We still can’t believe that we’re more than halfway done with August. Time flies when you’re having fun compiling the best of the web! We can’t help you slow down time, but we can continue to provide great, informative links about nonprofits. Our five top stories this week are below:
1) Do you want to volunteer with an organization but don’t know the best way to serve? Does trying to figure out the difference between an Advisory Board Member and a Junior Board Member give you a migraine? Cynthia Remec, the Executive Director and Founder of BoardAssist, has a clear and helpful guide; read her blog post to figure out what position might be best for you:
https://trust.guidestar.org/volunteering-vs.-serving-on-a-nonprofit-board-vs.-donating-what-nonprofit-role-is-best-for-you
2) We’re not sure whether this falls under “cautionary tale” or simply “unfortunate event,” but Nonprofit Quarterly alerted us to this story. Due to shortsightedness on the part of GeneSysResearch Institute and some questionable choices by for-profit Steward Healthcare systems, the Massachusetts nonprofit Center of Cancer Systems Biology was caught up in GeneSys’ bankruptcy (GeneSys was CCSB’s fiscal sponsor) and several years of valuable cancer research was destroyed as a result. It’s extremely difficult to prevent financial mismanagement at a separate nonprofit, but it’s worth taking note and trying to have as many contingency plans as possible:
https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/08/10/nonprofit-bankruptcy-leads-destruction-cancer-research/
3) On a much happier note, TechCrunch is reporting that Paypal users will now have the option to donate directly to their favorite charities from Paypal’s home page, and with no fee—as soon as you log in to Paypal, you’ll see a “Donate” button. As long as your organization of choice is certified through Paypal’s Giving Fund, you’ll have the ability to send money to the charity. 38 million Paypal users already donate to charities, so this could make it much easier for people to make charitable donations. It’s worth checking to see if your nonprofit is equipped to accept Paypal donations:
https://techcrunch.com/2016/06/28/paypal-puts-a-charitable-giving-button-in-its-app-for-the-first-time/
4) Legalese got you down? The ABA Journal has ten tips to make your legal writing shine. Our favorite is tip #5, “Make your summary understandable to outsiders.” But the other nine tips are illuminating, too. Find them all here: http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/10_tips_for_better_legal_writing
5) The ever-reliable Board Source takes a stand on term limits for nonprofit board members (Spoiler Alert: They’re a good thing.) If you’re revising your organization’s bylaws and are looking for ways to persuade recalcitrant board members to institute limits, Board Source has some excellent talking points:
https://boardsource.org/eweb/pdf/Content-Marketing/August/Term-Limits-Thumbs.pdf
That’s all folks, at least for the next seven days. We’ll endeavor to keep bringing you the choicest news and opinions from the nonprofit and legal worlds. Questions about nonprofit organizations? Send them our way at info@b-alaw.com. Until next Friday!