A Few Last Thoughts…

Since this is from the readings and classes from a while ago, I’ll keep to what was really interesting to me.  Last week, the guest lecture was interesting and inspiring.  I think that it is really cool that people invest their money with a third party to do good.  Organizations like this provide more legitimacy to the causes they’re funding, in my opinion.  It shows that there is a community need.  It also helps connect the need with the funding source.  This is a really interesting topic for me and I think I will investigate this more in the future.  It benefits the giver because they are doing good and getting tax breaks, and it benefits the receiver because, obviously, they are receiving the funding.

From the funding chapter the following quotes struck me:

“Nonprofit arts and culture [are supported] through local sales tax, hotel and motel room tax, or amusement (for-profit shows, movies, sports) tax” (O’Neill 165).

I thought this was interesting because it seems like a really good way to do it.  I come from a small tourist town in Oregon, and it seems really weird that we don’t have a tourism tax.  Since there is an obvious tourist season, it seems that the taxation on hotels or restaurants would really benefit the community.  I guess this isn’t really a nonprofit thing, but it the government stepped in and taxed those things, it seems like there could be more grants for this small town to make life better for a lot of the struggling population.

A short reflection on our time in class and my experiences:

Ten weeks ago, I knew nothing about nonprofits, except that they sounded like a good idea.  I didn’t realize the huge impact they had on society before this class.  I always assumed they were small organizations that helped out communities in social service ways.  I didn’t realize churches, schools, and many hospitals were nonprofit agencies.  I guess I had never thought about these things because now I can’t see how it would be any other way.

It’s interesting that the nonprofit sector has developed to fill the void between government and business.  I found the discussions on education the most interesting and most confusing.  Through out the readings and the class I kept trying to figure out if I could be a part of the nonprofit sector, and if I could, where would I belong?  During this term, I decided to declare the nonprofit administration minor because I think that nonprofits will be in my future.  Since I’m double majoring in geography and journalism, I figure I’ll do something related to an environmental nonprofit.  It’s too bad that the book didn’t include a chapter on environmental nonprofits because it would have been interesting to read more about that in the same manner as the rest of the sections.  Another option I can see myself working with is some type of community or educational nonprofit.  Helping people in a local area, and especially children in schools, is something that’s appealing to me.  My paper topic has been interesting as well because it’s how I see myself contributing something unique to nonprofits, through outreach, PR, and the Internet.  I am so glad I found PPPM and the nonprofit program, and I can’t wait to take more classes!

International Nonprofits… Deserving of the attention they receive?

This week the readings were focused on International nonprofits.  It’s interesting that there is a section on international nonprofits, but not environmental nonprofits.  The book talked about international nonprofits like they were just a section of many large nonprofits (O’Neill 169).  I found this to be strange because there are a lot of nonprofits that are solely focused on international efforts.  It talked a lot about environmental nonprofits in this chapter of the book, which made it even more peculiar that there is no chapter dedicated to environmental nonprofits. Here are some things that really struck me:

“Relief and development agencies account for 41 percent of total expenses in this subsector” (O’Neill 171).

Does this indicate that relief and development agencies are the main sectors of international nonprofit activity? Or does it indicate that these are the most costly activities?  It would be interesting to find out the percentages based on volunteer numbers, effectiveness (although it is nearly impossible to track on paper), number of people helped/served, or pure numbers of organizations.

“The revenue profile varies for different types of agencies and even for agencies in the same category. Some relief and development groups receive most of their revenue from government; others depend mostly on private donations.” (O’Neill 172).

Does government funding depend on how controversial the activities are?  For example, does a sexual education organization that is looking to help the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa receive less funding from the government because it is controversial to hand out condoms?  Do certain sectors of the Red Cross receive more grants? For example did efforts for Hurricane Katrina receive more money than the tsunami in Southeast Asia receive?

“International nonprofits work to assist other peoples and create better relations between the United States and other countries” (O’Neill 173).

Is this true?  This just struck me as a bold statement without backing up his facts!  I don’t know if I agree with this.  I think that coming into a country and pushing our own agendas can really step on some toes.  A lot of nonprofits come with good intentions, but I still think that relations can be hurt if things are done a wrong way.  Also, what some people think is good other people see as immoral, so obviously crossing international borders and cultures is really a touchy subject.  I don’t think all international nonprofits make the US look outstanding. Nonprofits are filling the gap between private and government sectors, so they’re bringing something completely new to the table.  A lot of things they bring like religion, education, and technology sometimes aren’t trusted or accepted immediately or at all, no matter the intentions or possible positive results.

Environmental Nonprofits

By: Whitney Taylor

Last term, I worked on project for a Journalism course all about environmental concerns.  We mainly researched alternative ways of recycling.  In our research we discovered a lot of local environmental organizations and nonprofits. Some of these included NextStep Recycling, BRING recycling, and Habitat for Humanity’s Restore retailer. I think that it’s organizations like these that are really helping communities tackle environmental issues like electronic recycling and waste reduction.   ReUse radio was an interesting concept for me because it combines helping communities stay sustainable while combining a journalistic aspect.  Anyway, I just thought I’d give some links that were relevant to me when I was thinking about all of this to start off this post.

What the readings really made me think about was the negatives of environmental nonprofits and nonprofits in general. It’s things like greenwashing that really make me think about motives of organizations, both nonprofits and profitable businesses.

“Large international nature groups have perfected a form of ethical gymnastics: while their very existence is predicated on saving nature, they remain mum on the environmental crimes of their own corporate partners.” (A Good Cause Gone Bad)

Greenwashing is a serious problem in today’s environmental nonprofits, and that’s something I already figured.  It’s hard to say how much we can blame nonprofits for this.  It seems they would try to fulfill their mission statements without greenwashing if they could.  With the lack of funding to tackle such huge environmental problems, it makes sense that they would accept this tainted money.

The “A Good Cause Gone Bad” article’s FedEx example made me think about things we talked about in class.  FedEx and Conservation International promoted their low-carbon vehicles as a success, but never really followed through with it.  Since the public pretty much forgot about it and most likely figured FedEx followed through with it, FedEx got exactly what they wanted: good press.

In Paul Hawken’s University of Portland speech he said:

“This planet came with a set of operating instructions, but we seem to have misplaced them.  Important rules like don’t poison the water, soil, or air, and don’t let the earth get overcrowded, and don’t touch the thermostat have been broken… the earth couldn’t afford to send any recruiters or limos to your school”

I really liked this quote because it sums up most nonprofit issues: a lack of funding. Problems don’t generate money they just take it away. Money isn’t the only thing that helps a nonprofit though, as this quote says.  There has to be a motivated volunteer base too.

Final Paper Topic

How is the Internet, and in particular, social media, affecting nonprofit activists, supporters, and causes?

A question like this was suggested in class, and it gained my attention because that’s how I see myself interacting with nonprofits in the future, through social media and the Internet.  Since I’ve basically grown up using the Internet, it’s difficult to imagine what people did before it.  I want to know what nonprofit tactics were before the Internet.  How did they reach a wide audience?  How did they advertise their message?  What strategies have changed since the introduction of the Internet? Is there a correlation between the size of smaller nonprofits and recent access to the Internet? What are successes and failures with the Internet and nonprofits? Have nonprofits been able to more effectively find their audience?

The following quote, which comes from The Center for Public Policy & Administration, addresses how the internet really opens doors for organizations like small nonprofits:

“Before the Internet, only organizations with very large budgets could afford to launch fundraising campaigns extending outside of their local jurisdictions or outside of their own states. Consequently, small organizations rarely had to deal with the process of multi-state registration. However, Internet and e-mail fundraising have become increasingly economical and effective strategies for small charities to solicit more effectively from a larger population of people. As a result, for the first time ever, many small organizations must complete numerous state applications—resulting in increased man hours and administrative costs that can be prohibitively expensive”

An early history of nonprofits and the Internet can be found on the Coyote Communications website.

This is an overview of how nonprofits effectively use the Internet.

This link provides a basic overview of the topic and a 12-step guide to using social media effectively.

Mashable is a web-based guide about how to use social media effectively for all people and purposes.  This article talks about how nonprofits and social media interact and what the results have been.

This article talks about social media and nonprofits using recent examples like Haiti and the American Red Cross.

Advocacy

By: Whitney Taylor

In class, it seemed that advocacy was a part of all nonprofits because it was defined as the way an organization gets more support.  O’Neil however, provided a different view.  In the readings it seemed like Advocacy was just as separate as healthcare, education, and social service.

It makes sense they’re poorly funded.  The have unique causes and show up on both sides of controversial issues.  Government support would probably be limited because they cant really fund controversial advocacy movements like abortion. It would also be difficult to fund advocacy organizations because they aren’t providing a specific service, like healthcare or education, so there would be no way to charge a fee for service (139).

What struck me in particular was that the government funded more human rights organizations than environmental organizations.  To me, it seems that the environment is less of a controversy than human rights (139).   In the past, human rights have always been a controversy in American society.  Should women be able to vote?  What about African Americans? What rights do workers have in their industry?  Is education a right for everyone? What rights are guaranteed to immigrants, both illegal and legal?  What are people outside of the United States guaranteed and whose responsibility is that? The environment seems to be less controversial.  The government has time after time funded national forests and given tax breaks to environmentally friendly practices.  Why are environmental advocacy organizations struggling to find this funding?

O’Neil also mentioned that the target of advocacy organizations were the government and businesses.  This seems to line up with some advocacy organizations I can think of, such as worker unions or Mothers Against Drunk Driving; each of those examples try to affect things like government legislation.  Organizations like Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) don’t seem to fit this description.  This organization’s mission statement is: “The goal of this organization is to provide neglected and abused children involved in out-of-home care with qualified and caring advocates.”  It seems like, with a mission involving advocation that CASA would count as an advocacy organization.  Or does it count as a social service organization?  What difference does it make whether they are social service, healthcare, or advocacy?  Can they be some of both?

It makes sense nonprofit organizations have filled this spot of advocacy.  People in nonprofits are motivated by what they see as right, what they value, or what their opinions may be, not by money and material things.  Specialization of nonprofit advocacy organizations (for example, by individual causes) seems to make these organizations more focused and therefore more successful.  From everything I have read and heard, it seems that no other sector is as motivated for change as the nonprofit sector.  Is it because it isn’t profit driven, but public interest driven instead?  The question of what is and what isn’t public interest was brought up in the text (147).  But, what is public interest and what isn’t?  Who decides this?  O’Neil also mentioned that nonprofit advocacy is one of many factors articulating public interest, so I wonder, what else is advocating for the public?  Why are these factors not classified as public interest?

As a Journalism PR major, I think I’m naturally inclined to think, how is the media affecting all of this?  New media, in particular, is the most interesting game changer for nonprofits, in my opinion.  With new media and more access to a wider audience, do we need these organizations to still act as a platform for what the public wants?  Do we have other options?  What works best? Will even more grassroots organizations start to appear?  TV spurred a lot of activism in the 1960’s with Civil Rights, so what is the Internet bringing to the table?

Healthcare and Education

By: Whitney Taylor

From the readings, it has been hard for me to determine what is for profit and what is nonprofit in both the healthcare and education world.

Healthcare:

If nonprofit healthcare organizations are not out for a profit, but for providing a service what does that make for-profit healthcare organizations?  I think they must exist because they see a need with a possibility of to make a little bit of money.  In the healthcare world, there will always be people needing a service.  Nonprofits, to me, seem like they are aiming to fix problems, but you can’t really fix or eliminate the need for healthcare.  The only way I can rationalize it is that healthcare nonprofits must be trying to serve a different population that for-profits.  It also isn’t logical that healthcare for-profits are out to keep people in need of healthcare.  It seems like they could be there not just for the drive of money, but because there is a need for their work.

I have always been against big business and taking advantage of others to get ahead.  In college so far, I have had the experience that business and careers are just about money, but I don’t believe that.   I don’t think that anyone really believes that all businesses and for-profits are just about making an obscene amount of money.

Maybe what this chapter has made me realize is that it’s not whether the organization or facility is a for-profit or nonprofit, but what the motive behind the organization is, or more specifically, where those profits go.  It is likely that in the field of healthcare, both nonprofits and for-profits have extra revenue at the end of the year.  I think I’ve found it is more important to examine where those funds go to determine the legitimacy and motives behind the organization.

“Health care accounts for half of all nonprofit revenue and employment” (Nonprofit Nation 91).

Another reason I don’t understand the whole role of nonprofits in healthcare is because both for-profits and nonprofits have extremely high costs to patients and high salaries to employees.  This is probably why many have argued that “nonprofit hospitals were for-profits in disguise” (Nonprofit Nation 91).  Having so much revenue and employment makes the healthcare system a huge industry.  Since it is such a big industry, it is hard to believe that someone isn’t making a profit in nonprofit organizations. Statistics show that wages are actually nearly the same in profit and nonprofit healthcare organizations.  If they are making the same amount of money and providing the same services, I don’t understand how one is profitable and the other is not.  Each must have the same requirements for equipment and costs for running the facility if they are of equal size.  So, if money isn’t going to higher wages for workers, then where are the difference in money going in nonprofits and for profits?  What would healthcare organizations rather be, for-profit or nonprofit?

The only time a nonprofit healthcare organization makes sense to me, is when it is at a small scale and not provided by the government. I might just not understand what nonprofits and for-profits do differently in the healthcare field.

It seems like in the past there has been a natural succession of nonprofits converting to for-profits.  Once the need and care is established, for-profit organizations can come in and take over.  It might be because nonprofits are more grassroots efforts that address a need or demand for something.  So, in a sense, they can create a new place for business with an existing demand.  In lecture, we talked about how this happened with daycares. Once, they were all nonprofit, but now for-profit daycares exist everywhere.

Before this class, I thought the biggest unevenness between nonprofits and for-profits was that for-profits drew more qualified professionals (rewarded with higher pay) and clients with a higher socioeconomic standing (those who could afford the service being provided).  The past two weeks of readings have really turned those thoughts upside down.  In healthcare it seems like professionals were paid the same amount in both fields and in education, and the book noted public schools tended to pay their teachers more than private schools pay theirs (Nonprofit Nation 114).

Education and Research:

The education chapter confused me just as much as the healthcare chapter.  I don’t really understand what qualifies as a nonprofit educational facility and what qualifies as a for-profit.  I always assumed public educational facilities were nonprofit and private education facilities were for-profit, but the book mentioned that many private schools and universities were also nonprofit organizations.  I just don’t get it!

The for-profit research institutions don’t really seem like they could be trusted because they would be promoting research to promote their product or service.  I suppose that nonprofit institutions would also have agendas of pushing their cause.  Still, it seems that for-profits would be motivated by money, and if they found their product or service was hurting the population, they would do their best to cover it up.

This chapter in general just didn’t explain exactly how the nonprofit sector was involved in education.  I don’t understand any of it.  I think that all of the topics were really interesting, but the connection between these topics and nonprofits  was unclear.  Things that caught my attention in this chapter wasn’t much to do with nonprofits, but more with education in general. For example, throughout the chapter I couldn’t help but think: How much has to do with family life and other factors than simply which school a child goes to?

Besides not being clear which type of a school was a for-profit and which type wasn’t,  I had a number of questions about the education system and communities.  It doesn’t seem that a nonprofit book should bring up questions like those more than what’s working in the nonprofit sector.

These topics must just be very broad and just introductory instead of getting into the greater dilemmas of the nonprofit sector.  So, since the book didn’t fully address it, maybe someone else could help me out… What role do nonprofits play in education and healthcare?

Social Services: Foster Care and Class Discussion

By: Whitney Taylor

During the beginning of class discussion yesterday, we talked about foster care.  It made me think back to a Journalism project i did last fall.  For the project, we had to blog through out the term on the topic. Since it’s easily accessible, I thought I would post it here if anyone is interested to learn more about it!  There’s even a slideshow and some links to other videos, so it’s not just a bunch of text! Just some extra information and stories.

Anyway, check it out if you’re interested: http://whitneyt1.wordpress.com/

Religion and Social Services in the Third America

By: Whitney Taylor

This week, the readings were focused on the religion and social services part of nonprofits.

Since America was founded as a place to find religious freedom, it makes sense that churches and religious organizations have had a major existence in American culture.  However, I wasn’t aware that the United States is one of the most religious of developed countries (Nonprofit Nation, 53). I’ve always considered other nations much more religious than America.  I wonder if religion is less noticeable in the United States than it is in other places.  I grew up Southeast Asia, so whenever I would travel or sightsee it would be to places like old temples and cities.  It may be more noticeable in other countries with a different dominant religion than what I’m used to here.  In America it seems like Christianity is the dominant faith, so typical Christian churches probably aren’t as striking for me as Buddhist temples.  I guess that most of my travels have been to lesser-developed nations, which I suppose tend to place a deity at the center of their beliefs.   I may just not notice the extreme presence of religion because I’ve never been a part of that community.  It may be that I am just oblivious to religion’s presence, but it was surprising to hear that the Untied States is one of the most religious developed nations.

Maybe it has to do with the diversity of religions in the United States.  Is it the emphasis on the separation of Church and state that draws attention to religion and the government?   Why is it that if you are a religious organization, you don’t have to pay taxes?

“Religion directly touches far more people than any other part of the U.S. nonprofit sector” (62).  This made me think of a novel called Amazing Grace, written by Jonathon Kozol.  It is a true story about a journalist who had spent a year in the South Bronx with people who lived there.  He explored many topics including the prevalence of AIDS, lack of education, and faith in God.  It was amazing to me how many people believed against all odds that there was a God who was looking over them and their loved ones.  When I thought about it, it really makes sense that there is so much faith in places that have a lot of poverty.  Religion and religious organizations act as a helping hand to a struggling population.  Much of the time they offer resources and support without judgment.  It seems like that is how a nonprofit should aim to be: helpful, productive, and without judgment.  So, it makes sense that religious organization account for so many nonprofit activities.

The book notes that the impact of nonprofit social service is not as easy to show as the impact of things like nonprofit research, but it still has a profound effect on people and their communities (81).  Last term in my family and human services class, we talked about evidence-based practice and how that is the only practice that will be funded.  If nonprofit social services have a hard time producing tangible results, is their funding affected?  What kinds of results need to be produced in order to gain funding?  How does this affect the services provided?  It seems to me that preventive care, treatment, and practices for some social services would be hard to fund if the funder requires immediate results.

During the Regan Administration, funding for social services were severely cut back on the national level.  Although this creates a limited amount of funding, it may not be such a bad thing in other regards.  I feel that social services are necessary, but national control might not be the best way to handle it.  Since many social services have so many exceptions and individual circumstances that it is hard to make national rules for funding and regulations.

The last part of the social services chapter that struck me was when it discussed businesses entering into social service dominated fields.  I wondered why businesses would do that if they were out to make a profit, they may just be encouraging social problems and not really doing anything to fix them.  The first case that came to mind was rehabilitation centers.  Nonprofit rehabilitation centers usually provide to the poor at no or low cost.  So, how does this make those nonprofits look?  Is it shameful or embarrassing if someone can’t make it to the nicer rehab center? Is the treatment at a lower standard?  Do businesses attract better workers because of higher salaries?  If the same service can be provided with a profit, does this affect funding nonprofits receive? Does it drive away and stigmatize free care?  This one really raised a lot of questions for me, and I think it would be interesting to find statistics or more information on this topic.

Introduction

By: Whitney Taylor

As this is the first post, there is no telling exactly where this blog will go in the future, but there will be a few guiding principles. Although it is a class assignment, this blog has multiple purposes.  It will be focused on the non-profit sector, also referred to as the third sector.  My main goal is to expand my own knowledge about the third sector.  This page will also be a place for readers and classmates to share thoughts, ask questions, and receive feedback on many things relating to the nonprofit sector.

The class is labeled “Introduction to the Non-Profit Sector,” so that’s precisely what this blog will aim to be.  This page will be a place where assignments and reactions to the readings will be posted.  The main reading material for this class is a book called Nonprofit Nation.

I’m taking this course to see if it is something I want to pursue and be a part of in the future.  I hope to learn what the sector is about and what I could do as a professional in the field.  In class the professor often says the difference between the nonprofit sector and business sector is that nonprofits come from the heart.  In my heart, I do want to be able to help people and causes in the future.  Recently I have had some troubles dealing with all the business-minded professors, classmates, and attitudes in my previous classes for my major.  I am seriously considering swapping majors, but I’m not sure what I want to stick with.  I was majoring in Journalism, but now I am leaning towards Geography or something in the field of Planning, Public Policy and Management.  This class and blog will hopefully give me some inspiration.  Since technically I am majoring in journalism, I think that this class will be a good way for me to explore the nonprofit sector while expressing my findings and ideas.

Unfortunately, I don’t have much recent hands-on experience with nonprofits.  I’ve seen them develop around me in my local community, and I’ve been involved with fundraising but haven’t done anything past my high school years.  Last term, I took a Family and Human Services class.  That class is what really made me realize how many possibilities there are with nonprofits.  I also learned about many of the nonprofits in Lane County, and it provided me with a background of the nonprofit sector.  I feel like I would be at a disadvantage without this brief background of things like 501(c)(3)’s.

Basically, My knowledge of nonprofits is brief, but I can’t wait to dive in and learn more about the sector and what place I have in it.

We haven’t done much reading yet, but what we have learned so far from the readings and class lecture I have found very interesting. For example, the class discussions and readings about Alexis de Tocqueville were particularly striking for me. Alexis de Tocqueville found that “the let-government-do-it approach is not only inefficient but self-destructive” (Nonprofit Nation, 45). I had never thought about why nonprofits exist in the manner that they do, that is separately from the government and business sectors. It was interesting to think about how the nonprofit sector evolved and really made me think about the history behind the sector.

While I was looking over the class slides at home, my friend asked why we would be learning about Carnegie in a nonprofit class. It’s strange what people are remembered for because whenever I think of Carnegie I always think about the arts and libraries, but my friend always thinks of Carnegie and steel. I had heard of the Gospel of Wealth before, but I did not know that Carnegie was the author or really what it was about; I’m glad I know now.  All of this makes me wonder why people contribute to charities.  For example, Bill Gates giving to charity.  Does he do it because he wants to give back and make a difference? Or does he do it for PR and credibility?

The fact that so many laws exist for creating a nonprofit and governing posed a few questions for me.  Why are these laws needed?  What kind of corruptions occurred in the system before and how?  A few other questions I’m wondering about are:  Do people create some nonprofits to push their own agendas instead of working for the greater good?  What exactly are the regulations for this?  What makes a good and functioning nonprofit?  How do you have to run it differently from a business or government program?  How is progress in a nonprofit measured?