New Name and Mission: Share Your Opinion

The Oneida and Herkimer Nonprofit Executive Directors Group is revisiting its name and mission. Share your feedback here on the following names (or suggest your own) and mission statement.

• Mohawk Valley Nonprofit Executive Directors
• Mohawk Valley Nonprofit Leaders
• Mohawk Valley Nonprofit Directors Action Group
• Nonprofit Directors of Mohawk Valley
• Nonprofit Directors Action Group of Mohawk Valley

Suggested the following mission statement for discussion

• The mission of the (name tbd) is to individually and collectively strengthen and empower nonprofit organizations; and to foster a highly valued recognition of the economic and social benefits of the nonprofit sector.

Steering Committee Minutes

Oneida and Herkimer Nonprofit Executive Directors Group
Steering Committee Meeting Aug 4th

Attended by: C. Sonia Martinez, NIA Group, Inc; Amy Turner, Mohawk Valley Community Action Agency, Inc. (MVCAA); Lorraine Kinney-Kitchen, Mid-York Child Care Coordinating Council, Inc; Cornelia E. Brown, MAMI Interpreters; Rev. Bill Dodge, Rescue Mission; Cassandra Sheets, Mohawk Valley Council of Alcoholism/Addictions; Darlene Ford, Mid-York Library Council

• Discussed the ED Group’s purpose and focus
• Will revisit the ED Group’s name
  o Currently is Oneida and Herkimer Nonprofit Executive Directors Group
  o Other ideas
  § Mohawk Valley Nonprofit Executive Directors
  § Mohawk Valley Nonprofit Leaders
  § Mohawk Valley Nonprofit Directors Action Group
  § Nonprofit Directors of Mohawk Valley
  § Nonprofit Directors Action Group of Mohawk Valley
  · Will revisit mission statement of the Group
  · Suggested the following mission statement for discussion
  o The mission of the (name tbd) is to individually and collectively strengthen and empower nonprofit organizations; and to foster a highly valued recognition of the economic and social benefits of the nonprofit sector.
• Discussed Economic Impact Meeting
  · Need economic impact statement for own nonprofit
  o Many nonprofits have impact statements internally
  o What is contribution to community
  o What is savings for community
  § For example, what is the community savings for people not sent to jail?
  · Models out there
  o Cornell University model for Child Coordinating Councils http://government.cce.cornell.edu/doc/reports/childcare/regional_economic_importance.asp
  · Tools and info available (related to childcare)
  · Facilitate discussion for own nonprofit
  · Educate nonprofits about impact
  · What if nonprofits didn’t exist?
  · How can we do what we do better?
  · Speak with Rick Sebastian at HTC about approach
• Discussed sharing services
  · Really need to investigate and address
  · Partnerships need to be focus
  o Such as Rescue Mission and Catholic Charities working together
• Other ideas for programs
  · How evaluated personnel structure?
  · Cost analysis internally
  · Will ask for feedback on 2010 priorities and trends in survey
• Next Steps:
  · Next Program meeting tentatively scheduled for 9/30 from 8am to 11am
  o Strategic Management in Tough Times workshop as program (to be confirmed)

SBA launches YouTube channel

The Central NY Business Journal reported that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) today announced the launch of its channel on YouTube, the popular video-sharing Web site.

"With millions of visitors, most of them under 35, YouTube offers a prime opportunity to use current technology and the appeal of a popular online platform to further promote the agency's programs and services," SBA Administrator Karen Mills said in a news release.

The SBA hopes to reach this audience with its message of entrepreneurship, the importance of small business to the nation's economy, and information on the agency's programs and services.
The SBA YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/sba) debuted with a 60-second introduction to the agency, its programs and services, and a 10-part "Delivering Success" series co-produced with the U.S. Postal Service.

Future content will cover how small businesses can take advantage of the loan programs in the economic-stimulus package, government-contracting opportunities, exporting to increase market share, and counseling and training on how to start and grow a small business, according to the agency.

Nonprofit Advocacy: Now is the Time

Dear Nonprofit Leader,

I write to urge you to check out the following blog post. You know I have never done this before, so it must be important. And it is.

As nonprofits across the country have been going to our federal officials to discuss how their health care reform plans affect nonprofits, we keep hearing government officials say things like: "Gee, we hadn't thought about nonprofits as employers."

So, in this blog column, the President of the National Council of Nonprofits points out how nonprofits keep being taken for granted and urges nonprofits to "beat the drum" to "remind government that we exist, and we exist at a scale that should not and cannot be ignored any longer."

In this Great Recession, our nonprofits are being asked to meet increasing community needs with decreasing resources - while also paying escalating costs, such as constantly increasing health insurance premiums. As the blog column warns: that "math just doesn't work."

If you agree that our government officials shouldn't ignore, overlook, or forget about nonprofits, then please join me and the New York Council of Nonprofits by contacting our federal officials to urge them to respect the more than 60,000 nonprofits in New York by including us in health care reform in a meaningful way.

Let's all "pick up a drum" and start making some noise, telling our stories about how New York's nonprofits add real value to local communities and individual lives every single day. Otherwise, we will be forgotten - which would be "unfair and unsafe to those depending on services we deliver and the benefits we provide."

Contact Your Senators:
Gillibrand, Kirsten E. 478 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510(202) 224-4451
Contact Senator Gillibrand Now.
Schumer, Charles E. 313 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510(202) 224-6542
Contact Senator Schumer Now.
Click here for your members of Congress

Thank you again for the work that you do and for raising your voice on behalf of our nonprofit community here in New York.
Sincerely,Doug Sauer, CEO
New York Council of Nonprofits, Inc.
http://www.nycon.org/

Fundraisers’ outlook remains gloomy

The Philanthropy Journal reported on a new study that fundraisers for U.S. nonprofits paint a dark funding picture for their organizations, and the next six months are expected to bring only slight clearing.

The current environment for fundraising worsened over the past six months, with the Present Situation Index falling to 28.9 percent over the past year to 58.0 on a 100-point scale, the lowest since the Index's inception in 1998, says a report from the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.

The Philanthropic Giving Index, which is comprised of the Present Situation Index and the Expectations Index, measures fundraisers' optimism about the current and future climate for fundraising.

The Expectations Index, which measures expectations for the coming six months, is up 10.2 percent over the past six months to 78.2.

However, over the past 12 months, the Expectations Index has dropped 13.2 percent.

Almost nine in 10 fundraisers say the economy is having a negative or very negative effect on their development operations currently, while six in 10 say they expect that to continue over the next six months.

More than half of fundraisers say their organizations raised more money in 2008 than in 2007, while about four in 10 raised less.

Virtually all fundraising channels, with the exception of Internet, email and direct mail, are at their lowest success levels since the Philanthropic Giving Index was launched.

While major gifts are down 23.1 percent and foundation grants are off 39.2 percent, two in three fundraisers say they are still having success with direct mail.

Tanking Contributions May Accompany a "Jobless Recovery"

The Nonprofit Quarterly's Rick Cohen related that a so called "jobless recovery" likely means very bad news for charitable giving. Joblessness that is predicted to extend well into the economic recovery along with increased rates of saving fueled in part by economic insecurity result in less disposable income, and that likely will or is already showing up in declining donations by individuals.

President Barack Obama called it right during his August 1st weekly address to the nation: the recovery won't be a recovery" as long as we keep losing jobs." With increasing prospects of what economists call a "jobless recovery," confirmed by no less than Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, the pain suffered by most Americans will be prolonged even after corporate profits and stock market values climb. Some of that pain will be felt as the most generous of Americans, middle class working people, will find themselves hard-strapped to maintain their charitable generosity. Read more here. Rick discusses unemployment and past charitable trends.

United Way lowers its fundraising expectations

The Utica OD reported that a down economy might lead the United Way to set less lofty fundraising goals this year. But organizers say they’re still committed to raising as much as possible to assist nonprofits in Oneida and Herkimer counties.

Each year, the United Way of the Valley and Greater Utica Area engages a group of local businesses in its Pacesetter Campaign, a month-long prelude to the general fundraising campaign meant to jump-start donations and raise public awareness.

But the 2009 Pacesetter Campaign goal of $360,000 announced at a kick-off event Tuesday is well below the $616,500 target for last year.

Organizers said it’s not exactly an even comparison – only 14 organizations are participating this year, and 19 were involved last year. But some organizers also had concerns about how much people are prepared to give. Read more here.

Is your nonprofit looking at further cutbacks in 2010? How do you plan to respond? Share your feedback here.

Area College Initiative, upcoming Discovery Tours

1. The Genesis Group & The Oneida County Convention & Visitors Bureau present:
Genesis Discovery Tour at Sylvan Beach
www.sylvanbeach.org

Thursday August 6th - 6:00pm
Leslie Stewart, of Sunset Cottages, will greet us at the Gazebo (on Main St), and take everyone to the Sylvan Beach Union Chapel (now on the Register of Historic Places) for a walk through. Then were off to Harpoon Eddie’s for complimentary wine and cheese. After that, we're on our own to walk about and enjoy the lake and town including the "Car Show and Historic Midway!"

Send your RSVP by emailing Ray Durso, Jr. - info@TheGenesisGroup.org

2. Genesis Discovery Tour - Herkimer Diamond Mines (Herkimer County)
www.herkimerdiamond.com
Saturday August 8th - 10:00am
Admission $ 7.50 pp
Lunch (dutch treat) at Crystal Chandelier

For more information, contact: Dawn Pellerin - dawn_pellerin@us.aflac.com

3. The Genesis College Community Network presents:
1st Annual Welcome (College) Student's Initiative
Join us for a "KICK-OFF EVENT" on Monday August 10th - 10:00am at the Stanley Center for the Arts

Genesis and Area College Representatives including Students, Administrators and Presidents, Business and Community Leaders, Chambers of Commerce and others, invite you to join them in "kicking-off" this new and exciting region-wide campaign! For more information, visit the Genesis website at www.TheGenesisGroup.org

Thank you for your continued interest & support!

Raymond J. Durso, Jr.
Executive Director

The Genesis Group
SUNYIT - PO Box 3050
Utica, NY 13504
info@TheGenesisGroup.org
www.TheGenesisGroup.org
(315) 792-7187
(315) 797-1280 fax