Statement on Fiscal Cliff Deal

NYCON's Statement on the "Fiscal Cliff" Deal and Implications for New York State's Nonprofits  

The New York Council of Nonprofits, along with colleagues nationwide, expresses mixed views about the passage of the "American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012" (H.R.8, as amended).

NYCON applauds Congress for the strong bipartisan vote in passing a compromise bill to avert certain immediate threats posed by the fiscal cliff. We thank those elected officials and staff members on Capitol Hill and at the White House who worked around the clock to make this compromise possible and for maintaining incentives for charitable giving for most Americans. As negotiations continue on the now-postponed sequestration cuts and on the debt ceiling, we encourage Congress and the President to recognize how essential these incentives are for the work charitable nonprofits perform in every community throughout the country.

However, the New York Council of Nonprofits also would like to express deep concern that Congress and the President have failed to resolve the pending across-the-board cuts of $54.6 billion from domestic spending programs that will touch virtually every person and every community in America.  

Federal policymakers have failed to recognize that the arbitrary sequestration cuts to domestic programs will reduce funding without reducing the underlying human needs, thereby increasing demands on states, local governments, and nonprofits in local communities while also decreasing resources to provide needed services. Too many policymakers apparently are unaware that federal funding actually flows to the states and localities to deliver basic human services. Often these services are delivered through contracts with nonprofits because governments have found charitable nonprofits to be more efficient and effective, in part because they are mission-driven rather than profit-driven. After five years of serving so many more for so much longer with so much less, America's charitable nonprofits are past the breaking point. 

 

Kicking the can down the road means kicking those who are already down and struggling to get back up. We must keep up the pressure on Congress and the President to stop the punitive and arbitrary cuts and get to work on continuing our economic recovery.

To learn and do more, NYCON encourages our members to visit the National Council of Nonprofits website at www.councilofnonprofits.org.

For the full article click here.

Oppose Cap on Deductions for Charitable Donations

Help Nonprofits Across the Country Oppose the Proposed Cap on Charitable Deductions Learn More and Add Your Voice Today! As New York's statewide association of charitable nonprofits with over 3,000 members, the New York Council of Nonprofits, Inc. (NYCON) is strongly urging our Representatives and Senators to oppose efforts to include charitable deductions in an overall cap on itemized deductions and to oppose any other efforts to reduce current levels of charitable deductions. Already Doing More With Less... Community nonprofits, including those considered faith-based, are at the front lines of protecting and strengthening individuals, families and their communities and simply do not have the capacity to bear more burdens associated with ill-advised and sometimes arbitrary withdrawal of federal, state and local governments from domestic programs. During this recession, the workload of many of the state's nonprofits has increased as poverty levels have risen. Research has shown that nationally the demands on the nonprofit sector have soared since at least 2008, increasing 73% in 2008; 77 % in 2009; 77% in 2010; and 85% in 2011. Regarding the proposal of including charitable deductions in the pot of an overall cap of itemized deductions, this will not only be harmful to the good work of charities but is unfair. How Will This Affect Nonprofits? Consider that charitable deductions are different from the other itemized deductions in that the public, not the individual taxpayer, benefits from the expenditure (unlike with mortgage interest, gambling losses, etc.) A cap on itemized deductions would be consumed by fixed-cost deductions being the "first-dollar in" such as mortgage interest and state/local taxes, leaving little or no room under the cap for discretionary charitable gifts. Charities in high tax states, such as New York State, are particularly at risk. In these times, we urge Congress to consider policies that encourage charitable giving, not discourage donations. We ask you to urge our elected officials to oppose legislation that threatens the capacity community nonprofits to acquire the charitable resources needed to better the lives of people and the communities they live in. To Add Your Voice to Those Opposing this Cap, Click Here To learn more about the potential impact of the "Fiscal Cliff" on nonprofits, click here.

Recruiting Youth for Your Board: New Idea for Continuing Challenges

As more of our organizations face recruitment and engagement issues with our Boards of Directors, it is time to think outside of the box and take new approaches.  One such idea is to consider youth serving on our Boards.  Below is a great overview and info from the National Council of Nonprofits, the umbrella organization for the NYCON, for your consideration.

You’re only as old as you feel

By Jennifer Chandler
 

When a question landed in my inbox last week about youth serving on nonprofit boards, my thoughts turned to our society’s attitudes towards age and the role that charitable nonprofits can play in bridging the “generation gap.” The question in my inbox was: “Are there any programs that prepare youth to serve on nonprofit boards?” The question prompted me to think about the distance between young and old, and how nonprofits bridge what I think of as a “perspectives gap.”

But first, let’s clarify a threshold issue relating to the question posed. While seven states (Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Utah) prevent anyone under the “majority age” (usually 18) from serving as a board member of a nonprofit corporation, most states are silent about the age of board members. This leaves the decision about what age is appropriate for board members up to the individual nonprofits. (To our knowledge there are no state laws that restrict older individuals from serving on boards.)  If you are curious what your state law says about the age of board members, you can research the statutes that govern nonprofit corporations in your state at LawForChange.org.
 

The post "Youth Board Members: Can minors serve on nonprofit boards?" by Emily Chan, co-author of the Nonprofit Law Blog, gives an excellent overview of the legal issues raised when young people serve on boards. Chan raises many important questions nonprofits should tackle before inviting youth to take on decision-making roles, and she offers several alternatives to board service. Chan’s post is very comprehensive (and we always appreciate Nonprofit Law Blog’s carefully researched resources). My own view is that whether someone under 18 should serve on a nonprofit board should not turn on whether the “youth board member will feel isolated” or “what skills or training the youth board member needs that the organization currently does not provide?” Isolation, preparation for taking on the fiduciary duties that board service requires, and other issues are equally relevant across the age spectrum. What we are really exploring when we ask the age question is whether this particular individual has skills and experiences that will add value to the board’s work and/or whether placing that person on a governing board is necessary to fulfill other goals, such as growing the bench of leadership for the organization, or creating ambassadors to segments of stakeholders that are important for the nonprofit’s work.

 

Conscious of the need for continuity of leadership, many nonprofits cultivate talent, whether young or old, to make sure that multiple perspectives are represented on their board and that when one generation steps aside, another is ready to take its place. “It’s something the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits advocates, as we want to see nonprofits grow their leadership and ensure that other generations are ready to serve,” explains Trisha Lester, Vice President of the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits. “Authentically engaging young people as partners and decision-makers is a crucial and challenging topic for youth-serving nonprofits (and other groups). Service on governance boards can be a powerful way to do this, but there are other ways to accomplish the goal of giving this particular constituency voice,” says Molly O’Connell, Resources and Advocacy Coordinator at the Maine Association of Nonprofits.  Looked at another way, we all need mentors, and when seasoned seniors can pass their wisdom and insights on to younger generations – whether defined as under 18 or under 30 – everybody wins over time. (If you think that working with board members is a little like herding cats, this 60 Minutes story about the importance of role models for elephants may suggest a different analogy!)

 

Moreover, a board that boasts a diversity of perspectives is simply better-poised for scenario planning. Different life experiences not only help board members see around the organization’s corners, but also help the organization see challenges in the community more clearly. Such added perspective can lead to more effective problem-solving and greater impact. When the work of charitable nonprofits reflects diverse perspectives, this is a perfect example of a “triple bottom line” ROI because it benefits the nonprofit, volunteers, and the community.

 

At the National Council of Nonprofits we are strong believers in the value of proactively preparing leaders and diversifying governing boards (and staff) of nonprofits. We also believe in the important role that charitable nonprofits play as places where people in communities, young and old, of all shapes, sizes, and colors, come together to learn from each other and collaboratively solve problems.

 

So what does age have to do with it?  Age, like any other characteristic, adds meaningful texture to our own perspectives. And the perspectives of charitable nonprofits are really all about the perspectives of individuals in communities, coming together through nonprofits, to affect change and improve their worlds.

 

Resources about diversity on boards (National Council of Nonprofits)

Resources on board development (National Council of Nonprofits)

Resources about cultural competency (Bridgestar and BoardSource)

Resources

Boards and governance issues  (National Council of Nonprofits)
 
Next Generation and Governance (BoardSource)
 
Plan A – How Successful Nonprofits Develop Their Future Leaders (Bridgestar)
 
Youth Advisory Committees (Michigan Community Foundation Youth Project)
 
Creating a Teen Board/Ambassador Program (United Way of Central New Mexico)
 
Case study on board diversity (Maine Association of Nonprofits)

Rural Giving Tied to Economic Development

Article of interest for our region:
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Born and raised in rural Jones County, one of North Carolina's poorest counties, Chris Meadows opted after college to stay rather than join the exodus of young adults moving out of the county.

Now, as principal of Jones Senior High School in Trenton, Meadows wants to inspire other young people to remain, and give them tools to succeed.

In a collaborative initiative that includes the N.C. Rural Center, the Jones County affiliate of the North Carolina Community Foundation is working to raise $10,000 to create an endowment fund to support an entrepreneurship program at the high school.

"If we get our kids to come back and start a business and be successful, they will start a cycle of transferring wealth from one generation to the next and keep the wealth here instead of going out of state or out of the county," Meadows says.

The Jones County initiative is part of a larger effort by the Rural Center and the North Carolina Community Foundation, and their counterparts in states throughout the U.S., to reverse the flow of wealth and residents from rural counties.

"Throughout rural America, kids are leaving because there aren't jobs," says Jason Gray, director of research and innovation at the Rural Center. "Homegrown philanthropy can and should be a resource to plug into targeted community economic-development work that makes these communities a place where their children can stay."

Over the last two decades, while the statewide population under age 18 grew 22 percent and the population age 24 to 30 grew 5 percent, 22 rural counties lost population under age 18, and 54 rural counties lost those age 24 to 30, including 15 counties that lost over 20 percent of that age group.

In Jones County, for example, the number of residents age 24 to 30 fell by 232 from 1990 to 2010, or 23.4 percent.

The Jones County initiative has the goals of inspiring students to launch local businesses, and inspiring donors to invest in endowment funds to boost the local economy while retaining philanthropic assets in the community.

Beth Boney Jenkins, vice president for development at the North Carolina Community Foundation, says a local couple has pledged to give $1,000 to create the new Jones County fund if the foundation's local affiliate can raise $10,000.

"Rural development philanthropy," she says, involves "bringing people in rural communities together to teach them how to use philanthropy to raise local dollars to address their own needs."

Sally Migliore, director of community leadership at the North Carolina Community Foundation, says the Jones County initiative can serve as a model for other rural counties, each of which can identify and address its own needs, "inspiring and promoting philanthropy over the long haul" to address local needs.

Gray says the Jones County initiative is part of a larger effort by the Rural Center to help rural communities retain and support youth and young adults.

Meadows says a key goal of the entrepreneurial fund will be to "showcase the potential" of staying and working in the county.

"That's one of our biggest challenges," he says. "We just have to show kids there's a lot we can do in Jones County if we decide to stay here."

How to Donate like a Pro

In a Time of Tighter Budgets—For Benefactors and Charities Alike—It's More Important Than Ever to Make Your Gifts Count. Here's How

Investors demand a good return from their assets. Now donors are increasingly seeking the same for their charitable dollars.

Many philanthropists, large and small, are anxious about writing checks—and many endowments have yet to recover fully from the bruising they took during the financial crisis. Finding the worthiest, most-efficient organizations to maximize the impact of your donations couldn't be more pressing.

Yet identifying the best charity can be as difficult as picking a good money manager, with philanthropists left to navigate a world of tax forms, ratings systems and often misleading jargon. It's easy just to write a check and hope for the best—but you stand the risk of getting a poor return on your charitable investments.

Making matters more complicated: Many long-cherished tax breaks are coming under fire. Next year could bring the return of limits on itemized deductions, including those for donations, if Congress doesn't extend the Bush-era tax cuts for couples earning more than $250,000 ($200,000 for individuals). Even if Congress extends the cuts for all, the idea of cutting back charitable tax breaks is still in play: President Obama's deficit commission this week proposed limiting the deductions for large gifts to amounts above 2% of adjusted gross income.

All this is making donors rethink their giving strategies, says Patrick Rooney, executive director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. "They want to make sure now more than ever that they're using their money wisely."

Overall giving is down sharply from its recent highs. Among high-net-worth households—who account for the bulk of individual charitable dollars—average giving dropped 34.9% to $54,016 in 2009, from $83,034 in 2007, according to a survey conducted by the center and sponsored by Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

The downward trend appears to be continuing. One in five people say they are giving to fewer organizations than in the past, according to a November poll from Harris Interactive. A third are giving in smaller amounts this year than last. And the percentage of people not giving at all has doubled to 12% in 2010 from last year.

There are a host of charity-rating agencies to consult, but to get a more-accurate picture, consider volunteering your time before giving money. Do your own research: Talk to beneficiaries, visit work sites and study a group's finances yourself to judge the effectiveness of its programs.

That's what Denise Winston did. The former business banker "always just wrote a check," she says. But after leaving her job and starting her own financial-education business in 2009, the Bakersfield, Calif., resident became more frustrated over how little of her donations were going to beneficiaries. She decided she would spend time volunteering with different organizations before giving, partly to get a better sense of her time and money's impact.

"I'm closer to the person receiving support," she says. "Anyone can write a check. But I like to give things you can't buy."

Here's how to navigate the system and make sure the dollars you donate are making the biggest impact possible.

Article continued at Wall Street Journal.com, includes ways of gauging donor's impact and red flags that donors should watch out for.

Nonprofit Knowledge Matters: Advocacy as a Core Capacity

When we think of "capacity building," we most often think of training staff and board members - perhaps to be more effective fundraisers or to leverage technology to improve program delivery.

How often do we think of advocacy as a core capacity?

A nonprofit needs a clear voice that rises above the din to be effective at accomplishing its mission. Nonprofits need the capacity to communicate:

• how their work results in positive change
• why donors should support them, and
• who is helped by their work.

Often, nonprofits also need to communicate what action they hope their stakeholders will take in support of the nonprofit’s mission. These are examples of how nonprofits engage in advocacy!

Advocacy requires communications capacity: Does the nonprofit have the right technology to update its website and effortlessly send out attractive email blasts? Can the nonprofit maintain and easily update a database so that its communications are reaching the right audiences? Does the nonprofit employ staff or engage volunteers who are trained in media relations so that when the local radio calls and asks for a comment on a breaking story the nonprofit is prepared?

Advocacy may also require courage. How so? There are still many who do not think that advocacy is an appropriate role for nonprofits. The National Council is working every day to change that perception, and thankfully, more and more nonprofits, as well as those that support them, are aware that advocacy is a core capacity for any nonprofit.

The Capacity Building Hub on the National Council's website features resources that address building capacity for advocacy, including links to reports illustrating why advocacy is one of the best investments that a foundation can make in a nonprofit.

Read a recent study by the National Committee for Responsible Philanthropy that found that of the 20 nonprofits studied, "These nonprofits leveraged foundation grants that generated a $150 return for every dollar invested in their policy engagement efforts."

Measuring the impact of advocacy activities can be difficult.

We like the approach taken by the Innovation Network in its Practical Guide to Advocacy Evaluation that urges nonprofits not to measure the hoped-for-end-result of an advocacy effort such as ending hunger in our state (that could take decades to attain) but rather to focus on the contribution the nonprofit is making to the goal.

Nonprofits that shine a light on those contributions, even incremental ones, such as bringing local nonprofits to the same table with government officials, will capitalize on the momentum they create, and provide their stakeholders with a concrete example of the positive effects of advocacy in a community.

Does someone you know still think that nonprofits can't be advocates? Or that nonprofits, "can't lobby?"

Help them understand why advocacy is legal, needed, and easy.

Visit our website for more capacity building tools including:

• Communications and marketing resources.
• Ideas on capacity building for planning.
• Tools for self-assessments, analyzing costs of programs, and guidance for building a nonprofit's board.

"Nonprofit Spark": A Radio Talk Show for New and Emerging Nonprofits

"Nonprofit Spark" is weekly radio talk show through The Voice America hosted by Renee McGivern, a Minnesota-based nonprofit consultant. This show, launched in September, is focused on spurring dialogue on issues of emerging and new organizations. Check out her show live on Thursdays at 8am EST or catch up on past episodes on her show's webpage.

About the Host: Renee McGivern has 30 years of experience working in nonprofits and trade associations. She’s worn the hats of development, communications and executive director and also spent a great deal of her career designing training seminars for the newspaper industry. McGivern’s passion is to facilitate learning, communication and action so life works for people and organizations. “Nonprofit Spark is the first national radio show devoted to new and emerging nonprofits,” says McGivern. “It’s my dream job - to spark learning and action so leaders are effective at making a huge difference in the world.”

Foothills Performing Arts changes name

The Daily Star reported that the performing arts center in Oneonta is now called Foothills Performing Arts Center and Civic Center. Foothills has also reorganized their staffing plan (including they no longer are looking for an interim director) and approach to raising the remaining funds they need to complete the facility. Read more here.

The focus now is clearly on completing the facility, and the board seems to recognize they are the key to making this happen. It will be a slow process building the organization up, but hopefully the board can get the community and grassroots support it seemed to lack in the past. Have your own take? Share it here.

The True Impact of a Small Nonprofit on Business

The Daily Star reported on the recent news that the owner of the Oneonta Theatre has joined forces with a talent promoter to present performances, concerts, touring groups, community events and fundraisers on the historic stage at 47 Chestnut St.

This partnership replaces original plans for the Friends of the Oneonta Theatre to operate the facility, pay rent and utilities, fix up the facility and offer programs. Read the article here.

This development should not come as a surprise with the current funding environment and challenges arts and cultural nonprofits are having in raising operating dollars. Could this small, volunteer group really operate and renovate this building at full capacity? Could they have brought it up to full operation quickly, bringing new business to downtown in the next couple of months? Probably not, but even if they could in the short term, the future sustainability would have been in question. With so many arts and cultural nonprofits struggling in the region, the capacity for support and fundraising is strained.

But what should be recognized is what a group of grassroots supporters accomplished that no one else seemed to be able to do. Friends of the Oneonta Theatre should be credited with the redevelopment of this important property, and helping kick start this new business partnership. Their volunteer efforts, fundraising and advocacy are a clear demonstration of the positive and essential impact nonprofits can have on downtown Oneonta and the business community. Have your own thoughts, share them here or send them by e-mail.

Interest in homegrown charities on the rise

The Orlando Sentinel featured an interesting article on nonprofit start ups and the increasing popularity of the idea. As the article relates:

Starting your own charity has been a popular idea in these recessionary times, spurred both by downsized workers re-evaluating their career choice and what some have called the Compassion Boom.

"There's a high interest right now, tied to fact that the economy has people thinking about what they want to do," said Margaret Linnane, executive director of the decade-old Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership Center at Rollins College. "They figure, 'Since I'm out of work, maybe I'll be fortunate enough to find something in an area where I can serve the community.'"

But starting your own charity is another matter. The process takes much more than a noble idea or sincere heart.

"Anyone who thought it was going to be simple … learns quickly that it's not so easy," Linnane said. "And a lot of people mistakenly think if they have a great cause, there will be no problem having their idea funded."

There's a lot of bureaucracy involved, a fair amount in fees and a whole lot of homework. And that's only to launch it. Of Florida's nearly 50,000 public charities in 2008, fewer than half made $25,000 or more in gross receipts — meaning the majority never raised enough money to pay anyone a decent salary.

At the Rollins philanthropy center, which teaches a class on starting a nonprofit, Linnane said many students discover that running a charity is much more administrative work than they imagined — when what they really want is the face-to-face human interaction.

Ultimately, "nonprofit" is only a tax status. You're still essentially starting a business.

In the past decade, there has been a "pretty dramatic" increase in the number of public charities, said Steve Delfin, president and CEO of America's Charities, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that helps employers run workplace-giving campaigns. The number of public charities registered with the Internal Revenue Service, for instance, increased 60 percent nationally from 1998 to 2008, and the number in Florida nearly doubled. It is still too early to say what happened in 2009.

But not everyone thinks growth is a good thing.

"There is a lot of redundancy and duplication," Delfin said. "And as in any industry where you get a lot of growth, now I think we are going to see this whittling down."

There is some evidence that's already happening. For the first time in decades, individual charitable donations dropped in 2008, compared with the year before. With less money being split among more charities, some nonprofits found themselves laying off employees, cutting programs or closing altogether.

Daunting? Maybe. But for the bold, visionary and determined, the experts contend, success is still possible. It just may take longer. Read more here.

Looking for Ideas to Raise Money: Check This Out

I came across this info on Twitter, which is a great place to quickly find interesting ideas and information for your nonprofit. Someone "tweeted" about Meals On Wheels And More (MOWAM) in Austin, Tx, and their response to raising money in hard times. As they related on their website:

"In a challenging economy, people are finding economical and creative ways to help Meals on Wheels and More. Here are a few folks who have set the bar for finding unique ways to raise money without spending money."

Check out the ideas, ranging from community connections and events to social networking. Have your own ideas, share them with other EDs here.

Why Nonprofits Should Advertise

Dan Pallotta, a recent guest on NY Council of Nonprofit's online radio show, offered an interesting viewpoint on his new Free the Nonprofits blog with the Harvard Business Publishing about Why Nonprofits Should Spend Money on Advertising. As he relates:

This weekend the main sections of the New York Times and the Daily News contained big ads for Hummer, T-Mobile, AT&T, Macy's, Bloomingdales, and a host of electronics and furniture retailers. The home page of the Huffington Post right now is running an ad for Delta Airlines. On CNN.com it's Netflix. ABCNews.com — Choice Hotels. Oprah.com — Crystal Light beverages. No ads on any of these pages for Darfur, ending AIDS, or curing breast cancer — indeed no ads for any 501 (c) 3. This is not an anomalous day. Gigantic consumer brands advertise. Gigantic causes don't. Read more here.

He goes on to compare advertising between the corporate and nonprofit sectors, and the reasons why nonprofits should advertise. He even points out that the form 990 doesn't ask about advertising/marketing expenses. Do you agree or disagree with his point? Do nonprofits need an ad in the NY Times? How do nonprofits fight the perception that this would be wasteful or should they even try?

Blogs in, badges out as Girl Scouts modernize

MSNBC.com featured an article by Washington Post reporter Megan Greenwell that discusses how Girl Scouts is trying to rebrand and modernize. As the article relates:

Long associated with images of dorky vests and singalongs around the campfire, the 97-year-old Girl Scouts of the USA is trying to become cool. Or at least cooler. With enrollment dropping sharply, the organization is experimenting with a total makeover of the Girl Scout experience.

What's in: books and blogs written in girls' voices on topics such as environmental awareness and engineering; troops led by college students; videoconferencing with scouts in other countries. Read more here.

Social media and web 2.0 tools are clearly playing an important role in these efforts.

Teaming up for science fun

Collaboration is the name of the game, especially in this economy. So, what better partnership than two educational organizations joining forces to provide a great series of programs. Oneonta World of Learning (OWL) and the Science Discovery Center are teaming up to present Science Saturdays: a series of "hands-on" workshops for children aged 5-13 led by SUNY Oneonta faculty and students and additional activities led by OWL for children ages 2 and up.

This partnership is a simple start to a number of opportunities. Could these organizations develop a joint calendar and website? How about a joint fundraising mailing? Take note, if these volunteer-drive organizations can do it, we all can do it. How about a list of collaborations and partnerships between nonprofits? Post your examples here or e-mail us.

Attend a virtual conference?

Have you heard about Second Life yet? A virtual 3D world, Second Life has become an outlet to develop a virtual identity. It has also become a home for many nonprofits. Another development, which may be timely in our present economy, is Virtualis, a convention center in Second Life. As the website relates: "Mirroring lavish real-world convention centers with lush grounds, Virtualis is owned and operated by real life meeting and event management professionals, boasting state of the art facilities with educational breakout rooms, a grand ballroom, exhibition halls and special event space to be used for networking and social gatherings or virtual teambuilding events. Virtualis integrates state-of-the-art technology making your programs powerful, cost-effective and eco-friendly."

Could this have applications for nonprofits? Can you imagine nonprofit professionals attending virtual workshops, conversing with each other, or having an evening dinner, all the while they are sitting at their computer? It definitely seems worth a try.

Nonprofit Recommendations for President Obama

The National Council of Nonprofits, in collaboration with CCSNYS and other state nonprofit associations across the country, submitted its recommendations to the Obama Administration regarding ways the federal government can work better with nonprofits. The full recommendations, available here, begin with:

Dear President‐elect Obama:

Congratulations. Your election as President is historic for many reasons, including one that journalists completely overlooked: You are America’s first nonprofit President.

Nonprofits have touched virtually every stage of your life. We recognize that your lifelong immersion in nonprofits includes the following:

• Being born in a nonprofit hospital;
• Attending middle school and high school at a nonprofit;
• Studying at a nonprofit college;
• Earning your undergraduate degree from a nonprofit university;
• Earning your professional degree from a nonprofit law school;
• Working several years at nonprofits in New York and Chicago;
• Honing your community‐organizing skills by teaching at a nonprofit and running another nonprofit;
• Teaching constitutional law when employed by a nonprofit university;
• Playing basketball at countless different nonprofits;
• Serving as a board member of several other nonprofits;
• Getting married in a nonprofit;
• Marrying the leader of a community nonprofit who became an executive at a nonprofit hospital; and
• Soon sending your daughters to a nonprofit school.

Your campaign’s successful use of lessons you learned through nonprofits shows you appreciate the insights available from nonprofits. Thus, nonprofits across America hope you will shine the light on the tremendous value of the sector.

Thank you for your Transition Team’s request to provide our recommendations, which are attached. We hope this signals a new beginning for governments and nonprofits to work together to serve our common constituents.

On behalf of our colleagues and members, we extend our best wishes to you and your new Administration.
Respectfully,

Tim Delaney
President & CEO, National Council of Nonprofits

Doug Sauer
Board Chair, National Council of Nonprofits and
CEO, Council of Community Services of New York State, Inc.

A Nonprofit's Holiday Insight

Paula Huntsman, the Council Director of Otsego County - Girls on the Run, shared these recent thoughts:

Jack Johnson's Rudolph Song lyrics:
Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
had a very shiny nose
and if you ever saw it
you would even say it glows.
All of the other reindeer
use to laugh and call him names.
They never let poor Rudolph join in any reindeer games.
Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say;
"Rudolph with your nose so bright,
won't you guide my sleigh tonight?
"Then how the reindeers loved him,
as they shouted out with glee
"Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
you'll go down in history!
"Well Rudolph he didn't go for that he said "I see through your silly games.
How can you look me in the face when only yesterday you called me names?
"Well, all of the other reindeers, man,
well they did sure feel ashamed,
"Rudolph, you know we're sorry.
We're truly gonna try to change"

This song is a great example for life. Rudolph is different but Santa sees Rudolph's difference as something good and useful- a gift! Rudolph stands up for himself and the reindeer who were teasing apologize and vow to change. Oh, if we could all do this;

• ~See our differences as gifts
• ~Stand up for ourselves and be heard
• ~Apologize when we've hurt someone
• ~Vow to change our bad habits.

At Girls on the Run we talk about all these issues. The very first lesson as we are getting to know each other we explore our likes and differences. In another lesson we learn key phrases for standing for ourselves without putting the other person on the defensive. We also have a lesson where we explore our habits and think about change.

My New Years wish is for all of us to apply these lessons to our lives and by doing that we will make the world a better place to be!

Peace,

Paula