How not to pull your hair out … (hands-on workshop)

DEVELOPING NONPROFIT CASE (NEED) STATEMENTS

“Frustrated” Kay Kim.  http://www.tinyurl.com/gl2mbqy  .  Attribution 2.0 Generic CC BY 2.0

 

 

Tuesday, June 21
5 – 7 pm
Clark County Library 
Large Conference Room

Do you ever feel like pulling your hair out when it comes to writing a nonprofit funding request?    Are you a new organization and have no idea how to write a funding request?  Have you written requests in the past, only they never seem to get funded?

Spend the summer with the Southern NV Nonprofit Information Center learning how to improve nonprofit funding requests.  June 21 is the first in a series of three related 2-hour hands-on workshops designed to improve skills in key areas common to most nonprofit funding requests.

CASE STATEMENTS form the basis of all fundraising; readers want to know why they should support your organization. Using discussion and small group feedback, learn to improve your reason for support.

This workshop is best suited for newer organizations having tax-exempt status who have not yet written a funding request.

Please bring the following materials to the workshop:

Organization Information

• Board and governance description
• Budget (both organizational income and expenses)
• History of organization
• Mission, vision and values statements
• Organizational goals and objectives
• Staffing information
• Stories/statistics of impact (organization)

Program(s) Information

• Budget (both program income and expenses)
• Demographic information of participants
• Description of facilities
• Description of program(s) service(s)
• Program goals and objectives
• Staffing information
• Stories/statistics of impact (program)

For more information, please call 702.507.3421. Register in advance at www.lvccld.org/library/special/sonnpic/workshops.cfm in order to guarantee handout materials.

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Nonprofit Questions and Answers

Source: By DuMont Television/Rosen Studios, New York-photographer.Uploaded by We hope at en.wikipedia – eBay itemphoto frontphoto back, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16489974

 

Nonprofit World  has an advice column entitled “Ask the Experts” – short and to-the point answers to questions most nonprofits have at one time or another.  Some recent Q&As:

Q:           Can you partner with a for-profit company  (March/April 2013)

A: (by Don Kramer)

It isn’t illegal for a charity to enter into a 50-50 joint venture or partnership with a for-profit entity. But the IRS will examine such a venture very closely.

The IRS basically takes the position that if the charity doesn’t control the venture, then the venture, no matter how closely related to the charity’s exempt purpose, is deemed to be unrelated business activity for the charity. A charity that conducts a substantial non-charitable activity can lose its exemption.

For more information, stop into the Southern NV Nonprofit Information Center at the Clark County Library and consult the following reference resources on this topic.

1. Every nonprofit’s tax guide  (4th ed.)
2. Guidebook for directors of nonprofit corporations

 

Q:   Can you raise money by selling ads?  (1st quarter 2014)

A: (by Don Kramer)

Income from advertising will be treated differently from grant income in your financial reports and on your tax returns, but it is certainly not prohibited by general tax or corporate law.

The issue with advertising income is whether it’s classified as unrelated business taxable income (UBTI). In most cases, it will be UBTI if your publication is regularly carried on and it will be subject to unrelated business income tax (UBIT) if you make a net profit of more than $1,000 from the advertising.

For more information, see:

1. 7 nonprofit income streams
2. Streetsmart financial basics for nonprofit managers  (4th ed.)

 

Q:   When others fundraise for you, do you need to register wherever they might solicit?  (1st quarter 2016)

A: (by Don Kramer)

Since most state laws require registration before a solicitation is made by or on behalf of a charity, you should be registered wherever your champions will be soliciting. As a practical matter, if you don’t know where folks will be soliciting, you can probably wait until you have a donor from another state before you actually register there. A good faith effort to register as soon as you know that solicitations are being made on your behalf should prevent the imposition of penalties.

For more information, see:

1. Essential fundraising handbook for small nonprofits
2. Nonprofit fundraising registration  (2nd ed.)
3. Volunteers’ guide to fundraising

 

Q:  What kind of insurance does a nonprofit need?  (3rd quarter 2015)

A: (by Don Kramer)

Every organization that’s serious about conducting activities and wants to protect itself, its volunteers and its managers, needs insurance. You can start with required coverages, such as workers comp, and then add general liability and directors’ and officers’ (D & O) insurance. But check with a broker who understands nonprofits and your type of organization for a careful review of your risks and needs.

For more information, see:

1. Executive directors guide to thriving as a nonprofit leader
2. Nonprofit management 101

 

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