Thursday, July 19, 2004:
Volume #2, Issue #38
The VERB Weekly Email Digest
Edited by Sophy Pich, VERB Project Associate
Note: Documents on this page or in this section may be in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. In order to read them, you require Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is downloadable free from Adobe.
In This Week's Issue
- Announcements
- Online Conference: Building Community Through Service
- Promising Practices
- Charities May Not Engage in Political Campaign Activities
- News
- Year-Ago Slaying Spurs Reforms
- Their Future in America Is Uncertain
- Vietnamese American Blasts Little Saigon's
- Second Vietnamese American Leaves Controversial
- U.S.-Laos Trade Splits Hmong Communities
- Very Happy, Very Tired: First of 30 Hmong Families Arrives Here
- Hmong Quilt Arriving at Brookdale Library
- Honk for the Hmong
- Hmong Journey
- Proud to Be Vietnamese
- Haven from Life's Hard Lessons
- Funding Opportunities
- Nickelodeon
- Tony Cox Community Fund
- The Corporation for National and Community Service
- The Mary Byron Foundation
- The Harry Chapin Foundation
- The Sociological Initiatives Foundation
- Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
- Resources
- the Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF)
I. Announcements
Online Conference: Building Community Through Service
July 22, 2004
Hurry, only 10 days left to register! Mark your calendars for July 22nd!
Building Community Through Service is the first online conference to be
offered by Michigan 4-H Youth Development and will focus on youth voice
when it comes to service-learning, civic and political engagement, and
community-building. Much like a traditional conference, but at less than
the quarter of the cost, this one-day online event will feature keynote,
session leaders and panel presenters.
Schedule conflict on the 22nd? Register anyway and take advantage of
previewing and downloading presentations, reviewing chat logs, accessing
quality resources and networking all week long from July 19-25!
Register now!
Cost is $25 per registrant. Payment by credit card only. Online
registration, full conference program (available: July 12) and further
details are now available at our website.
Still Have Questions?
Feel free to contact: Beth Cheng, Conference Coordinator, at
517-432-7641 or at chengb@msue.msu.edu
Beth Cheng, Extension Associate
Project Coordinator
"Unleashing the Power of Youth" Community-Based Service Learning Project
4-H Youth Development Michigan State University Extension 160
Agriculture Hall East Lansing, MI 48824-1039
voice: 517-432-7641
fax: 517-355-6748
e-mail: chengb@msue.msu.edu
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II. Promising Practices
Charities May Not Engage in Political Campaign Activities
IR-2004-59, April 28, 2004
WASHINGTON—Charities should be careful that their efforts to educate
voters comply with the Internal Revenue Code requirements concerning
political campaign activities, the tax agency said today in a presidential
election-year advisory.
Organizations described in section 501(c)(3) of the Code that are exempt
from federal income tax are prohibited from participating or intervening in
any political campaign on behalf of, or in opposition to, any candidate for
public office. Charities, educational institutions and religious
organizations, including churches, are among those that are tax-exempt
under this code section.
These organizations cannot endorse any candidates, make donations to their
campaigns, engage in fund raising, distribute statements, or become
involved in any other activities that may be beneficial or detrimental to
any candidate. Even activities that encourage people to vote for or against
a particular candidate on the basis of nonpartisan criteria violate the
political campaign prohibition of section 501(c)(3).
Whether an organization is engaging in prohibited political campaign
activity depends upon all the facts and circumstances in each case. For
example, organizations may sponsor debates or forums to educate voters. If
the debate or forum shows a preference for or against a certain candidate,
however, it becomes a prohibited activity.
The federal courts have upheld this prohibition on political campaign
activity, most recently in Branch Ministries v. Rossotti, 211 F.3d 137
(D.C. Cir. 2000). The courts have held that it is not unconstitutional for
the tax law to impose conditions, such as the political campaign
prohibition, upon exemption from federal income tax.
If the IRS finds a section 501(c)(3) organization engaged in prohibited
campaign activity, the organization could lose its tax-exempt status and it
could be subject to an excise tax on the amount of money spent on that
activity.
In cases of flagrant violation of the law, the IRS has specific statutory
authority to make an immediate determination and assessment of tax. Also,
the IRS can ask a federal district court to enjoin the organization from
making further political expenditures.
Read on: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=122887,00.html
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III. News
Year-Ago Slaying Spurs Reforms
July 12, 2004
San Jose Mercury News
***
Their Future in America Is Uncertain, But Hmong Departing Thailand...
July 12, 2004
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
***
Vietnamese American Blasts Little Saigon's New 'Communist-Free Zone'
July 12, 2004
NCM
***
Second Vietnamese American Leaves Controversial Vietnam War Exhibit
July 13, 2004
NCM
***
U.S.-Laos Trade Splits Hmong Communities
July 13, 2004
Berkley Daily Planet
***
Very Happy, Very Tired: First of 30 Hmong Families Arrives Here
July 14, 2004
The Capital Times
***
Hmong Quilt Arriving at Brookdale Library
July 14, 2004
Brooklyn Center Sun Post
***
Honk for the Hmong
July 17, 2004
Delphos Herald
***
Hmong Journey
July 18, 2004
San Jose Mercury News
***
Proud to Be Vietnamese
July 18, 2004
Fort Worth Star Telegram
***
Haven from Life's Hard Lessons
July 19, 2004
Boston Globe
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IV. Grants
- (National)
Nickelodeon
Goal: To provide the resources to create or expand opportunities for
physical play in schools and after-school community-based organizations.
Grant Range: Approximately 25- 50 grants will be distributed annually.
The awards distributed will range from $5,000 to $10,000. Awards are
divided into two categories: A base gift of $5,000 to all award recipients
and additional matching grants of $1,000, up to an additional $5,000 per
recipient. Additional monies will be distributed on the stipulation that
the funds received from Nickelodeon match 1:1 funds raised from another
source. Funds must also be used to further an organization's physical
activity program.
Eligibility: Grants will be awarded to applicants who:
- Demonstrate the need for funding.
- Provide a comprehensive and creative plan for using the funds to initiate or expand opportunities for active physical play in their organization.
- Participate in Nickelodeon's Worldwide Day of Play and provide verifiable documentation.
Deadline: November 1, 2004
- (National)
Tony Cox Community Fund
Cable Positive's Tony Cox Community Fund is a national grant program that
exists to encourage community-based AIDS organizations and cable outlets to
partner in joint community outreach efforts, or to produce and distribute
new, locally focused HIV/AIDS-related programs and public service
announcements (PSAs).
Eligible local community outreach projects include, but are not limited to:
World AIDS Day (December 1) and National HIV Testing Day (June 27) events,
AIDS Rides/Walks, other joint efforts between AIDS organizations and local
cable operators, etc. Funding is also available for production costs of
HIV/AIDS-related programs and PSAs.
Grants are available up to $5,000 for 501(c)(3) organizations, with special
consideration given to AIDS service organizations (ASOs) and cable systems
and producers partnering with ASOs.
Deadline: September 10, 2004
- (National)
The Corporation for National and Community Service
The Corporation for National and Community Service (http://cns.gov/) has
announced the availability of $2.9 million in funding to support AmeriCorps
Professional Corps programs that engage professionals to provide health,
public safety, homeland security, education, and other human services in
needy communities.
AmeriCorps Professional Corps programs operate where insufficient numbers
of qualified professionals exist to serve a critical need, and engage
AmeriCorps members in service to address that need. The corporation
anticipates making 30 to 60 grants, ranging from $30,000 to $100,000.
Grants will support programs addressing critical community needs through
the service of professionals, such as nurses, doctors, emergency medical
technicians, teachers, social workers, early childhood development staff,
engineers, lawyers, paralegals, police officers, and firefighters in
communities with inadequate numbers of such professionals.
Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher
education, Indian tribes, and subdivisions of states, including city and
local government entities. Programs must operate in two or more states.
Public or private nonprofit employers must sponsor AmeriCorps members and
agree to pay 100 percent of AmeriCorps members' salaries and benefits. The
corporation will consider requests for grants of up to $1,000 per full-time
equivalent AmeriCorps member for program and administration costs, and will
provide an AmeriCorps education award of $4,725 for members who
successfully complete their full term of service. Awards will cover a
period not to exceed three years.
Nonprofit organizations, including faith-based and community-based
organizations that have not applied for federal assistance from the
corporation in the past, are encouraged to apply.
Deadline: August 17, 2004
- (National)
The Mary Byron Foundation
The Mary Byron Foundation (http://marybyronfoundation.org/) created the
annual Celebrating Solutions Awards to honor innovative programs that
demonstrate promise in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
The foundation seeks nominations of programs that can serve as models and
offers cash awards of $10,000 in recognition of these efforts. These are
awards for accomplishments, not grants for future projects.
The foundation typically selects four award winners each year. Eligible
programs include those that: have been operating for a minimum of three
years; have nonprofit 501(c)(3) or governmental status; demonstrate
positive outcomes; and are innovative and replicable. Individuals are not
eligible for these awards.
Any staff member, board member, volunteer, or community supporter may
nominate an institution for a Celebrating Solutions Award.
Deadline: September 10, 2004
- (National)
Harry Chapin Foundation
Funded by the Harry Chapin Foundation and administered by World Hunger Year
(http://worldhungeryear.org/), the Harry Chapin Self-Reliance Awards
(HCSRAs) program distributes cash grants ($5,000 maximum award) to
outstanding grassroots organizations in the United States for their
innovative and creative approaches to fighting domestic hunger and poverty
by empowering people and building self-reliance.
All organizations that submit an application to the HCSRAs will be included
in WHY's Reinvesting in America database, which allows sharing of
organizational information with community-based organizations, the media,
funders, and government officials.
To be eligible for a Harry Chapin Self-Reliance Award, the applicant must:
be located in the United States; be community-based and local in nature; be
a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization; demonstrate innovative and creative
programs which may include but go beyond emergency food, shelter, and
assistance; clearly demonstrate that their activities directly foster
self-reliance among people below the poverty level; and be effective and
replicable.
Deadline: August 15, 2004
- (National)
The Sociological Initiatives Foundation
The Sociological Initiatives Foundation provides grants of $5,000 to
$15,000 to support community-based research projects in the United States.
Areas of interest include but are not limited to social justice, social
welfare, human rights, literacy, language learning and use, dialect use,
and curricular issues in teaching second languages and non-native
languages. The foundation is also interested in supporting research
projects by sociologists and linguists that provide a direct benefit to
communities.
Grants are restricted to organizations that are tax-exempt under Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and classified as "not a private
foundation" under Section 509(a). The foundation does not make grants
directly to individuals but does welcome applications from academic
institutions and other qualified organizations wishing to sponsor research
projects by individual scholars or practitioners. No awards are made for
dissertation research, honoraria, or political purposes. The foundation
does not provide operating support or capital grants and does not support
direct human services.
Deadline: August 16, 2004 (Concept Application)
- (National)
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
A total of $12 million in grants will be awarded by the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation to encourage state and community tobacco-policy advocacy.
The funding can be used to support professional staff or other
infrastructure, public education, advocacy, outreach, and technical
assistance for tobacco policy change initiatives at either the regional,
state, or community level.
The grant program is designed to foster diverse partnerships in communities
and states. The foundation is especially interested in initiatives that
focus on populations most affected by tobacco use and secondhand-smoke
exposure.
Deadline: September 1, 2004
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V. Resources
The Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF)
NFF's mission is to serve as a development finance institution for
nonprofit organizations, working to fill their overall need for capital
through financing and advisory services. NFF supports its nonprofit
clients' multi-faceted contributions to communities, advances community and
economic development goals, and works to fill the overall need for
capitalization of organizations in this sector.
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If you wish to contribute to the VERB Weekly e-Digest, please send all
materials to sophy@searac.org
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