NCNCF Nonprofit Center

You’ve learned how to use #hashtags on Twitter. You’ve spent time getting people to “like” your nonprofit’s posts on Facebook. But what’s the deal with this new social media site, Pinterest, and how could it be beneficial for your nonprofit? What is Pinterest? Pinterest revolves around images. Similarly to Facebook, users create their own profile webpage where they upload images, or repin other users’ images. Users can ‘Pin’ images found while perusing the internet by simply hitting the “Pin It” bookmarklet. You can organize your Pins to different subject Boards, and if you come across an interesting board by another user, you can choose to follow it. Launched in 2010, Pinterest has already become a top social media site with almost 18 million users in February, making it the third most popular social media site behind Facebook and Twitter. Uniquely, Pinterest users are almost 80 percent female. Many women use Pinterest for more practical things like sharing recipes, planning weddings,...Read More >

Most residents of the United States have heard of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), popularly known as ‘Obamacare.’ This legislation mandates that all U.S. citizens be covered by health insurance, including the 46 million Americans who currently lack coverage. To the delight of some and the dismay of others, the Supreme Court upheld this act as constitutional on Thursday, June 28. With all the recent talk about the PPACA, it is important to know: What does this mean for nonprofits? 1. Health Insurance for Employees The PPACA will mandate whether or not businesses must provide health insurance relative to their number of employees. Depending on the size of your organization, your nonprofit business will be required to provide: No. of Employees Requirements for Health Insurance <25 Business not required to provide health insurance.BUTIf business offers health insurance and employees earn less than $50,000 on average, a business gets tax credit to defray 25% of the cost of...Read More >

1)      What is the motivation or mission behind the organization? The mission of the Healthy Start of North Central Florida Coalition is to maintain a comprehensive healthcare system and support services for women and their infants. The goal of the Healthy Start program is to reduce infant mortality, reduce the number of low birthweight babies, and improve health and developmental outcomes. 2)      Does the organization have any upcoming event/initiatives? The Healthy Start of North Central Florida Coalition has their Annual meeting on Thursday, June 21, 2012 from 12:00 PM until 4:00 PM at Charles Perry Partners, Inc., located at 8200 NW 15th Place, Gainesville, Florida 32606.  Their meetings are open to the public, so anyone interested in the program may attend. The Healthy Start of North Central Florida Coalition is currently working on the creation of a March of Dimes committee.  Their goal this contract year is to have a spirit station at four local March for Babies walks where we hope to...Read More >

By Corinne Gentile So as I’m walking down the aisle donning my cap and gown, I’m wondering, “What’s next?” Most college students, like myself, are well aware of the difficulties when finding a job in our current economy. According to an analysis of Northeastern University’s 2011 Current Population Survey, about 1.5 million (or 53.6%) of bachelor’s degree-holders under the age of 25 were jobless or underemployed last year, the highest share in at least 11 years.  Coupled with rising tuition nationwide, this unemployment rate has caused student debt to exceed 1 trillion dollars. Despite these economic worries, more students are expressing an interest in a sector that does not focus on financial gain; nonprofits. For those seeking employment, opportunities for nonprofit jobs not only exist but are continuously growing.  In 2010, nonprofits in the U.S. employed 10.1 percent of total private employment, representing the third-largest workforce among U.S. industries after retail trade and manufacturing. Nonprofit jobs grew at an average...Read More >

When budgeting for nonprofit organizations, annual donors are often both the most valuable and the least utilized source of fundraising. Though often small, these regular donations provide stability in budget planning and a consistent source of funding that serve as the foundation for an organization’s functioning. These funds are especially valuable for their flexibility; most donors give intending the organization to prioritize how the funds are allotted. There are many methods to gracefully and effectively approach current supporters or the public to encourage enrollment in an annual donation program.   5 Ways to Find New Annual Donors for Your Non-Profit 1.     Convert Event Donors: A great potential source for annual donors are those already attending events with the organization. Attendees have already expressed an interest in the organization and have made themselves available for future relations. After the event, contact the attendees with updates about the organization, invite them for tour of the organization’s facilities and begin to foster a relationship. In...Read More >

Fundraising in the form of researching and writing grants can be an overwhelming process for some nonprofit professionals. At first there may be many questions you and your organization are faced with: How extensive are the grant applications? Where do you begin searching for grants? Are you aiming too high or too low in your funding expectations? Leslie Straub of Florida Wildlife Care, Inc. (FWC), a nonprofit organization dedicated to the care and conservation of native wildlife and habitat in Florida through education, rehabilitation and study , faced these same overwhelming funding  questions and needed answers. Specifically, Straub was interested in funding FWC’s Stewardship Project. The aim of the Stewardship Project is to improve the connection of the public to the organization, to improve the facility, and to expand and develop the education program.  However, at first, Straub felt nervous: “Learning how to do grant writing and fundraising is hard,” she recalled. All of that changed for Straub when she...Read More >

Guest blog post by Tiffany Manning                                                                                                                                                                     Volunteer, University of Florida Nonprofit organizations are funded through various revenue streams, including fundraisers and donations. It is important to be creative and think outside of the box, especially in a challenging economy. Now more than ever nonprofits need to be strategic and innovative while maintaining cost effectiveness. Providing your audience diverse opportunities to get involved or donate will keep them enticed while attracting new donors. Below are some tips on how to bring in the money: Follow the money: Many nonprofit leaders feel that they are doomed because of the current financial positions of most people across the country. But the truth is nonprofits can still raise money, even...Read More >

Guest blog post by Tiffany Manning                                                                                                                                                        Volunteer, University of Florida Are you interested in strengthening the management and governance of your nonprofit organization? The number of nonprofit organizations has escalated in the last few years and continues to grow. No matter the mission or purpose of your nonprofit, capacity building is a great way to ensure success. Capacity building is the evaluative efforts needed to bring a nonprofit to the next level of operational, programmatic, financial, or organizational maturity, in order to effectively and efficiently fulfill its mission. Capacity building can help an organization form development activities, such as leadership development, strategic planning, program design and evaluation, and board development. Capacity building includes the steps taken to improve the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations. It can efficiently help a nonprofit organization improve – from learning about new Internal Revenue Services (IRS) and state regulations to improving volunteer recruitment. Many nonprofit leaders have limited resources, but still need to increase...Read More >

Guest blog post by Tiffany Manning                                                                                  Volunteer, University of Florida 1. Include videos Posting videos from recent events or fundraisers is a great way to include your supports. Creating a YouTube account and posting all videos created is one way to make sure supports stay engaged. 2. Embrace the internet Just because you are a nonprofit and deal with serious causes does not mean you cannot entertain your audience. Most of the information on the internet is to inform the public of serious matter and some of it is done in a humorous, but respectful manner. 3. Interact with other nonprofits A great way to generate a new audience is to connect with other organizations. “Like” their Facebook pages and follow them on Twitter. Ask questions and help promote causes relevant to your own. As a nonprofit organization you need all the free help you can get and connecting with other organizations is a...Read More >

Have you ever given any thought to how the foods you eat affect your thoughts? This may seem like circular thinking, but there is actually a direct correlation between what you put into your body and the quality of your brain function. We all feel the effects of coffee, alcohol, and sugar consumption almost immediately, so we are hyper aware of their impact on our bodies. However, we often forget to think about foods such as dark leafy greens, whole grains, microwave-ready meals, and fast food. These foods influence our bodies more subtly, but increase their impact over time with continuous exposure, affecting our brain functions more and more as we continue to include them in our diets. Proper brain functioning demands a constant stream of glucose (blood sugar). High glucose levels have been shown to slowly damage brain cells, and a recent study done at the University of Wisconsin shows that our brains may react to too much food as...Read More >