Tuesday, December 1, 2004: Volume #2, Issue #56
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

1. Announcements
• Meyer's Management Assistance Program
• GuideStar
• DC Mayor's Office
2. Promising Practices
• The Dirty Little Secret of NonProfit Boards
3. News
• Teacher Wants to Be Role Model for Lowell's Cambodian Students
• How Will Arts Fare in Divided Country?
• Hmong Immigrants Discover That on a New Path in America, They Must ...
• Vietnamese Pop Singers Banned for Criticising Country
• Cambodian Rapper Performs at UH
• Vietnamese Here and Abroad Applaud Scholar's View of Vietnam War
• Some Skip the Mall for Crafts Fair
• The Cost and End of Revenge
• Hmong Making Strides
• Vietnamese Community Repays Kindness by Aiding the Homeless
• Ex-Refugee Change Luck
• Vietnamese-Americans Find Community in a Group for Democracy in ...
• Cambodian Arts Director Brings Her Culture to Blair
4. Funding Opportunities
• The Abelard Foundation (CA)
• The Hitachi Foundation
• General Mills
• Public Welfare Foundation
• The Surdna Foundation
• Sun Microsystems
• Department of Health and Human Services
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
5. Resources
• Foundation Center

I. Announcements

DC—Meyer's Management Assistance Program is new and improved in 2005! Next year the deadlines for submitting letters of inquiry to MAP and the areas in which nonprofits can receive MAP funds will change. Letters of Inquiry will be due on the same days as LOIs for Meyer's general grantmaking program - February 11, June 10, and October 3 - instead of on a rolling basis. Organizations may apply for MAP funds to help strengthen executive and board leadership, undertake planning and assessment, and improve financial management.

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GuideStar, the national database of nonprofit information, is used by many donors and grantmakers to research nonprofit organizations before they give money to them. Let these funders know more about your good work by adding information to your GuideStar listing. A free online form allows you to add or update your nonprofit's information on the GuideStar website.

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DC—The Mayor's Office of Partnerships and Grants Development, in conjunction with the Washington Council of Agencies, will host its 6th Annual Public-Private Partnership conference, Embracing, Strengthening and Sustaining Partnerships: The Reality of it All.

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II. Promising Practices

The Dirty Little Secret of NonProfit Boards

by Hildy Gottlieb

Copyright ReSolve, Inc. 2003

Warning:
The following is a topic boards do NOT discuss openly. If you feel this article is applicable to your organization, you may want to make copies for your whole board, and suggest that this become a topic for policy discussion, rather than singling out the individuals to whom it applies. Because in the end, it applies to everyone.

Fact:
On virtually every board of every NonProfit throughout the world, there are board members who do not understand how to read a balance sheet, a profit & loss statement, or any of the other financial data boards typically review and vote on. At best, your board likely contains at least a few such members. At worst, you have a majority of board members who do not have a clue about the financial statements and reports that are regularly placed in front of them.

The consequences of this widely accepted (and completely ignored) truth are many.

• Board members who vote to approve the budget, but don't really understand the budget.
• Board members who make decisions on whether or not to hire a new staff person, but don't understand whether or not the organization can afford that new position.
• Board members who vote on which fundraising approach to pursue, but couldn't do a cost/benefit analysis to determine if that really is the best choice.

Read on: http://www.help4nonprofits.com/NP_Bd_DirtyLittleSecrets_Art.htm

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III. News

Teacher Wants to Be Role Model for Lowell's Cambodian Students
Lowell Sun
November 22, 2004

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How Will Arts Fare in Divided Country?
Minneapolis Star Tribune
November 22, 2004

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Hmong Immigrants Discover That on a New Path in America, They Must ...
Kansas City Star
November 22, 2004

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Vietnamese Pop Singers Banned for Criticising Country
Hindustan Times
November 23, 2004

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Cambodian Rapper Performs at UH
Honolulu Advertiser
November 26, 2004

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Vietnamese Here and Abroad Applaud Scholar's View of Vietnam War
New California Media
November 27, 2004

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Some Skip the Mall for Crafts Fair
Visalia Times-Delta
November 27, 2004

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The Cost and End of Revenge
Boston Globe
November 28, 2004

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Hmong Making Strides
Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
November 28, 2004

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Vietnamese Community Repays Kindness by Aiding the Homeless
Los Angeles Times
November 29, 2004

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Ex-Refugee Changed Luck
Long Beach Press-Telegram
November 29, 2004

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Vietnamese-Americans Find Community in a Group for Democracy in ...
New California Media
November 30, 2004

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Cambodian Arts Director Brings Her Culture to Blair
Silver Chips Online
November 30, 2004

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IV. Grants

1. (California)
   The Abelard Foundation

   The Abelard Foundation supports organizations that reflect the communities in which they are based; expand community control over economic, social, and environmental decisions affecting a community's well-being; and build a strong informed voice on public policy issues.

   Deadline: January 15, 2005

2. (National)
   The Hitachi Foundation

   The Hitachi Foundation makes grants to enhance opportunity and quality of life for economically isolated people through business/community partnerships. Support is provided for partnerships that enable economically isolated people to retain and advance in their jobs, earn living wages, and accumulate savings and assets.

   Proposals may only be submitted at the Foundation's invitation. However we have a web-based system for inquiries from nonprofit organizations.

3. (National)
   General Mills

   The goal of the General Mills Champions Youth Nutrition and Fitness Initiative, a partnership of the General Mills Foundation, the American Dietetic Association Foundation and the President's Challenge, is to improve youth nutrition and fitness across the U.S. The Initiative will award 50 grants of $10,000 each to community-based groups that develop creative programs to help youth (ages 2-20) adopt a balanced diet and physically active lifestyle. Grants will be awarded to programs that demonstrate significant potential impact on youth groups that are at-risk or that have an impact on large populations of youth. Nonprofit organizations, government agencies, schools/school districts, and Native American tribes throughout the U.S. are eligible to apply.

   Deadline: February 1, 2005

4. (National)
   Public Welfare Foundation

   The Public Welfare Foundation is dedicated to supporting organizations that provide services to disadvantaged populations and work for lasting improvements in the delivery of services that meet basic human needs. Strong emphasis is given to organizations that solve specific problems through service, advocate to address those problems in a systemic way through changes in public policy, and empower people in need to play leading roles in achieving those policy changes and remedying the specific problems.

   Funding priorities for 2004 include community development, criminal justice, the environment, health, human rights and global security, reproductive and sexual health, and youth. While most grants are made to organizations in the United States, the Foundation has no geographic restrictions and limited support is provided to organizations in other countries.

   Deadline: Open

5. (National)
   The Surdna Foundation

   The Surdna Foundation supports catalytic, entrepreneurial programs that offer viable solutions to difficult systemic problems, as well as high quality, direct service programs. The Foundation's program areas are community revitalization, the environment, effective citizenry, arts programs focused on arts and education, nonprofit sector support, and capacity building. Nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S. are eligible to apply.

   Deadline: Open

6. (National)
   Sun Microsystems

   The Sun Microsystems Academic Excellence Grant Program donates equipment to eligible organizations that have developed creative projects that address the company's investment priorities and create partnerships for success.

   This program is for hardware donations only.

   Deadlines: December 3, 2004; March 11, 2005; June 10, 2005

7. (National)
   Department of Human Health Services

   WHO: Faith-based and community-based organizations, national, regional and local non-profit organizations involved in addressing global HIV/AIDS related issues. Applicants must have a history of developing and disseminating informational materials and providing training and technical assistance, to HIV/AIDS related organizations outside of the United States within the past three years.

   WHAT: To assist countries with developing systems of care to understand and put into action best practices for high quality, comprehensive HIV primary care and support service delivery to people living with HIV/AIDS.

   AWARD AMOUNT: Approximately $1 million dollars will fund up to 2 awards.

   CONTACT: To view the program announcement, head to www.fedgrants.gov

   For further information, please contact Thurma McCann Goldman at (301) 443-1993 or email tgoldman@hrsa.gov.

   Deadline: October 7, 2005

8. (National)
   The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

   The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced the availability of fiscal year (FY) 2005 cooperative agreement funds to establish up to ten National Academic Centers of Excellence (ACE) on Youth Violence Prevention, serving as national models for the prevention of youth violence. The purpose of the Centers is to help communities prevent youth interpersonal violence.

   As of 2005, Centers will be supported for up to ten years to promote a stable, long term focus on the complex problem of youth violence, fostering multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral interactions that can stimulate scientific creativity, speed new developments in youth interpersonal violence research and practice, and hasten translation of knowledge into health and community practice. Centers are expected to actively foster an environment conducive to reciprocally beneficial collaborations among health scientists, social scientists and the affected communities with the common goal of reducing youth interpersonal violence.

   • Approximate Total Funding: $6,800,000 (This amount is an estimate, and is subject to availability of funds).
   • Approximate Number of Awards: 7-10.
   • Approximate Average Award: $830,000.
   • Floor of Award Range: $680,000.
   • Ceiling of Award Range: $980,000 (Ceilings are for the first 12-month budget period and include both indirect and direct costs).
   • Anticipated Award Date: September 1, 2005.
   • Budget Period Length: 12 months.
   • Project Period Length: Five years.

   Eligible applicants are academic institutions/centers with a focus on health, such as: Public and private nonprofit universities; colleges; and university-associated teaching hospitals.

   Eligible applicants may enter into contracts, including consortia agreements, as necessary to meet the requirements of the program and strengthen the overall application.

   Applicants are encouraged to establish and maintain partnerships (e.g., state and local health departments, youth violence prevention and youth serving organizations, community groups and agencies, faith-based organizations and local businesses, and academic units), and include these partners, when applicable, in the center activities.

   Full details at http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-25667.pdf

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V. Resources

The Foundation Center announces a new e-learning course designed for anyone who wants to learn more about foundations, their giving, and their role in philanthropy and the nonprofit sector. Foundations and Their Role in Philanthropy is an interactive course that will cover such topics as what private foundations are, how they are different from other philanthropic organizations, and what they do and how they do it. To access this free course, visit the virtual classroom in the Learning Lab at the Foundation Center.

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If you wish to contribute to the VERB Weekly e-Digest, please send all materials to sophy@searac.org