has provided home health care and hospice to County residents of all ages and incomes. Services include both long and short term care as well as services that help people live independently, such as the Choices for Care, CareNet and Homemaker programs as well as rehabilitation therapies for children and adults. FCHHA also provides childbirth education courses, skilled pediatric nursing and support for new mothers and free support groups for caregivers and those in grief. The Agency also offers flu and foot clinics throughout the year.

For more information about the Agency, please contact Mary Harwood, Community Relations Coordinator, 393-6717,mharwood@fchha.org. Visit our website, www.fchha.org, or our Facebook page for more information on our programs.

Start: 05/21/2013 6:00 pm

How does this menu sound?

Soup:  Nettle Soup with Brioche Croutons (Recipe Contributed by:  Misery Loves Co.)

Salad:  Spinach from Kildeer Farm — dressing for spinach salad — Amee Farm Lemon Lavender Dressing (Recipe Contributed by: Amee Farm)

Entree:  Cider-Braised Pork Chops with Apples and Onions (Recipe Contributed by: Jericho Settlers’ Farm)

Vegetable:  Cumin Roasted Tri-colored Carrots with Chevre (Recipe Contributed by: Author Tracey Medeiros)

Starch/Side:  Tarentaise Bread Pudding (Recipe Contributed by:  Carpenter & Main Restaurant)

Dessert:  Sapling Tiramisu (Recipe Contributed by: Saxton’s River Distillery)

* Vegetarian option: Orecchiette with Caramelized Turnips, Tuscan Kale, and Cracked Pepper (Recipe Contributed by: L’Amante Ristorante)

If it makes your mouth water, please plan to join us for a dinner at Carpenter & Main with Tracey Maderiros.

Learn More.

Tracey Madeiros, author of the popular Dishing Up Vermont, has traversed the Green Mountain State once again, in search of celebrated chefs and the hard-working farmers who provide them with their fresh and wholesome ingredients. Collecting their stories and some 125 of their delicious, rustic-yet-refined, Vermont-inspired recipes, Medeiros presents an irresistible gastronomic portrait of this special state.

Tracey Medeiros is a freelance food writer, food stylist, and recipe developer and tester. She writes a weekly food column for the Essex Reporter and theColchester Sun and writes the Edible Farm column for Edible Green Mountains Magazine. She lives in Essex Junction, VT.

This is a special ticketed event and reservations must be made in advance.

$65 single diner
ticket includes: 1 four-course dinner: soup salad, entree and dessert and 1 copy of The Vermont Farm Table Cookbook, taxes and tip

$110.00 couple diners
ticket includes: 2 dinners and 1 book, taxes and tip

Because of personal preferences and a myriad of choices, the cost does NOT include cocktails or wine from the bar or tax and gratuity on beverage service.

For more information or to make a reservation, please call the Norwich Bookstore 802-649-1114 or email info@norwichbookstore.com.

When you’re asked to improve your organization’s website the task can be daunting – especially when the challenge to make it better doesn’t come with sufficient resources to do the job well. To help you get started, we’ve put together a list of 10 simple improvements you can make and free tools you can use right away.

View and Download 10 Tips for FREE!!!

Vermont CARES: Full time Medical Case Manager (Serving primarily Chittenden County).

Dynamic position working with HIV+ individuals, their families, and communities. Knowledge of HIV/AIDS, community resources, and harm reduction model necessary. Reliable transportation needed. Full time position (37.5 hours/wk) based in Burlington with generous benefits (health, vision, paid time off). Salary range: $28,000-$30,000. All those looking for a challenging role that directly impacts HIV/AIDS in Vermont, please apply.

Send cover letter and resume to Melissa Farr, Services Program Director, Vermont CARES, PO BOX 5248, Burlington, VT, 05402 or email to Melissa [AT] vtcares.org. Resumes must be received by 3.00pm on May 10, 2013.

The Brattleboro Retreat Office of Development is looking for an energetic and motivated development professional to join our team.  The Development Associate will work in a fun, team-oriented, fast-paced work environment with a lot of room for creativity.

JOB SUMMARY: The Development Associate will be a key member of the development team responsible for generating philanthropic revenue for the Retreat’s programs and operations. The primary focus of this position will be maintaining and enhancing the development information systems, including the Raisers Edge database, in order to establish a strong foundation for the Retreat’s philanthropic efforts to grow.  In addition, the Development Associate will serve as the primary staff coordinator of all Retreat fundraising events.  Finally, the Development Associate will provide administrative support and coordination for the Office of Development, including planning and implementing special projects.

QUALIFICATIONS:

1.      3-5 years experience in fundraising with increasing levels of responsibility.

2.      College degree required.

3.      Fundraising database experience required; Raisers Edge experience preferred.

4.      Event and project management experience with excellent follow-up ability required.

To apply:  http://www.brattlebororetreat.org/careers/current-openings

The Brattleboro Retreat, founded in 1834, is a not-for-profit, regional specialty psychiatric hospital and addictions treatment center, providing a full range of diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitation services for individuals of all ages and their families. Recognized as a national leader in the treatment mental illness and addiction, the Brattleboro Retreat offers a high quality, individualized, comprehensive continuum of care including inpatient, partial hospitalization, residential and outpatient treatment. The Retreat offers competitive compensation and full benefits.

Unemployment is far from a popular topic but, unfortunately, ignoring it doesn’t make it go away. Establishing a proactive approach to learning about and understanding your unemployment taxes, also known as unemployment insurance (UI), is proven to lower associated costs.

These are the top 3 things every nonprofit should know about unemployment insurance taxes.

1. What is the state Unemployment Insurance (SUI) Tax?
   The state Unemployment Insurance (SUI) tax is an insurance program that provides temporary, partial wage replacement to workers who have become unemployed through no fault of their own. The program is funded by Unemployment Taxes paid by employers.  Each employer is assigned a tax rate, which is based on the amount of benefits charged to their account each year.
2. Is My Nonprofit Liable?
   501(c)(3) nonprofits are exempt from federal unemployment taxes, but may be liable for state unemployment taxes if they meet something called the “4 for 20” provision. This provision is triggered when four or more individuals are employed on the same day for 20 weeks in a calendar year, though not necessarily for consecutive weeks.

Even for small nonprofits that are exempt from liability, it is encouraged that they pay into the unemployment tax system, or an alternate coverage plan, to protect their current employees from the ups and downs of employment.

3. Cost-Saving Alternatives
   There are alternatives available to nonprofits with 10 or more employees who are interested in lowering the cost of unemployment.

Unemployment Services Trust (UST) provides an alternative to paying into the state unemployment tax system. Through UST, agencies directly reimburse the state only for the claims of their former employees, dollar for dollar.  This saves organizations an average $100 per employee upon joining UST.

Want to learn more about what your agency’s alternative options are? Visit www.chooseust.org/501c3-unemployment-alternatives/

Contact UST for help benchmarking your unemployment insurance costs today:

Website: www.ChooseUST.org

Phone: (888) 249- 4788

Email: info@ChooseUST.org

I can’t decide whether the efforts to eliminate a Federal program that provides low cost mobile phones for poor people are dumb or mean-spirited. Actually, it’s pretty clear that they are both. For almost a century Americans have agreed, even when we couldn’t agree on almost anything else, that all Americans should have access to telephone service. Over decades our nation spent billions of dollars to ensure that rich or poor, urban or rural, we all would have access to telephones. But recently, a Federal program designed to help low income Americans obtain phones became known as “Obama Phones”, so of course a segment of the conservative blogosphere has become dedicated to eliminating this program. And some Members of Congress are dutifully following along.

In reality, the so-called “Obama Phones” have almost nothing to do with President Obama. I know because I was there at the inception of the Lifeline Telephone Program, as it more appropriately is known. Back in the 1980s while a staffer for Congressman Mickey Leland of Texas, I helped create the Federal Lifeline program. During hearings in the early 1980s the Congressman discovered that millions of Americans did not have home telephone service. Those Americans without phones often were older, poorer, less healthy, lived in less safe neighborhoods or had young children of school age.

Congressman Leland believed that all American families should have phones for health, safety, employment and educational reasons. Even more importantly, the Congressman recognized that phones help families stay connected to their friends and to each other. Phones contribute to our nation’s social fabric and keep communities closer. Congressman Leland noted that the Universal Service mandate at the Federal level helped to fund and to provide telephone service in high cost rural areas and he believed it just as important to assist in providing phones to low income urban and suburban Americans as to middle income and affluent rural Americans. Working with other Members of Congress and with members of the FCC, Congressman Leland helped to create the Lifeline telephone program.

The Lifeline program is a success. In just short of thirty years we have seen the national percentage of homes with phones increase from 91% in the mid 1980s, when Lifeline first was enacted, to over 95% today.  The number of homes without phones has fallen from almost 9% to just over 4% today. The percentage of low income households with telephone service has gone from 80 % in the mid 1980s to 92% today. Put another way, in 1984, 7.4 million households did not have telephone service. If not for the Lifeline program, the number of households without phones likely would be more than 10 million, or double the actual 5 million phoneless households today.

So, if this Federal program works, what’s the problem? Why are conservatives attacking it? The short answer is mobile phones. In the mid 2000s, in the wake of the Katrina catastrophe, the Bush era FCC expanded the lifeline program to include mobile phones. Federal Rules now allow each qualifying household to obtain no more than one mobile phone under the Lifeline Program. Moreover, if you have a mobile phone under Lifeline you can not also get a landline phone under the program.

Yes, poor people, just like their more affluent fellow citizens, prefer mobile devices to landlines. And that upsets some folks. Equally upsetting to folks is the popular myth that President Obama gave poor people mobile phones so that they would vote for him. This myth is, of course, an extension of the fiction that 47% of Americans are just looking for a President that will give them “stuff”. The “Obama Phones” have become exhibit A for those folks seeking to validate the claim that poor voters and minority voters voted for Obama because he gave them “stuff”. The truth is that the Lifeline Telephone Program came into existence almost thirty years ago under one Republican President and that the addition of mobile phones was adopted about a decade ago under a different Republican President. Accepting the truth, however, would spoil the Right Wing narrative that reduced rates for mobile phones and for mobile service are Obama’s bribes to his voters.

Some of the detractors of the program assert that there is fraud in the Lifeline program. And there probably is. I can’t think of too many multi-million dollar Federal programs that are free of fraud. But generally we maintain effective programs and do what we can to eliminate or reduce fraud. That’s what we do with Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and even our tax collection efforts. But not here! The call is to abolish Obama Phones!

And if that means that parents wouldn’t have a phone to contact a doctor, or to talk to a teacher about a child’s school work or to report a crime in their neighborhood, well, at least we will have made sure those poor folks weren’t taking advantage of taxpayers with those twenty dollar phones. Let them have landlines. Why do poor folks need mobile phones, even if they are more convenient, provide greater safety and are the preferred mode of communicating for an increasing number of families?

It’s going to be interesting in the next few months as the FCC and the Congress begin to look at the rural or high cost Universal Service program. It has become clearer and clearer that the only way to bring affordable advanced telephone service to rural America might be through wireless technologies. Will lawmakers who are fighting against subsidies for mobile devices and mobile technologies to connect low income urban and suburban Americans to our telephone network be as quick to condemn subsidies for wireless technology if those funds are being used to connect rural Americans, including affluent rural Americans?

The truth is that the Lifeline program works and mobile lifeline, with its increased flexibility and convenience for users, is an improvement over the original program. The switch to mobile is a common sense change to a good program and reflects how many Americans and most young Americans now prefer to get telephone service. We need to figure out what other common sense changes we need to make to ensure that all Americans, including rural Americans, have affordable telephone service. Let’s not abandon a great program because of malicious misstatements and mis-impressions of what it is and how it originated. Why don’t we agree to keep the program, but name it after the President who originated it: “Reagan Phones!” Maybe that would be a program the Conservative blogosphere could learn to love.

If you have a tool that you can’t work without, please email us at coordinator@commongoodvt.org. We’d love to hear what Vermont’s nonprofits are using to get their work done!

PSPP

Thanks to Heather Davis from Heather Davis M&E  Research Consulting, for sharing this tool with us!

PSPP is a program for statistical analysis of sampled data. It is a Free replacement for the proprietary program SPSS, and appears very similar to it with a few exceptions. If your organization can’t afford statistical analysis software or you are finding yourself doing data analysis on the fly, here’s a tool for you!

Eventbrite

If your event is free, then you can use Eventbrite for free! Add an event description and details to start selling tickets and collecting registrations. Manage the registrations, do event check-in on your iphone or ipad for free.  Manage payments online and you can either pay the fees or the registrants can pay the fees.

Free Events: Always Free!

Collecting money for your event?: 2.5% +.99 per ticket + 3% credit card processing fee. If you want, folks can pay with check at the door and skip the credit card fee altogether.

Send surveys to registrants, collect real-time data on your event and of course spread the word using facebook, twitter and your website.

SurveyMonkey

Create, design and distribute surveys online. For the basic (free) service you get 10 questions per survey and 100 responses per survey.  The results are updated in real-time, easy-to-use interface where you can collect responses via a weblink, email, and social networks. You can upgrade to the $17/month or unlimited questions and responses if you are doing a lot of surveying.

Dropbox

Dropbox is a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs, and videos anywhere and share them easily. Never email yourself a file again! You can login to your dropbox account anywhere there is internet, get the files you need, even open up old versions of files, and upload files to save as a backup.  You get 2GB for free when you start and could be more.

Install dropbox on your computer, get an iphone app and easily backup your files, share files with your co-workers and bring your files anywhere you are!

Google Analytics

If you aren’t already, you need to start tracking the traffic on your organization’s website.  Google’s free Analytics allows you to track visitors, how long they stay, where they come from and where they stop looking and how they keep coming back.  In an age where you have to have a website as an organization, it is also important to know who is looking at your website and figure out WHY and HOW.

The Open Society Foundations’ Youth Initiative is seeking proposals from organizations interested in developing and curating thematic pages on Youthpolicy.org, an online global youth portal that aims to consolidate knowledge and information on youth-related policies around the world.

Grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded to qualified nonprofit organizations and NGOs to develop Web sites within the subject areas of participation and citizenship, activism and volunteering, children and youth rights, global drug policy, community work, research and knowledge, informal learning, environment and sustainability, multiculturalism and minorities, and justice. Proposals must outline how the theme will be addressed in all its aspects, how content will be produced on a regular basis, how and how many contributing authors and bloggers will be involved, and how users interested in the theme will be driven to and engaged by the site.

Organizations seeking funding must be registered nonprofits or NGOs. Proposals should not request more than $10,000 or exceed a year in length. All proposals, which will be reviewed on a rolling basis, must be submitted in English.

See the Youthpolicy.org Web site for eligibility and application guidelines.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

The Partnership For Change has proposed Graduate Expectations for Burlington and Winooski students.

Watch the Slideshow and give them your feedback.

Close your eyes.  Imagine for a moment that the year is 2030.  Burlington and Winooski are thriving cities.  The community is vibrant, with strong leadership and an understanding that everyone’s voice counts and that everyone’s contribution matters.  Businesses are prospering with skilled employees born and raised in Vermont.

Much of this success can be attributed to a vision of our public schools that was shaped by the community 15 years ago.

Open your eyes.  The year is 2013, the beginning of this journey to ensure that Burlington and Winooski continue to grow and prosper in the years ahead.   A year and a half ago, our two cities received a highly competitive and generous grant from the Nellie Mae Education Foundation, the largest private charity in New England devoted exclusively to education.  With that grant, we established the Partnership for Change, an innovation arm supporting this work in our two school districts and communities.

While we were already moving in the direction of reshaping our schools to meet the demands of 21st century life, this grant allows us to do much more than would otherwise be possible and to do it much more quickly.

Over the past months, we have ask our community to dream about what we want our young people to know and be able to do, so that they can be ready for the world they will soon inherit. During December and January, we held 35 small learning conversations in living rooms and public places where participants helped generate a list of 19 Graduate Expectations.

On February 2, more than 300 people—including teachers, students, parents and community members –came together for the first-ever Community Learning Conversation to discuss Graduate Expectations. It was thrilling for us as superintendents to see so many people come through the doors on a Saturday to spend so many hours creating a vision for our collective future.

We were delighted to see that what was compelling to you is very much aligned with what research and best practice say about how young people learn best. The most agreed upon expectations were: Critical Thinking & Problem-Solving, Effective Oral and Written Communication, Curiosity and Imagination and Creativity.

On the heels of that gathering, two teams—one from Burlington and one from Winooski—were charged with looking at the data from the day, and combing through relevant research and best practices.  What emerged was broad agreement about the knowledge, skills and habits that our two communities believe are the most critical elements of a world-class education.  The work of these two teams produced a first draft of Graduate Expectations for each high school.

We’ve come a long way, and we have an important and challenging journey ahead of us.  For starters, this month, The Partnership will be hosting small Learning Conversations in living rooms and public spaces in Burlington and Winooski (See the calendar below).  In addition, click here to see the drafts of the Graduate Expectations and a Feedback Form. Take a close look at the first drafts and let us know what you think.

Learn More.

This is our Donor Management system workbook, created in partnership with TechSoup, walks readers through the process of assessing needs, comparing them to what they have, and determining the benefits — and the costs — of moving to a new DM system.

Use this workbook to find the Donor Management System that works for your organization!

We all need them, we don’t all have the time to write a good one: Employee Handbooks.

Boys and Girls Club has shared their employee handbook.

IdeaEncore, Nonprofit Webinar and Nonprofit Direct bring you 4GOOD and this resource.

Learn from them!

Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree, 3-5 years of supervisory and management experience, and the ability to learn to use a specialized computer database are required.  Experience with a non-profit human service organization or information call center is a plus.

As manager of the Senior HelpLine team, the successful candidate must have strong leadership skills: the ability to manage a small team within complex organizational structures; proven experience with skill-building and negotiation; strength in managing, developing, coaching and retaining staff; and empowering staff to increased awareness of role responsibility, skills and performance.

Other requirements:

Strong proficiency in use of information technology, including computerized databases, Windows 7, and Microsoft Office 2010.

Excellent verbal and written communication skills, especially listening skills; and a defined attention to detail.

Personal qualities of integrity, credibility, commitment; and passion for our mission of promoting empowerment, independence, and person-centered planning for clients.

Responsibilities: Develop and implement a growing program to enhance the skill, experience and professional development needs of an Information and Assistance team to meet current and future needs of elders and those with disabilities and their family caregivers.

Develop and submit all I&A related programmatic and statistical reports in a timely manner.

Develop and maintain an outreach agenda to promote and encourage utilization of ADRC I&A by consumers and community providers.

To apply:

Please e-mail cover letter and resume to jhall@seniorsolutionsVT.org  and be sure to include “CG2″ in the subject line.

OR mail your resume and cover letter to:
Senior Solutions
Attn: Paula Richotte
56 Main Street Suite 202
Springfield, VT 05156
NO PHONE CALLS PLEASEE

The Festival is currently hiring for an Executive Director, who will build the infrastructure and raise the money to satisfy the community’s desire for an ongoing series of high quality concerts, educational opportunities, and commissions.

Find out more!

Her or his responsibilities include:

• Nurturing and growing donor base, including individuals, foundations, and corporations
• Planning, promoting, and producing the annual festival
• Nurturing collaborations with other arts organizations and communities
• Understanding our audience and donors and addressing their needs with our long range plan
• Collaborating with the Artistic Director and board to refine and refresh the mission, vision, and strategic plans for the organization
• Creating the budget and managing the finances of the organization
• Operating the organization in a fiscally responsible manner
• Managing and leading the day-to-day operations, staff, and volunteers
• Facilitating, supporting, and guiding the board of directors
• Documenting and sharing the history of the organization with the world

The ideal candidate will have:

• A passion for chamber music, collaboration, and communication
• A successful track record of fund raising and grant writing for arts organizations
• A working understanding of the greater Vermont community
• An appreciation for, and understanding of, the benefits of both hand written letters and tweets and when each is appropriate.

Applicants must be located in Vermont or willing to relocate. This position is currently part-time and offers a salary of $25-30,000 annually, commensurate with experience. For the right person, this position could easily grow to full-time in the next 1-2 years.

To apply please send a resume, cover letter, and list of three references to jobs@lccmf.org or mail to: ED Search, Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, 20 Winooski Falls Way, Suite, 7, Winooski, VT 05404.

Applications must be received no later than May 3, 2013.

The Samsung K-12 ROI Gift Programs are intended to help raise the knowledge level of K-12 students across the country and ultimately help them be successful in their scholastic pursuits.

The following programs are offered:

Grant Program
Teachers can apply to this program to win one of ten SAMCAM 760 document cameras for use in their school by writing a fun lesson plan using the SAMCAM 760. The top 20 finalists will be notified and asked to submit a video showing their lesson plan in the classroom with the SAMCAM 760. Ten winners will then be chosen based on their final video submission.

Superhero Competition
Students can enter this competition which encourages them to discover themselves while preparing a one to three minute digital video with them portraying their favorite historical character. There are two Superhero Program competitions for the year and each student who wins gets $500 and their class receives a SAMCAM 760 document camera.

Scholarship Program
High school students can apply to receive a scholarship by writing up to a 300 word essay answering the question, ‘What do you think about technology advancements and how they will change the way we learn in the future? Is it for the better?’ The essays will be judged on original thinking, relevance to the real world, and the writing quality. Five students will receive a $1,000 scholarship.

Vermont Public Radio is searching for a talented Broadcast Engineer with five or more years of experience to join our team. As part of VPR’s Engineering Department, you’ll work with a team of experienced professionals on a variety of projects across VPR’s broadcast coverage area (Vermont, New York, and New Hampshire), with a primary emphasis on broadcast transmission systems.

The Broadcast Engineer will help maintain and improve VPR’s broadcast network to ensure consistent and reliable service to our listeners. You’ll work a variety of functions related to transmitter construction, transmitter maintenance, regulatory compliance, and property management. The Broadcast Engineer will also contribute to the overall mission of VPR by cooperating on shared projects and tasks.

The ideal candidate should have direct experience with electronics, radio frequency transmission, property and vehicle maintenance, and safety issues. Knowledge of and experience with FCC rules and regulations are essential. The position requires extensive travel throughout Vermont and some travel outside of the state. If you’re a talented independent professional who thrives in a mission driven and collaborative organization, we encourage you to apply.

This is a full-time position with full benefits. Annual salary range is $45,000-$55,000. A valid driver’s license is required.

To Apply, candidates must submit the following to careers@vpr.net (no calls, please):

1. Cover letter
2. Resume, with references
3. Completed VPR Employment Application

To Apply or Find Out More.

Job Requirements

The ideal candidate should have direct experience with electronics, radio frequency transmission, property and vehicle maintenance, and safety issues. Knowledge of and experience with FCC rules and regulations are essential. The position requires extensive travel throughout Vermont and some travel outside of the state. If you’re a talented independent professional who thrives in a mission driven and collaborative organization, we encourage you to apply.

“The NTEN community is filled with amazing individuals who change the world every day. Each year, we honor an individual who has been instrumental in shaping the field of nonprofit technology, and paved the way for the rest of us. Past winners have had a hand in creating and funding the biggest organizations in our space, built nonprofit technology communities large and small, and are exploring and sharing some of the most interesting and innovative technology models.”

Here’s the announcement and tribute video!

Here are Lauren-Glenn’s remarks:

It is worth reminding ourselves: technology may extend our reach but our effectiveness begins with who we know, how we treat each other, the strength of our word and our credibility. Our success depends on collaboration, which builds upon the full bandwidth experience of face-to-face relationship building.

NTEN is not a group of isolated technologists and nonprofiteers sitting in a conference center. We are a shared electromagnetic field, a learning network, an active organism. We are colleagues, friends, and in some cases, I am happy to say, best friends who inspire each other to greater accomplishments.

It’s why we come to these giant NTEN jamborees: to learn more, to get better at what we do, and to be part of something bigger. That’s NTEN! So, I encourage you, while you are here in this place (where there is 1.5 devices per person) to put down your devices, look deeply at each other, and meet people you’ve not met (there are at least 1000 of them). Find out what they do, see if you have common cause, and leverage the People Power right here in this room.

When each of us reflects upon our own, fleeting, lifetimes of achievement (it is never too soon to reflect upon this) we’ll remember not how hard we worked but the quality of our relationships: the kind, good inspired and generous people who gave us new ideas, made us laugh, helped us along, and made our work better and more possible.

As part of the network, part of NTEN, I am confident that you will use this opportunity to build those sustaining and abiding relationships.

I for one, have been blessed, by my involvement with NTEN and sustained, in particular, by my dear friends on the staff, board and within the membership.And none of my work would be possible without the hard and smart work of my colleagues at CCTV. Thanks to each of you.

Have a wonderful rest of the conference and, remember, that we have People Power on our side. Let’s make the most of it!

When: Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Where: The Radisson Hotel/Center of New Hampshire
Manchester, NH

Program begins at 5:00 p.m. with a cocktail reception to follow

Registration: Online registration will be available in early May

Nearly six in ten charities in the United States and Canada reported an increase in fundraising revenues in 2012, while more than seven in ten expect to see revenues grow in 2013, a survey by the Nonprofit Research Collaborative finds.

Released earlier this week at the annual conference of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, the Nonprofit Fundraising Study: Covering Charitable Receipts at U.S. and Canadian Nonprofit Organizations in 2012 (42 pages, PDF) found that 58 percent of the 1,122 organizations which responded to the survey saw their fundraising receipts increase in 2012, compared with 53 percent in 2011 and 43 percent in 2010. The survey also found that 63 percent of respondents met their 2012 fundraising goal, up from 59 percent in 2011 and 52 percent in 2010. The percentage of organizations seeing an increase was nearly identical in the United States and Canada, across all four regions of the United States, and in most subsectors.

The survey also found that a majority of respondents (55 percent) attributed their fundraising success in 2012 to internal factors such as the addition of new staff (10 percent), a jump in receipts from bequests (6 percent), or a successful event (3 percent), while roughly 45 percent credited outside factors such as an improving economy, increased awareness, strong leadership, and/or a good development plan.

Looking ahead to 2013, 59 percent of respondents expect their fundraising receipts to be up by as much as 15 percent, 12 percent expect to see even greater increases, while 20 percent expect receipts to remain flat. The report also makes a number of fundraising recommendations, including developing comprehensive plans for engaging donors and potential donors, focusing on engagement strategies that lead to higher donor retention rates, and adapting to changing communication methods.

“Charities that routinely send thank-you letters to every donor were significantly more likely to meet their fundraising goal for 2012 than those that did not send a thank you at all,” said Andrew Watt, president and CEO of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. “Surprisingly, 29 percent of charities did not routinely send thank-you letters or emails for contributions received. This basic principle of successful fundraising cannot be stressed enough.”

President Obama believes that we must work as a team with the entire community – including nonprofits, philanthropic organizations, and faith-based and other community organizations – to meet the challenges our communities face. These organizations offer a safety net for those most in need.  They serve as an economic engine for job creation in communities across America.  They also serve as an incubator of innovation and foster solutions to some of our toughest challenges. The 2014 Budget builds on this commitment, focusing on increasing the use of evidence and evaluation to spread innovation and drive better results and encouraging national service and civic participation.

The Budget strengthens nonprofits, philanthropic, faith-based and other community organizations on multiple fronts:

• Preserves funding for many programs that meet critical community needs;
• Encourages investments in program outcomes, not just outputs;
• Facilitates access to capital and other resources to enable nonprofits to support innovation and scale what works;
• Supports important administrative changes to help existing resources go further in transforming lives and communities.

INVESTS IN INNOVATIVE NONPROFITS

Strengthens Financing to Scale Proven Community Solutions. Innovative solutions developed in the nonprofit sector and implemented in local communities cannot be carried out unless capital is available to develop, evaluate, and replicate successful approaches. The Budget invests $49 million in the Social Innovation Fund to continue the Administration’s commitment to support promising new approaches to major challenges, leverage private and philanthropic capital to meet these needs, and grow evidence-based programs that demonstrate measurable outcomes. This funding level includes $4 million for a pilot to improve grantee access to State and federal administrative data. This investment has the potential to reduce the cost and improve the quality of evaluations and performance reporting, and could help break down barriers for all nonprofit organizations looking to demonstrate measurable impact in communities.

Expands Innovation in Education and Workforce Development  Continues to build on the success of Investing in Innovation (i3) by providing it with $215 million to grow the evidence base in high-need areas, including identifying and supporting effective teachers and leaders, improving low-performing schools, and encouraging parent engagement. To spur innovation, the Budget also provides $150 million for the Workforce Innovation Fund, which tests new States and regional ideas for better ways of organizing and delivering services focused on training and helping workers find jobs. The Budget also provides a $260 million First in the World fund to spur cutting-edge innovations that decrease college costs and boost graduation rates.

ENGAGES NONPROFITS IN COMMUNITY-BASED SOLUTIONS

Partners with Communities to Help Them Rebuild. The Budget includes investments in three key programs that support Promise Zones that will promote partnerships across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. The Promise Zones initiative will revitalize high-poverty communities across the country by attracting private investment, improving affordable housing, expanding educational opportunities, providing tax incentives for hiring workers and investing in the Zones, reducing violence, and assisting community leaders in navigating Federal programs and cutting through red tape. To align Federal investments with these hardest-hit communities, the Budget invests $300 million in combining effective cradle-to-career services with comprehensive school reforms through Promise Neighborhoods; $400 million in Choice Neighborhoods to revitalize affordable housing and surrounding neighborhoods; and $35 million in Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Grants to combat serious crime and violence using proven public safety strategies.

Increases Funding for Homeless Assistance Grants. The Budget provides $2.4 billion — $480 million above the FY 2012 enacted level — for Homeless Assistance Grants. The request allows HUD to renew all existing assistance, as well as provide $60 million for new targeted rapid re-housing and $40 million for new permanent supportive housing, serving an additional 30,000 people. This $100 million funding increase will primarily be administered by nonprofits, and helps make progress toward ending homelessness by supporting the goals of Opening Doors: The Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.

INCREASES USE OF EVIDENCE IN SOCIAL SERVICES

Expands Pay for Success to Drive Results.  To ensure taxpayers get the best possible return on their investment in social programs while simultaneously increasing access to capital for the social sector , the Adminis­tration significantly is expanding the Pay for Success program model started in 2012.  Pay for Success leverages philanthropic and private dollars to fund preventive services provided by nonprofits and other non-governmental entities up front, with the Government paying back investors only after the interventions generate results that save taxpayer money. At a time when public dollars are scarce, this model provides funding for service providers to test new and proven innovations at low risk to the taxpayer. In 2014, the Administration will broaden its support for Pay for Success, reserving up to $185 million in the areas of job training, education, criminal justice, housing, and disability services.  The Administration is also proposing a new $300 million Pay for Success Incentive Fund at the Department of Treasury to help State and local Governments implement Pay for Success programs with philanthropies, nonprofits, and other nongovernmental organizations. The fund will provide credit enhancements for philanthropic investments and outcome payments for successful, money-saving services.  The Administration will also make available up to 5 percent of proceeds from the sale of excess Federal property under the proposed Civilian Property Realignment Act (CPRA) for innovative homeless programs, including Pay for Success projects that save taxpayer money by reducing homelessness.

Creates Performance Partnerships That Provide Flexibility While Demanding Results.   Inconsistent and overlapping Federal program requirements sometimes prevent States and communities from effectively coordinating services or using funding to support strategies that are likely to achieve the best outcomes. In 2014, the Administration proposes establishing a limited number of Performance Partnership pilots designed to improve outcomes for disconnected youth, including young adults who have dropped out of school and are not employed.  Approved performance partnerships designed at the State or community level could blend discretionary funds for youth-serving programs across agencies, many of which work directly with nonprofits, in exchange for greater accountability for results.  Performance indicators, such as education and employment outcomes, would be used to gauge progress, and evaluations would study what locally designed strategies work best.  The Administration will work with community and nonprofit leaders – both secular and religious — to explore the potential for similar performance partnerships in other areas, like revitalizing distressed communities and reducing youth violence.

STRENGTHENS NATIONAL SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES

Supports National Service. The Budget funds approximately 82,000 AmeriCorps members through the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) core programs.  This will enable members to serve and support the efforts of religious and secular nonprofit organizations working across the country to address a wide range of critical community challenges, from hurricanes to homelessness to failing schools. It focuses national service resources in those areas where service can achieve the greatest results for communities.

Leverages Service as a Solution. The Budget enables interagency partnerships to leverage AmeriCorps and use national service as a strategy to tackle some of our most important challenges.  The Budget continues support for FEMA Corps, an innovative new partnership between the Federal Emergency Management Administration and CNCS that brings young people interested in careers in emergency management into public service while improving the resilience of local communities.  This partnership will support an additional 1,600 AmeriCorps members in 2014.  The Budget also continues support for School Turnaround AmeriCorps, a new partnership between the Department of Education and CNCS that places AmeriCorps members in the nation’s lowest-performing schools to help improve student performance.  This innovative approach will both expand opportunities for national service and supply struggling schools with talented AmeriCorps members who can support the implementation of comprehensive school turnaround plans.

SUPPORTS LOCAL VOLUNTEERISM

Increases Capacity of Nonprofits to Support Volunteers. With the number of Americans engaged in volunteering having reached its highest point in five years, many nonprofits could benefit from management practices to handle this influx of talent. The Budget proposes to support nonprofits’ ability to recruit, retain, and manage this talent through a reactivated Volunteer Generation Fund.  In order to help secular and religious nonprofits leverage volunteers in support of national priorities, the Budget provides $10 million for the reactivated fund, more than double the 2012 level. By reactivating the program as the George H.W. Bush Volunteer Generation fund, we also honor the legacy of service of the 41st president of the United States, who helped to elevate volunteerism and pioneered important work in civic participation both during and after his time in office.

Strengthens Programs That Engage Seniors. Many older Americans are eager to serve our Nation and have a wide range of skills and knowledge to give back to their communities. For decades, the Senior Corps program has been an important conduit for connecting seniors to local volunteer opportunities. The Budget proposes to reinvigorate the program by using competition to allocate funds to those organizations that have the biggest impact in their communities, creating a more dynamic and results-oriented Senior Corps.

IMPROVES REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR NONPROFITS

Expands E-Filing to All Tax-Exempt Organizations.  Currently, the IRS publishes all Form 990 series tax information, the tax form filed by tax-exempt organizations, in a static image format that impedes transparency and analysis of this information.  The Administration proposes to phase in a requirement that all tax-exempt organizations file their tax returns electronically and requires the IRS to release those data in a machine-readable format in a timely manner.  If enacted by Congress, the accessibility of machine-readable data would enable donors and foundations to access tax-exempt organization data more easily and make it easier to perform robust analyses that could facilitate improved capital flows to the sector.  This is an important step forward for transparency and is expected to generate entrepreneurial opportunities as new products and services are created that use these data. The proposal would generally be effective for taxable years beginning after the date of enactment.

Ensures Recipients of Federal Awards are Appropriately Reimbursed. Nonprofits and other entities that receive Federal funds may negotiate a level of reimbursement for their indirect costs, i.e., overhead. But some nonprofits may not have the opportunity or capacity for that type of negotiation process. Therefore, to ensure that all nonprofits and other entities who receive Federal funds are appropriately reimbursed for the allowable indirect costs, OMB has proposed new guidance that adds a minimum reimbursement rate of 10 percent of direct costs, available for up to four years of the grant. This ensures that nonprofits receive a minimum reimbursement while they develop the capacity to engage in full negotiations. OMB is seeking input through early June on this and other proposed guidance that seek to reduce administrative burden for nonprofits and other grant recipients.

IMPROVES USE OF EVALUATION

Learns and Shares What Works. The Budget supports new evaluations across the Government to demonstrate and analyze program impacts in areas ranging from health care to housing, from education to employment, and from international development to community development. Increasingly, the Administration is investing in helping nonprofits demonstrate the impact not just by funding evaluations, but also by helping nonprofits build their internal evaluation and performance management capacity. The Administration will also help interested organizations access strong evidence by continuing to expand “what works” clearinghouses for proven practices, such as the Department of Justice’s CrimeSolutions.gov, the Department of Education’s What Works Clearinghouse, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP), and the Department of Labor’s new Clearinghouse of Labor Evaluation and Research (CLEAR).

Thanks to Glenn McRea for sharing this with us.

Harvard Business Review Webinar.

Interviewers are prepared to instantly spot strengths and weaknesses in a job candidate. Naturally, they want to find somebody who’s the best fit for the role and weed out job seekers who aren’t up to the challenge. However, don’t forget that the company is interviewing for you, too. It’s up to you to spot the strengths and weaknesses of a company.

To avoid taking a job that’s not right for you, look for these red flags in an interview and learn how to respond to the warning signs.

There are hints of high turnover
Whether it comes up naturally in an interview or if you ask yourself, find out about the history of the job you’re applying for, as well as the employees who formerly held the role. Hopefully, those employees have gone on to better positions or have been promoted within the company. However, Raven Robinson, founder of Veranda Lane Leadership Coaching, says that if the last employee was there for less than six months, or if there have been more than two people in the role in the past two years consider that a potential red flag. If there are signs of high turnover, further investigate the workload and responsibilities. There’s a chance the role is overburdened if employees are getting burned out quickly.

Career paths aren’t a priority
A common interview question is, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” After you’ve explained your hopes for your career path, don’t be afraid to turn the question around. Ask about the future of the role and how the company expects the employee to advance. Robinson says it’s a warning sign if “they can’t clearly and eloquently explain the future of the company and where they hope to be in five years — especially if the interviewer would be your direct supervisor. If they don’t know this now, they will probably lead you astray as you work.”

The work environment isn’t professional or positive
You can learn a lot about a business based on what the employees say or how they act around people outside of the company. Robinson says to watch out for “the tone with which they speak of the last employee. It’s possible to get caught up in thinking that the person must not have been great at the job since they are not there anymore. However, if this comes across in the way people speak about them, that shows a low level of professionalism on their part.” Another warning sign: “If the manager can’t explain with enthusiasm why they like working for the company,” Robinson says. If the interviewer isn’t excited about the work environment, why should you be?

The job begins to sound different than the role you applied for
When it comes time for you to ask questions, “Ask what a typical day looks like in that role. If possible, ask the supervisor and an employee who does that job; if their answers are vastly different, that’s a red flag,” Robinson says.

Also find out what their expectations will be for you immediately upon starting the job. Watch out “if they are looking for someone who will ‘hit the ground running,’” Robinson says. “While this isn’t make-or-break, it’s typically the sign of a company with no training process. If you require formal training, manuals and documented procedures, this may not be the company for you. The same stands if you ask what would be your first priority in the first 30 days and they say anything other than ‘Learning.’”

How to respond to red flags
If red flags are popping up in an interview, there are ways to investigate. “If you notice that an interviewer is unprepared to openly answer a valid question, try asking it in different ways or from different angles,” says Lynda Zugec, managing director at The Workforce Consultants. “Inconsistent responses are a red flag that something may be happening behind the scenes. Try to determine if the question is a deal breaker for you or whether someone else in the organization can more fully answer your question.”

If you do see red flags, is the job a lost cause? “Not necessarily, but you absolutely do have to be honest with yourself about the type of work environment you’re getting yourself into,” Robinson says. “The best thing to do in the interview process is to take in information.” Afterward, you can decide if it’s a good match, just as the interviewer will.

This follow-up session will focus on entering the data effectively to generate the output.

Takeaways:

Impact Award: END7: How to Shock a Celebrity

Best Nonprofit Video: Follow the Frog

Funny For Good Video: No Joke, Choice Matters Everywhere

Change Agent Video: BOMF Castleburg Outdoors 350 Expedition

It’s not too late for your nonprofit. Video is a great medium to get your message out, learn more. Here are tips and tricks to start making your video for next year. 

The Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) brings together some of the world’s leading coffee, sustainability, and Fairtrade experts in Boston, Massachusetts throughout this week. FOOD 4 FARMERS will participate to share its mission to implement sustainable food security programs in coffee-growing communities across the globe. The group, which operates in the Burlington area, plans to host a Fairtrade ice cream social both on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13 to entice fellow attendees at the SCAA to stop by and learn more about their mission.  Ben & Jerry’s Cofounder, Jerry Greenfield will appear on Friday to kick off the giveaway, inviting any of the thousands of participants who gather to take part in the trade show about all things coffee.

“It’s a great networking opportunity to show that even in Vermont we can make a difference in these farmers’ lives half way around the world,” said Rick Peyser, founder of Food 4 Farmers.  “While others may feel that we in the Green Mountains don’t have the size to be able to make a significant impact, we know through our work already that Vermonters can make a difference in people’s lives across the globe,” added Peyser.

Food 4 Farmers assists coffee farming families, co-operatives, and community-based organizations identify challenges, resources, and strategies to build long-term solutions to hunger. They accomplish this by working primarily with coffee-growing organizations. Food 4 Farmers coaches and connects them with the expertise they need to implement strategy and the tools to monitor their progress over time. The organization doesn’t import a simplistic, one-size-fits-all model.  F4F helps communities identify locally appropriate solutions and tactics – and supports them in managing their progress.

“It’s an impressive goal when Vermonters set their aspiration to make an impact on the global community,” said Jerry Greenfield, Cofounder of Ben &Jerry’s Ice Cream.  “Ben and Jerry’s worked hard – and continues to work on that challenge; today we see other organizations like Food 4 Farmers boldly going where they can make a measurable difference in farmers’ lives… it’s incredible,” added Greenfield.

Food 4 Farmers targets coffee co-operatives and community-based organizations as the gateway to achieve food security, because they have the capacity to organize and educate farmers to take action against hunger.

Food 4 Farmers believes that empowering farming communities to increase production and consumption of local food has positive effects far beyond food security. With less food aid and production coming from overseas, there is less transport, energy use and impact on climate change. Just as communities here in the U.S. benefit from strengthening local food systems, so do coffee-growing communities around the world.

About Food 4 Farmers

In 2010, a group of people from the specialty coffee industry and international organizations working to alleviate hunger came together to strategize about how to help coffee-growing communities overcome food insecurity.

Food 4 Farmers was the result – created to help fill the gap between income provided by current coffee standards and certifications, and the income required to build a better quality of life for coffee farmers, their families and communities.

This initiative followed a study by the Centro Internacional para la Agricultura Tropical (CIAT) in 2007 for Green Mountain Coffee Roasters that reported, “even producers who receive fair trade premiums suffer a period of food insecurity ranging from one to seven months of the year – every year.”

Food 4 Farmers uses the power and commitment of the coffee industry, collaborating with individuals and organizations, to achieve sustainable, community-appropriate solutions to hunger.

For more information visit www.food4farmers.org.

The Children’s Literacy Foundation (CLiF) is a nonprofit based in Waterbury Center, Vermont. For 15 years CLiF has inspired a love of reading and writing among more than 140,000 low-income, at-risk, and rural children in almost 400 towns throughout Vermont and New Hampshire.

CLiF seeks a communications professional to direct and manage our external communications and media relations, and oversee some activities related to fundraising. Communications duties include: pitching media stories and op-ed essays to local, regional, and national outlets; writing and editing content for CLiF’s newsletter, e-newsletter, annual report, press releases, Facebook, Twitter, blog, and other communications assets; participating in shaping CLiF’s programs and activities. Fundraising duties include some outreach to businesses and foundations and supporting executive director in donor relations. Work will be performed in the CLiF office in Waterbury Center Monday to Friday. Some flexibility in scheduling.

• Excellent writing and editing skills
• Proven ability to manage projects and small teams
• 4+ years in public relations, community relations, marketing, or similar field
• Success with pitching media stories to editors and developing ongoing connections with press
• Experience creating and maintaining donor relationships
• Experience with Twitter, Facebook, blogging and e-mail marketing
• Skilled with Apple computers, Microsoft Office suite, WordPress, and donor management software. Knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite a plus
• Strong interpersonal skills. Comfortable speaking with groups.

Send resume and cover letter by April 19 to clif@clifonline.org. We prefer individuals who live within 20 miles of the CLiF office in Waterbury Center

If you have a tool that you can’t work without, please email us at coordinator@commongoodvt.org. We’d love to hear what Vermont’s nonprofits are using to get their work done!

Google Drive lets you store and access your files anywhere — on the web, on your hard drive, or on the go. Here’s how it works:

1. Go to Google Drive on the web at drive.google.com.
2. Install Google Drive on your computer or mobile device.
3. Throw your files in Google Drive. It’s right there on your device.

Now your files go everywhere you do. Change a file on the web, on your computer, or on your mobile device and it updates on every device where you’ve installed Google Drive. Share, collaborate, or work alone: your files, your choice. Store the first 5 GB of your stuff for free. When your Google Drive grows, get another 25 GB of space (or more!) starting at $2.49 per month.

Stickies is a PC utility written to try to cut down on the number of yellow notes stuck to your monitor.   It is a computerised version of those notes. The design goal behind Stickies is that the program is small and simple. Stickies will not mess with your system files, or write to the registry. Stickies stores information in a single text-based ini file.

Vimeo is a video-sharing website, similar to Youtube but committed to  user-made video that allows you to share High Definition (HD) videos. There is a free membership and users can upgrade for more features.

TinyURL If you are using Twitter or Facebook, then  TinyURL is a great way to shorten links to your webpage or blog. Just copy and past the web address onto the tool’s website and it will give you a shortened web address.

FuzeBox  is a simple  cloud-based, video conferencing solution that makes it easy for anyone, anywhere, across any platform, on any mobile device to quickly and conveniently collaborate face-to-face. This platform allows you to share content and screensharing  while streaming video.

Check back next week to find more low cost, no cost tools!

Nonprofit Executive Compensation: Planning, Performance, and Pay, Second Edition

Nonprofit chief executive compensation is being scrutinized by the IRS, state regulators, the media, legislators, and potential funders. Does your board have a process that allows you to offer a salary that will attract and keep top talent without compromising your organization’s mission or the public’s expectations?

This practical step-by-step guide and reference will help you establish an effective compensation structure and maintain public trust by increasing the transparency and integrity of your compensation practices. Updated to address the current nonprofit environment, it includes

• information on the impact of the new Form 990
• guidance on how to use survey data in determining a competitive salary
• a sample compensation committee charter
• information on legal standards
• a sample chief executive job description
• guidance on setting and adjusting compensation in difficult economic times
• the board’s role in reviewing compensation for other senior executives beyond the chief executive

While designed primarily for board members, this book is also a valuable resource for chief executives, senior staff, and consultants.

Spring Lake Ranch is a therapeutic residential community with the mission to support and empower people with mental health and substance abuse challenges to grow and thrive. The Director of Development implements a variety of strategies to develop donors and solicit contributions to support the organization.

Ideal candidates will have appropriate education (master’s preferred), comprehensive management skills (to excel at senior administrative level), and extensive development experience (minimum five years). Candidates are expected to be highly competent motivators of trustees, staff, and volunteers. Previous experience in a non-profit healthcare setting and CFRE certification is strongly preferred.

To apply, email a resume by 4/30/13 to Tom Conry, Human Resources Director: tom@springlakeranch.org

Final candidates will be invited for a 48-hour visit/interview to our community.

REGISTER TODAY!

 

To view the full report.

“There are still Vermont families and businesses hurting from Tropical Storm Irene, and we cannot lose our focus on trying to make them whole,” Gov. Shumlin said. “But it’s also important to examine our accomplishments, see what’s working and just as importantly, what’s not, and take a moment to applaud just how far we’ve come since the August 2011 storm slammed our state.”

Among the highlights of the report:

• Vermont’s agencies continue to work closely together in the aftermath of the storm; silos that blocked agency cooperation on issues pre-Irene have not redeveloped. That cooperation is particularly evident between the Agencies of Natural Resources and Transportation, but also includes Agriculture, Human Services and Development and Community Affairs.
• Although there have been disagreements, FEMA has remained a working partner with the state. Since June 2012, Vermont has been awarded more than $50 million in additional Public Assistance grants, for a current total of $143 million.
• Though work will continue on many fronts, by the end of August, the FEMA-funded Disaster Case Management Program will be winding down, and the FEMA Joint Field Office will likely have been demobilized. It is anticipated that the Irene Recovery Office will be phased-out, with the coordination of the continuing recovery resting firmly within existing agencies, and interagency collaboration more fully institutionalized.

Accomplishments since the August 2012 report include:

• Closing individual recovery cases by late summer, just two years after a disaster that caused more than 7,000 homeowners to register damages with FEMA.
• The state breaking ground in January on a 25-bed psychiatric hospital in Berlin. Nearly $30 million of the $42.8 million price tag of the mental health requirements left in the wake of the August 2011 storm will be eligible for financial assistance from a combination of federal assistance and insurance proceeds. (The Vermont State Hospital was severely damaged by Irene flooding.)
• Boosting economic recovery. In March 2013 Vermont was allocated $17.9 million in block grant funds, in addition to the $21.6 million already allocated to the state, for business and other economic recovery, housing replacement and infrastructure.
• Providing full compensation for properties located in flood-prone areas through the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program.
• Coordinating recovery planning to minimize the impacts of future storms.

“As I toured Vermont after Tropical Storm Irene, I pledged to taxpayers and those directly impacted by the storm that we would recover stronger than Irene found us,” Gov. Shumlin said. “As New York and New Jersey are learning in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, recovery takes time, patience and unwavering commitment.

“We’ve come a long way since August 2011, and we have a solid path for future recovery efforts,” he said.

This is a unique opportunity to learn from a master. You will be able to pose questions for Tom during the session and he will stay on the call until all of your questions are answered.

Every participant will get a recording of the session and a downloadable pdf of the For Impact Donor Engagement Toolkitso you can develop this material for your organization.

This webinar is being presented by Asking Matters and is free to Asking Matters premium members.
This session qualifies for CFRE Continuing Education Credits.

Eligibility Requirements:

• Prior experience doing data collection and assessment work
• Demonstrated working knowledge of significant developments, trends, and best practices in nutrition and dietary guidelines
• Familiarity with the Burlington community and its resources

Licensed health insurance carriers submitted proposed rates for plans to be made available through the Vermont Health Connect.

Vermont Health Connect will be a marketplace where individuals, families and small businesses in Vermont can compare public and private health plans and select one that fits their needs and budget. Vermont Health Connect is for individuals, families and small businesses in Vermont.

Click here for preliminary rate filings for Vermont Health Connect. 

The public is encouraged to submit comments on the proposed rates to the Department of Financial Regulation at (802) 828-3301 or go to the DFR website.

To find out more about the Rate Review Process.

Edward Tufte is widely recognized as the thought leader in the visual representation of data. A statistician, Yale Professor and a sculptor, Tufte’s recent work and major publications can be reviewed at www.edwardtufte.com. CCTV staff recently attended a day-long Tufte lecture, “Presenting Data and Information”. Lauren-Glenn Davitian summarizes his salient points, including the six principles of design, web-based and print based examples of elegant information presentation, and the moral and ethical nature of presenting and consuming non-fiction data and information.

Individuals with significant expertise in areas related to afterschool, education, and/or non-profit management are invited to apply to become coaches for the Individualized System of Support for Afterschool Programs (ISS-AP). ISS-AP services are provided through Vermont Afterschool and encompass consultation services, technical assistance, and professional development opportunities to afterschool programs throughout the state of Vermont.

All coaching proposals must be submitted by May 15, 2013 for consideration in the 2013-14 ISS-AP cycle. The Coaching Request Form PDF is available to download, with submission instructions included. Any questions related to ISS-AP, including about coaching proposals, should be directed to Lynne Feal-Staub (lfealstaub@gmail.com or 802-579-6012).

Health Commissioner Harry Chen, MD unveiled three new tools designed to improve the health of Vermonters at an April 4 briefing for Health Department staff and partners.

Check out the Performance Dashboard and Toolkit.

Watch VIDEO on the Performance Dashboard and Toolkit.

“Even in the healthiest state, there are challenges ahead,” said Dr. Chen. “Nearly 100,000 of us still smoke. Like other Americans, we are growing more overweight. Not all babies and children are protected
against vaccine-preventable diseases, and we have too-high rates of binge drinking, substance abuse and suicide. That’s why it’s so important that we very deliberately and strategically set our course for better health.”

Now available online at healthvermont.gov are two new plans and a new performance management tool:

Healthy Vermonters 2020 documents the health status of Vermonters at the start of the decade, and sets population health indicators and goals that will guide the work of public health through the decade. More than 100 goals are detailed within 21 focus areas – such as maternal and infant health, immunizations and infectious disease, alcohol and other drug use, and cancer.

State Health Improvement Plan 2013-2017 prioritizes three broad priorities for the next five years and strategies that have been proven to be effective in 1) reducing the prevalence of chronic disease, 2) reducing the prevalence of substance abuse and mental illness, and 3) improving childhood immunizations.

Healthy Vermonters Toolkit/Performance Dashboard is a new online tool to track our progress in real time for improving population health indicators (such as smoking rates) and program performance measures (such as the number of registrants with the Vermont Quit Network). Data can also be viewed on maps and as trends by county, health department district office area, and hospital service area.

Hard copy publications of Healthy Vermonters 2020 and the State Health Improvement Plan will also be available at the Health Department’s 12 district offices.

Visit the Health Department at http://healthvermont.gov, follow us on Twitter and join us on Facebook for health information, news and alerts.

Conference: Moving to Action, Achieving Results

Where: Sheraton Hotel, Burlington, VT

When:  Tuesday May 7, 2013
Registration 7:30 – 8:30 am
Program starts at 8:30 am and ends at 4:00 pm
REGISTER TODAY: www.vtfoodbank.org

Learn more here!

Featured Presenters & Facilitators: Dr. Lindsey Godwin & Dr. Mathew Moehle

The 2013 Vermont Foodbank Hunger Action Conference will be filled with ideas and experiences that will move us from inspiration to action.

• Participants will be guided to utilize the latest approaches for creating positive results in their organizations and communities
• Attendees will learn from and inspire each other by sharing their personal success stories of combating hunger
• A number of short presentations by “Shining Examples” from around Vermont and beyond that will inspire and stir curiosity on issues of education, health, community engagement, etc.:
  • Speakers: Steven Ritz, the Green Bronx Machine and his students, Hal Colston, executive director of the Vermont Commission on National and Community Service and founder of the Good News Garage and Neighborkeepers, and Doug Davis, director of food services at Burlington School Food Project
• Breakfast, networking lunch, and a local resource marketplace

Please join us by registering today at: www.vtfoodbank.org!

We will seek out innovative programs that are taking a holistic approach in their work to create fundamental change for low-income Vermonters. Grant applicants should demonstrate that they approach their work through the lens of social justice and equity. This program is not intended to fund projects that solely provide direct services to individuals.

Areas of interest include:

• equity in education
• access to safe and affordable housing
• access to jobs with livable wages
• workers rights
• access to affordable health care
• access to healthy and affordable food

We will prioritize programs that work to involve and give voice to constituents most impacted by the problem they seek to address.

Process: Proposals may be submitted through our on-line application process by June 15th for review in September.

Please go to our website: www.benandjerrysfoundation.org to learn more about the Vermont Economic Justice Grant Program and access our guidelines and on-line application process.

If you have any questions, please contact Rebecca Golden, becca.golden@benjerry.com

Benchmarks for a Better Vermont

Click here to learn more: CCAT Overview March 2013

BBVT is now taking applications from Vermont nonprofits seeking a scholarship for the CCAT. Visit Core Capacity Assessment Tool to apply. The first 25 applicants meeting the eligibility criteria will receive a full scholarship for the CCAT, a $300 value.

Here are five grant seeking tips that can make or break your next grant proposal. They come from Martin Teitel, a respected foundation CEO for most of his career.

• The single most important part of your proposal is your five- or six-sentence summary.
• One prime reason that proposals are rejected is because they focus too much on problems, and too little on solutions.
• What distinguishes a great grant writer from a good one isn’t the artistry of the writing, but the ability to communicate passion.
• It’s often counter-productive to pick up the phone and ask to speak with the foundation’s CEO.
• Posing this simple question, “Are there things I can add to strengthen my proposal?” can sometimes unlock the vault.

Marty’s advice is precious and he shares it all in his book, The Ultimate Insider’s Guide to Winning Foundation Grants.

I wanted to let you know about a webinar on shared housing being sponsored by  Enterprise Community Partners.  On Thursday April 11^th a nationwide webinar “Exploring Shared Housing: A Flexible Model for Increasing Affordable Housing Options”.  It will start at 2:00 EST and go for 90 minutes.  This will address both homesharing match up programs like ours,  as well as shared residences sponsored by non-profits. Here is a link to the webinar: http://www.enterprisecommunity.com/knowledge-central/live-online-events

Rising housing costs and shrinking public subsidies require us to consider a variety of approaches for meeting our community’s housing needs. Shared housing is a flexible model for increasing affordable housing options. Learn about the Enterprise-sponsored Strategic Guide for Scaling Shared Housing, a valuable resource for housing professionals. Hear from agencies in Vermont, Maryland and California that use shared housing to serve vulnerable populations. This webinar will provide an overview of the field and highlight shared housing’s role for maximizing the existing housing supply while stabilizing households and neighborhoods.

Here is a link to the webinar. http://www.enterprisecommunity.com/knowledge-central/live-online-events   Please share it with colleagues and others who might be interested.

It is very exciting that things are starting to happen on a national level!

Some say this phenomenon is a bad idea. Laura Northrup wrote an article last week about “Why Ordering ‘Suspended’ Coffees for the Needy Is Stupid and Inefficient”.

A UK paper wrote more positive spin to this coffee crazy saying “A nice, hot cup of goodwill”. And this ‘unoffical’ report from the StarbucksMelody shares way to really help those in need.

So what do you think? Is this just a social media trend, a viable option for helping the poor or a terrible idea for everybody?

Vermont became the first state on Monday to publish the rates it would charge people who don’t currently have health insurance to get coverage – a key step toward establishing the health exchanges that are central to the federal health care law known as Obamacare.

Under the proposed rates, the amount that individuals would pay every month would vary from $360 for the most basic package to more than $600 for the most comprehensive.

Rates for family and group plans would be higher, and people at certain income levels would get federal subsidies to help pay for their insurance.

Here’s one example: a family of four with an annual income of $32,000 would pay $45 a month. That compares with a single person making $40,000, who’d pay $317 a month.

Read More.

Vermont received a “C+” when it comes to government spending transparency, according to “Following the Money 2013: How the States Rank on Providing Online Access to Government Spending Data,” the fourth annual report of its kind by a federation of public interest research groups that includes the Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG).

“State governments across the country – including Vermont – have become more transparent about where public money goes, providing citizens with the information they need to hold elected officials and businesses that receive public funds accountable,” said Paul Burns, executive director of VPIRG. “But we still have plenty of room for improvement.”

“This report shows that many states are getting impressive results from making contracts and subsidies more transparent,” said Phineas Baxandall, Senior Analyst for Tax & Budget Policy at U.S. PIRG.  “Vermont is not yet among the leading states, but it has shown marked improvement over last year.”

Officials from Vermont and 47 other states provided the researchers with feedback on their initial evaluation of state transparency websites. The leading states with the most comprehensive transparency websites are Texas, Massachusetts, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, and Oklahoma.

Read more.

Department of Justice: National AMBER Alert Training and Technical Assistance Program

CFDA: 16.543

Deadline: May 13, 2013

Amount: Estimated funds available: $2,500,000. Estimated number of awards: 1.

Eligibility: Nonprofit organizations, for-profit organizations, and institutions of higher education

Description: This program provides support to increase the nation’s capacity to respond to incidents of endangered missing and abducted children. The supported organization will provide training and technical assistance to law enforcement agencies, AMBER Alert coordinators, child protection professionals, broadcasters, and others concerned with child abduction and victimization.

Contact: Program office, 877-927-5657

Grants.gov announcement

The government-controlled mortgage giant Fannie Mae, which needed a $116 billion federal bailout after the housing bubble burst in 2007, said Tuesday that it earned a record $7.6 billion in fourth-quarter 2012 and $17.2 billion for the year.

That allowed it to pay $11.6 billion in dividends to the U.S. Treasury Department last year, Fannie Mae says. Since 2008, it has “paid taxpayers $35.6 billion in dividends.” Looking ahead, “we expect our earnings to remain strong over the next few years,” Timothy Mayopoulos, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Read more.

The Howard Center Talent Management Team (TMT) will be hosting a Spring Job Fair.  Service area representatives will be available to discuss all open full time, part time and seasonal vacancies.

When: Thursday April 11th, 2013 11am-2pm

Where: 208 Flynn Avenue, Burlington

This event will be heavily promoted in our community. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Human Resources at 488 6950 or email HR at HRHelpDesk@howardcenter.org

The Barre Area Senior Center is looking for an Executive Director.
Part-time — 25 hours/week
• Must have experience working with seniors
• Must have computer skills, and website experience
• Knowledge of grant writing necessary
• Able to organize and plan new programs, as well as oversight of existing programs
• Bachelor or Associate Degree with relevant work experience preferred

Please mail resume, letter of interest and references by April 8 to: Barre Area Senior Center, c/o Dorothy Neve, CONFIDENTIAL, 135 N. Main St., Barre, VT 05641

NO EMAILS PLEASE.

Spring Lake Ranch is a therapeutic residential community with the mission to support and empower people with mental health and substance abuse challenges to grow and thrive. The Director of Development implements a variety of strategies to develop donors and solicit contributions to support the organization.

Ideal candidates will have appropriate education (master’s preferred), comprehensive management skills (to excel at senior administrative level), and extensive development experience (minimum five years). Candidates are expected to be highly competent motivators of trustees, staff, and volunteers. Previous experience in a non-profit healthcare setting and CFRE certification is strongly preferred.

To apply, email a resume by 4/30/13 to Tom Conry, Human Resources Director: tom@springlakeranch.org

See the full Vermont Nonprofit Conference 2013 Report.

Trine Bech presents Results Based Accountability 101 at the Vermont Nonprofit Conference 2013 held at Lake Morey Resort on March 21st. Find more information on the Conference.

Results Based Accountability ™ provides nonprofit organizations with a powerful, practical way to measure impact, manage performance, build partnerships and tell your story in ways that strengthen your organization, increase sustainability and improve community well-being. The workshop features:

• Overview of the RBA framework,
• Models of the five steps for developing Performance Measures, and,
• Examples for “turning the curve” on Program Accountability.

RBA is outlined in “Trying Hard is Not Good Enough” and pioneered by Mark Friedman. RBA was first adopted in Vermont more than a decade ago, under the leadership of Con Hogan and the Vermont Agency of Human Services and by the United Way of Chittenden County–among others. Currently, Benchmarks for a Better Vermont is implementing a federal grant to increase the number of nonprofits using the RBA model and to connect them with policy makers to “turn the curve” on pressing community challenges.

Presenter: Trine Bech, Esq., Executive Director/ Vermont Parent Representation Center, Inc.

Find more information on the Conference.

To learn more about this video go to CCTV.

Presented at the Vermont Nonprofit Conference 2013 held at Lake Morey Resort on March 21st. Find more information on the Conference.

Panelists:  Dolly Fleming, Executive Director/Mercy Connections
Sue Graff, Community Investment Director/ United Way of Windham County
James Lockridge, Executive Director/Big Heavy World
Dr. Stacey Miller, Managing Partner/ The Consortium for Inclusion & Equity
Lee Trapeni, Shelter Case Manager/Morningside Shelter
Diana Wahle, Developmental Assets Coordinator/Windham Southeast Supervisory Union
Karina Ware, Executive Director/Youth Safety Council of Vermont

To Learn More About This Video Go To CCTV.

This workshop is designed for those who’ve already tried their hand at proposal writing. We will cover the “sticky issues” that often stymie those with great intentions: translating project ideas into clear, measurable goals and objectives; determining outcomes to demonstrate you’ve attained project goals; designing effective, easy-to-implement evaluation strategies; and building realistic budgets (including the often vexing match requirement).  You may bring in a current or past draft to share; we will use some examples from proposals-in-process.

Tackling the Tough Topics: Goals & Objectives, Outcomes & Evaluation, Building Budgets
Workshop Leader: Anne Lezak, Principal, ADL Consulting
When: Saturday, April 27, 9:00 – 4:00
Where: Stafford Technical Center – Rutland
Cost: $129

To register please download, fill out and mail in the Stafford Adult/Cont.Ed Registration Form.
Or email Maryanna at mezzo@rutlandhs.k12.vt.us or call 770-1178

Anne Lezak, MPA, has extensive experience developing proposals for federal, state, and foundation grants. She has been lead writer on major federal grant applications ranging from $400,00 to $8.3 million, and has written numerous smaller proposals awarded to mental health, aging, education, and child-serving agencies. Anne regularly leads grant-writing workshops and courses at the local, state and national levels.  She teaches Masters-level courses in Grant Writing and Outcomes & Evaluation at Marlboro College Graduate School.

Part 2: Sharing Methods and Strategies

Participatory Action Research (PAR) is a powerful tool for building knowledge and strategies for change. However, PAR can seem confusing and difficult to implement given the normal demands of running our organizations and programs. Building upon the fundamental values, principles, and methods of community-driven participatory evaluation presented in the first webinar, Transforming Communities: Technical Assistance and Training Resource Center (TC-TAT) and co-presenters Alisa Del Tufo from Threshold Collaborative and Miho Kim from DataCenter will conclude the two-part series with real life examples. In this Webinar we will attempt to break down and understand the elements of PAR and show step by step, how these projects are designed and implemented.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

This Webinar will use examples of actual PAR projects to demonstrate a variety of tools, project designs and impact. We will look at the work of CONNECT, the Domestic Workers Alliance and others to bring about change. Each project discussed will highlight the use of a particular tool and method (polling, surveying, story gathering, etc) providing participants with a practical and theoretical understanding of PAR.  Learn More.

This was originally posted on the Philanthropy News Digest on March 26, 2013.

The goal of the Mary Kay Foundation is to eliminate domestic violence. As part of its effort in this area, the foundation makes grants to organizations in the United States that assist survivors of domestic violence by operating emergency shelters. The grants are announced each October in observance of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Funds awarded by the foundation may be used for operating expenses, with the exception of staff travel. The foundation will award a grant to at least one domestic violence shelter in every state. Any remaining funds will be distributed based on state population.

In 2012, the foundation awarded grants of $20,000 each to more than a hundred and fifty women’s domestic violence shelters across the nation.

Only applicants operating an emergency shelter (i.e., immediate overnight housing) for survivors of domestic violence are eligible to apply for a grant. Applicants must be recognized as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

See the Mary Kay Foundation Web site for eligibility and application guidelines.

Link to Complete RFP

Using Opposite Poles in Coaching…

When you are on the cusp of change, you are at an intersection, poised between two, opposite directions. In Gestalt coaching, we call these opposite directions “poles,” like the North and South poles.

In one direction, you are drawn toward the change you think you want to make. A client says, “I want to free myself to be a more strategic leader by developing the leaders who work for me.” The change you want to make could be a business need, a longing, a vision, an aspiration—or some combination.

The opposite pole is a pull in the direction of stasis or staying put. When I ask, “what keeps you where you are?” my client answers, “I’m much too busy to spend the time it’ll take to develop the leaders who work for me” and then, “besides, I can’t possibly change right now because I’ve got deadlines and…” She adds several compelling reasons.

As a coach, I encourage my client to explore both poles. As we do so, I check in on myself. As a coach, it is easy to have a bias toward change. After all, isn’t a coach’s job to help clients move toward change?

Actually not. The coach is there to help you explore, understand, and feel your way through unfamiliar territory. Albeit with a lot of specialized skills and frameworks, we are fellow explorers. One of our jobs is to assist you in getting to know what, in group process, Sam Kaner aptly calls “the groan zone” where, in a problem-solving process, a direction and course of action are not yet clear.

So, my client and I explore both poles. My clients are organizational leaders, so they are familiar with some of the ways to conceptualize the pull toward change—visioning and planning, for example. Most are less familiar with exploring the opposite pole—the pull toward staying put. At this pole are commitments that are strong and often hidden from awareness. At this pole are habits, mental maps, and patterns of experience that have long worked for you—at least in certain ways.

My client says, “I’m so used to staying busy that I don’t know how to be any other way.” So we explore how busy-ness serves useful purposes while also preventing her from operating in new ways. Underneath this habituated need to stay busy are assumptions that are so deeply embedded that she can no longer see them.

While we explore the pull toward stasis, I acknowledge and honor these old assumptions and commitments that contribute to my client’s staying put. How very well they have served this successful leader, whose productivity, smarts and drive propelled her to the top.

At this point in our exploration, my client and I might co-create some small experiments to get to know both poles better. I am not trying to generalize about what happens in every coaching session, but rather, illustrating something about the nature of change.

Change is paradoxical. It happens not by assuming a position, “I’m going to change,” but by exploring a dynamic play of polar opposites. At one pole: learning about and therefore more fully being who you are right now. At the opposite pole: wanting and envisioning movement toward something new. When we understand both what holds us in place and what impels us to change, we are able to see possibilities, free ourselves up, decide, and commit.

Subscribe to ReVision Newsletter.

A group of 25 educators, nonprofit leaders, funders and consultants gathered on March 29, 2013 at Champlain College’s Miller Center to discuss the opportunities for leadership development in Vermont.

Our working objective is to bring together the key leaders in Vermont’s leadership development community to identify gaps and opportunities and work together toward a “ladder of opportunity” that leverages our collective resources for greater impact. The meeting was organized by leadership development coaches Mark Furnari and Susan Palmer (Susan Palmer Consulting LLC), Common Good Vermont and Melissa Hersh of Champlain College.

We believe that it is possible to knit together the myriad leadership initiatives throughout the state and expand leadership training opportunities throughout the population– from grade-school through (and past) retirement.   We’d measure success by expanded leadership training, improved outcomes and a net gain in the well-being of Vermonters.

To advance the discussion, we invited a small group of thought leaders together to test these assumptions and determine if there is common cause to move towards a larger collaboration.

During the meeting, we gained a better understanding of some of the current leadership development initiatives in Vermont and conducted a Population Level Results Based Accountability exercise to identify fruitful next steps. The notes from this meeting are included, below.

These conversations will continue over the next several months. If you are involved in leadership development (any sector, any part of the state) and interested in participating as we seek to improve the delivery of leadership development for all Vermonters, please get in touch with Lauren-Glenn Davitian at Common Good Vermont (davitian ‘at’ cctv.org)

MEETING PROCEEDINGS

The question: How do we integrate and build upon current leadership development efforts (training, practice, mentorships) at various life cycle stages (elementary, high school, college, young professionals, mid-life professionals, retirees) to create a leadership pipeline (“cradle to grave”) that prepares us to be self-actualized leaders: able take responsibility for our own life choices and fully engaged in our communities?

Questions generated through the discussion:

• What is leadership?
• What are the gaps?
• How do we create opportunity for meaningful relationships to develop (where real leadership development takes place)?
• How can we support current, underfunded efforts (e.g. Community Coalitions) that aim to create communities of leaders?
• How do we connect mentors and business leaders to community needs?
• How do we develop the capacity of individuals to connect as peers?

Observations generated through the discussion:

• For younger people, leadership development happens in co-curricular activities (sports, student council) but it is not labeled as such.
• Core of change happens in relationship: More important than development of curriculum and training, are the relationships between young/older people and their mentors, advocates, coaches, teachers.
• We need to create the feedback loop between learning and practice.When we define leadership, we are seeking to promote influential v. positional leadership.
• Culture Shift is required to develop the full potential of community leaders. We are at a transformational moment in time and have to make a decision about where we are going.
• Leadership Literacy is what we seek to advance. Civic Engagement is what we aim for.

Resources noted:
Institute for Student Aspirations – Aspirations Research based on surveys with million students across the nation. http://www.qisa.org/

• Map the current landscape using human development life cycles: Track Life Stage and Methods that Work: Who is providing what to whom, what and how? ID the Gaps.
• Sustain the Conversation: expand the circle, create more tables for discussion.
• Design opportunities for practice through resources and convening.
• Take diversity into consideration as we move forward.
• Pay attention to our own development as a group.
• Talk to peers and young people about our stories.
• MORE TO DISCUSS HERE….

NEXT STEPS (for meeting organizers)

• Follow up conversations with meeting participants.
• Sustain the Conversation through larger circle meetings.
• Assess scope of mapping project.
• Appreciative Inquiry Summit exploration.

Health Kids Day, put on by Burlington YMCA is free community event. Come make your own hula hoop, do japanese origami, build an edible fruit sculpture, play in bouncy castle and get an on-the-spot caricature by Vermont artist Carl Meff.

This is a great event for all ages.

When: April 13th, 2013 9am-2pm

Where: Pomerleau Family YMCA at 266 College Street, Burlington, VT

Cost: FREE for ALL!

Learn more.

Healthy Kids Day is a Y-USA national initiative to improve families’ health and well-being.  The event takes place simultaneously at over 1,900 Y’s across the country and kick-starts summer planning with a gymnasium of ideas on how to stay healthy and engaged all summer long, a critical time for children’s health.

The Ben & Jerry’s Foundation is pleased to announce the RFP for our multi-year, Vermont capacity-building grant for the 2013 cycle . Please distribute this announcement to any Vermont non-profit organizations on your contact list that you feel might benefit from the grant and that meet our overall guidelines for funding. Deadline for proposals is June 1st.

More information.

The National Council of Nonprofits is offering this free webinar on building capacity by using pro bono work.  Powered by Pro Bono author Aaron Hurst predicts that tapping into pro bono expertise as a deeply integrated business strategy is transforming the nonprofit sector— and as Catchafire’s CEO, Rachael Chong will attest, charitable nonprofits are successfully leveraging pro-bono assistance into increased capacity for higher performance and organizational effectiveness.

REGISTER TODAY!

But before your nonprofit takes the leap with professional volunteers, hear from these experienced leaders what it takes to successfully leverage pro bono expertise and transform volunteers into valuable assets and advocates for your mission. This webinar is designed to help staff and board leaders engage pro bono consultants in a strategic and effective way.

Register.

The Nonprofit Finance Fund just released their 2013 State of the Nonprofit Sector Survey, supported by the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. Here is the short story:

Nearly 6000 respondents from all 50 states–34 from Vermont–reported financial and management details showing the substantial changes that many organizations are making after years of economic stress. In the course of NFF’s 30-plus years, we have seen economic ups and downs, but current trends go beyond these cycles and point toward more lasting changes in the way social services are funded.

There is much nuance to be discovered in close examination of these data, and we invite you to do so at our online Survey Analyzer.

These are the headlines:

Nonprofits need new funding sources and models:

• 42% of survey respondents report that they do not have the right mix of financial resources to thrive and be effective in the next 3 years.
• 1 in 4 nonprofits has 30 days or less cash-on-hand.
• Over the next twelve months, 39% plan to change the main ways they raise and spend money.
• 23% will seek funding other than grants or contracts, such as loans or investments.

Nonprofits that receive government funding face particular challenges:

• Only 14% of nonprofits receiving state and local funding are paid for the full cost of services; just 17% of federal fund recipients receive full reimbursement. Partial reimbursements require additional funding to cover the growing gap as nonprofits serve more people.
• Government is late to pay: Among those with state or local funding, just over 60% reported overdue government payments; over 50% reported late payments from the federal government.

Under these challenging conditions, many nonprofits are unable to meet growing need in their communities:

• For the first time in the five years of the survey, more than half (52%) of respondents were unable to meet demand over the last year; 54% say they won’t be able to meet demand this year.
• This represents a worrying trend; in 2009, 44% of nonprofits said they were unable to meet demand.
• Jobs (59%) and housing (51%) continue to be top concerns for those in low-income communities.
• 90% of respondents say financial conditions are as hard or harder than last year for their clients; this is actually a slight improvement from prior years’ outlook.

Nonprofits are changing the way they do business to adapt to the new reality. In the past 12 months:

• 49% have added or expanded programs or services; 17 percent reduced or eliminated programs or services.
• 39% have collaborated with another organization to improve or increase services.
• 39% have upgraded technology to improve organizational efficiency.
• 36% engaged more closely with their board.

Learn more: Explore the data yourself with our updated interactive NFF Survey Analyzer

• Share what you find there with us and your peers
• Review highlights in a press release
• Read our national summary, complete with data visualizations.
• Visit our Survey home page
• Read a Chronicle of Philanthropy article featuring the results

Taken together, these data reflect the challenges facing the nonprofit sector. But the discussion doesn’t stop there. We see these results as an opportunity to start difficult but productive conversations about finances and organizational practice. In the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing analyses and resources to encourage those conversations on our Social Currency blog, and we welcome your feedback, insights and, especially, success stories. Look for another e-mail from us soon about a webinar in mid-April that digs deeper into this year’s results!

Finally, we are grateful to the nearly 6000 of you who found the time – in the midst of everything you do – to help assemble this picture. This year’s total represents a six-fold increase in response from the first year of our survey and confirms the growing appetite for consistent, in-depth, fact-based data about the financial health of the nonprofit sector.

Whether your organization is among our respondents or not, thank you for taking the time to learn more about the struggles nonprofits are facing and helping us think through solutions that will allow us to build a more just, vibrant and equitable society together.

Sincerely,

The Knowledge & Communications Team

Nonprofit Finance Fund

Contact us: research@nffusa.org

The event starts at 10 a.m. and runs through 1 p.m., followed by light lunch and networking. If you can’t make it to Burlington (294 North Winooski Avenue), you can watch the live webcast of the presentation.

Amy Sample Ward is a blogger, facilitator and trainer focused on leveraging social technologies for social change. She is also the Membership Director at NTEN. In 2009, Amy co-authored Social by Social: a handbook in using new technologies for social impact, that you can read for free at SocialBySocial.com. She has worked in and with advocacy organizations, private foundations, and community groups in the US, UK and around the world.

Here it is, your annual dose of data.

Sweet! Online revenue was up 21% last year. Monthly giving was positively booming, up 43%.

Refreshing! Social media audience sizes skyrocketed in 2012. Nonprofits increased their Twitter followers by 264% last year.

Kinda bitter! A whole bunch of email metrics weren’t looking so hot, from click-through rates to response rates. (The details matter here, and for the details you need the full report.)

Ready to dive deeper into the data and see how your program measures up? Download the brand-spanking-new 2013 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study now.

Along with our friends at NTEN, we gathered data on email, fundraising, advocacy, social media and mobile from 55 of the nation’s leading nonprofits. And we didn’t just gather the data – we crunched, analyzed, agonized over, and became very, very close friends with it. This is the one and only indispensable guide to what’s happening online for nonprofits.

Wanna find out if your organization is leading the way or getting left behind? Which sectors are breaking records and who struggled in 2012? What kind of Facebook posts get the most Likes and the most clicks?

Download a free copy of the report.

Dates & Times: May 3, 6PM – 8 PM Shop First  and May 4, 10AM – 6 PM Main Event

The best selection of pre-loved and new apparel for women, children, plus a few fabulous finds for men.

Proceeds from this event will benefit DREAM, a nonprofit organization. DREAM (Directing through Recreation, Education, Adventure and Mentoring) is changing the lives of low-income youth and college student volunteers in Chittenden County and across Vermont.

The event will be held at the Burlington Town Center at 101 Cherry Street in Burlington. Main entrance will be through the mall or Cherry Street Mall entrance.

Shop First tickets ($100) gets you first dibs, a VIP gift bag including goodies from Lake Champlain Chocolates and more!

Shop First tickets are limited, so there will be plenty of great clothing for the Main Event on May 4th. Click HERE for Shop First tickets!

The main event is free and open to the public. We will be rolling out fresh merchandise throughout the day, so even if you come late, you’ll find a few things you love!

We accept Master Card, AmEx, Discover, Visa, cash and checks.

For more info visit The Clothes Exchange or email us.

To learn more about the DREAM program visit their website here.

Join us on our Facebook and spread the word!

CLOTHES DROP OFF
Location: 101 Cherry Street in the Burlington Town Center
* April 17th 3-6PM
* April 20th 11-3PM
* April 24th 3-6PM
* April 27th 11-2PM

GIVE & GET

Give your new or gently used clothing at these locations, and get!

• 20% off dresses, denim, sweaters and shoes for any like ‘give’ at Monelle (Burlington & Stowe locations)
• 20% off one full priced item at April Cornell

JobsinVT.com

This year’s Vermont Nonprofit Conference 2013 at the Lake Morey Inn in Fairlee, Vermont offered 265 people and 191 organizations opportunities for networking and so much more.  The energy at the conference reflected true engagement, sharing of ideas and eagerness to network to strengthen the well-being of Vermont. The number of seasoned nonprofit leaders, along with fresh faces gave the conference a sense of diversity  with people from all sectors, regions, and sizes of organizations. Watch “a day in the life of the VT NPO Conference”.

The presentation materials are now available.

Attendees report:
“The Conference gave me ideas, tools, and energy to do the work I do, better”. 
“We felt the vibe at the conference was about learning, collaboration, and helping Vermont and Vermonters.”
“I feel invigorated to work more with my board and board chair.”
“The entire day was wonderful and full of very useful and impactful information.”
“I am so impressed by the amazing energy of intelligent well directed individuals in our state.”

Gina Haddock gets ready for “Tap Your Board’s True Potential”.

This Conference had a little something for everyone. The venue –The Lake Morey Resort– featured Vermont at it’s most scenic. The exhibitor tables gave conference-goers a chance to learn about resources for their organizations.  Conference workshops ranged from Results Based Accountability by Trine Bech, Esq. to Productivity Strategies for Nonprofit Leaders by Porter Knight. K.D. Paine beamed in to discuss her new book “Measuring the Networked Nonprofit”.  And attendees were serenaded by the country tunes of Tim Brick.

Agenda for the Day | Meet the Presenters | Meet the Attendees | Reading List | Conference Materials (more to come!) | Underwriters | Full Report

While the theme of this event was The Data Driven Nonprofit, the buzz word of the day was impact.  While so many

The Common Good VT Team

nonprofits undertake work that is vital to the health and welfare of our people and environment, many of us operate with limited funding and overlapping missions.  Attendees took on the questions of the day: How can we be more strategic, more collaborative and ultimately have a bigger impact? Using the Results Based Accountability Framework, participants are asking the equally important questions: what are we doing? How WELL are we doing it? Is anyone better OFF?

Plenary on Vermont’s Culture of Accountability

Common Good Vermont  and Benchmarks for a Better Vermont would like to thank Conference underwriters as well as the CCTV Productions Team (Meghan O’Rourke & Kevin Harms) for video recording and our volunteers: Maggie Burnett from Opera North and Valerie Brosseau from The Burlington Emergency Shelter for their help and amazing smiles!

If you haven’t had a chance yet to tell us what you think, please tell us now!

Your annual budget is your financial roadmap. In this webinar, learn to create an effective budget process that will get everyone involved and ensure that your budget document reflects your organization’s mission, strategic plan, and programmatic priorities for the upcoming year. Nonprofits Assistance Fund will walk you through our 10-step budgeting checklist and discuss practical steps you can implement at your organization.

When: April 29, 3013, 12pm-1pm CST

This webinar is an introduction to budgeting and is designed for those who are leading the process for the first time or anyone looking to expand their current budgeting practices.

Learn More and Register!

The Rockefeller Foundation is accepting nominations for the 2013 Jane Jacobs Medals. Named for the late author and civic activist and administered by the Municipal Arts Society, the awards recognize individuals whose work challenges traditional assumptions and creates new ways of seeing and understanding New York City.

Each year, the foundation awards medals to two living New Yorkers whose creative uses of the urban environment contribute to a more diverse, dynamic, and equitable city. This year, medals will be accompanied by prizes totaling $200,000. One award recognizes an individual’s leadership and lifetime contributions to the field of urban planning, while the other recognizes new ideas and activism that reflect Jacobs’s ideals.

Nominees should view New York City as a place of hope and expectation that attracts new people and new ideas. In addition, through their work, nominees should challenge traditional assumptions and conventional thinking; promote dynamism, density, and diversity; generate new principles for the way we think about development and preservation in New York City; take a common-sense approach to complex problems; provide leadership in solving common problems; respect neighborhood knowledge; and generate creative use of the urban environment.

Nominations can be submitted electronically through April 30.

See the Rockefeller Foundation Web site for eligibility and nomination guidelines.

Contact:
Link to Complete RFP

After years of economic stress, many nonprofit organizations are changing the way they do business in order to adapt to new economic realities, a report from the Nonprofit Finance Fund finds.

According to NFF’s 2013 State of the Nonprofit Sector Survey (15 pages, PDF), 49 percent of the 5,983 nonprofits that responded to the survey said they have added or expanded their programs or services, while 17 percent have reduced or eliminated programs or services; 39 percent have collaborated with another organization to improve or expand services; 39 percent have upgraded technology to improve organizational efficiency; and 36 percent have engaged more closely with their boards.

Sponsored by the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, the survey also found that organizations dependent on public-sector funding face particular challenges, with only 14 percent of the nonprofits that receive state and local funding reporting they were paid for the full cost of services and just 17 percent of federal fund recipients receiving full reimbursement. Moreover, even when government does reimburse nonprofits in full for services rendered, it is often late to pay. According to the survey, more than 60 percent of nonprofits receiving state or local funds reported overdue payments, while more than 50 percent who receive funds from the federal government reported late payments.

As challenging economic conditions persist, many organizations are finding it difficult to meet the growing demand for services in their communities. Indeed, for the first time in five years, a majority of survey respondents (52 percent) said they were unable to meet demand over the last year, compared to fewer than half (44 percent) in the 2009 survey. The survey also found that more than four in ten respondents (42 percent) said they do not have the right mix of financial resources to thrive and be effective over the next three years; that one in four (25 percent) have thirty days or less of cash on hand; that more than a third (39 percent) plan to change the way they raise and spend money over the next year; and that more than a fifth (23 percent) hope to broaden their revenue streams beyond grants and/or contracts to include things like loans and investments.

“Nonprofits are changing the way they do business because they have to: government funding is not returning to pre-recession levels, philanthropic dollars are limited, and demand for critical services has climbed dramatically,” said Nonprofit Finance Fund CEO Antony Bugg-Levine. “At the same time, 56 percent of nonprofits plan to increase the number of people served. That goal requires change and innovation — for nonprofits, for those who fund them, and for the broader systems we need to preserve and expand economic opportunity and social progress.”

“Nonprofit Finance Fund Survey of 5900+ Nonprofits: Organizations Innovating and Adapting to New Reality.” Nonprofit Finance Fund Press Release 3/25/13.

Wouldn’t you love to help out your favorite nonprofit Vermont charity this year with a gift of up to $1,000? What if we wrote the check? Enter our contest before April 1, 2013 for five chances to do just that.¹

JobsInVT.com, Vermont’s #1 employment resource, is celebrating 10 years of connecting job seekers and employers in Vermont! As a thank you, we are launching our JobsInVT.com Live Work Give campaign, giving away a total of $6,000 to 10 different Vermont nonprofits with quarterly and year-end drawings – but we need your help!

JobsinVT.com is randomly selecting five Vermont job seekers and five Vermont employers to pick the 10 Vermont nonprofit recipients for us!

Enter the contest here once between now  and February 28, 2014. If you qualify, you may refresh this page and enter as both a job seeker and an employer (two entries).²

Vermont Oxford Network, Inc. (VON) is a non-profit voluntary collaboration of over 900 global Neonatal Intensive Care Units. Our mission is to improve the quality and safety of medical care for newborn infants and their families through a coordinated program of research, education and quality improvement projects.

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation has announced grants totaling more than $1 million in support of nine documentary film projects that address issues ranging from inequality to immigration to the impact of natural disasters on poor communities.

The Chicago-based foundation, which has supported independently produced film and video for thirty years, received nearly four hundred applications for its latest round of documentary film grants. The projects selected to receive grants are:

• American Exile, a documentary about the U.S. government’s attempt to deport two brothers, both Vietnam War veterans, to Mexico after they had lived in the United States for sixty years ($150,000);
• Betrayal of the American Dream, a film that explores America’s widening income gap and its effect on the middle class ($250,000);
• Charge, a documentary that chronicles lithium extraction in Bolivia and a series of uprisings over control of that country’s natural resource wealth ($120,000);
• Cooked, a film that examines the disparate impact of natural disasters on poor neighborhoods and the importance of building resilient communities ($120,000);
• Landfill Harmonic, a documentary about a youth orchestra in Paraguay whose instruments are created from recycled trash ($80,000);
• Liyana, a film that looks at a group of orphans in Swaziland who explore their own lives through the art of storytelling ($80,000); Raising Bertie, a documentary about an alternative high school in rural North Carolina with a focus on digital technology and the challenges of preparing rural low-income youth for the twenty-first century economy ($120,000);
• Reinvention Stories, a documentary project, public radio series, and collaborative Web site about Dayton, Ohio, and how it is adjusting to a post-industrial economy ($80,000); and
• Rich Hill, a film that explores the circumstances children in an impoverished rural Midwestern town face and how their choices affect their hopes for a brighter future ($120,000).

“MacArthur’s media grantmaking supports work that explores contemporary social issues with high quality reporting intended to inform, educate, and inspire reflection and action,” said Kathy Im, the foundation’s director for media, culture, and special initiatives. “This year’s film grantees tackle long-term and difficult issues through in-depth and compelling storytelling, illuminating under-reported domestic and international issues, and creating empathy for various points of view.”

“MacArthur Awards Nine Documentary Film Grants.” John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Press Release 3/21/13.

To register, please go to: http://colleagues-to-collaborators.eventbrite.com/. For more information, contact Jodi Clark at jodic@gradschool.marlboro.edu or 802-258-9232. More information on Conferences that Work can be found at www.conferencesthatwork.com.

_______________________________________

The Peter F. Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation is given each fall to three nonprofit organizations in recognition of existing programs that have made a difference in the lives of the people they serve. The award has been given annually since 1991 and is accompanied by a first-place prize of $100,000 and two runners-up prizes of $7,500 and $5,000. The program is generously supported by The Coca-Cola Foundation.

Applications Accepted Starting: April 1, 2013.

Read more about this award.

Read more about social innovation in nonprofits.