November is here. This seems almost as improbable as the Chicago Cubs winning the World Series for the first time in 108 years after being down 3 games to 1… which also happened. In addition, there’s a Presidential election in four days—make sure to vote!
1) Reframing has been talked about a lot lately, both on a personal and professional scale. The blog SelfishGiving (which also hosts the nonprofit-focused podcast CauseTalk Radio) brings us the story of SickKids and its attention-getting, inspiring branding and ad campaign. SickKids wants to reframe the concept of disease and empower both the children fighting their illnesses and donors. To that end, their campaign features kids suiting up as if they were warriors in Mortal Kombat and other video games…and it’s spectacular. Watch the jaw-dropping commercial and be inspired by SickKids’ efforts:
https://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/sickkids-vs-x
2) Last week we brought you news of Goodwill Omaha and reports of its CEO Frank McGree’s outsized salary and troubling sub-minimum-wage payments to Goodwill Omaha employees. In a dramatic move—and a victory for the investigative work of Henry J. Cordes and the Omaha Herald—McGree has now resigned. The board of Goodwill Omaha has announced that it will be taking further steps to assure transparency and reform the organization. Find out about the continued actions taken for accountability:
https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/11/02/resignation-ceo-marks-end-beginning-embattled-goodwill/
3) The New Yorker has a fascinating look at the rise of donor-advised funds on the Philanthropy 400 (the list of charities that have raised the most money from private sources), which opens up into an exploration of how dramatic changes in fundraising methods in the past few years are shaking up the fundraising landscape. We’re in the middle of a period of momentous change in philanthropy, and this piece is essential reading for getting the lay of the land:
http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/the-wealth-gap-in-philanthropy
4) Are there good ways to give students hands-on experience in nonprofit law? Joseph Mead, who blogs at the Nonprofit Law Blog Network, says the answer is a definitive “yes.” Mead teaches a policy advocate course at Cleveland State University that plunges students into the real world of nonprofits, partnering with a different Ohio-based nonprofit every semester. Students learn about challenges faced outside the classroom that textbooks and case law may not prepare them for—and learn how to provide more effective help to organizations and clients. Learn more about the hands-on learning taking place at CSU:
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/nonprofit/2016/10/experiential-learning-in-nonprofit-law.html
5) Trying to figure out the difference between a nonprofit with members and one without? Charity Lawyer Blog has a brief and elegant guide, and since nonprofits are required to specify whether or not they have members in their org docs, there’s a good chance you’ll encounter these two different types of nonprofits, as a donor, a board member, or just a curious citizen. Blogger Ellis Carter has all the necessary information:
http://charitylawyerblog.com/2011/04/26/nonprofit-law-jargon-buster-voting-members-vs-self-perpetuating-boards/
That’s it for the Friday Five. We’re stuffed with news and we’re only four weeks away from Thanksgiving. We’re going to have to hold some space in reserve or we may literally explode from information overload. (Well, not literally, but you get the idea.) But if you want more nonprofit information, you can follow us on Twitter and like our Facebook page.
As always, you may reach out to us with any questions about nonprofits at info@b-alaw.com. We’ll be back next week.