When an open seat becomes available on your board, how do you decide who will fill it? Do you cross your fingers and hope for the best? Many small foundations rely on luck: filling the board with candidates who have the right last name or the right connection to the board. These candidates, though, might... Read More
Direct charitable activities (DCAs) are those in which the foundation maintains some significant involvement, rather than simply awarding a grant to a recipient that carries out the activity. Examples include: Conducting educational seminars and conferences Providing goods, shelter, or clothing in which the foundation maintains some significant involvement (e.g., the distribution or delivery of the... Read More
As a private foundation, you are required to make the following documents available to the public: Form 990-PF, the annual information return filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), for the 3 most recent years Form 1023, the application for federal tax-exempt status (and all related correspondence with the IRS) Form 990-T, the unrelated business... Read More
Writes Ken Berger, former president of Charity Navigator: A while ago, a researcher on the nonprofit landscape created a list of every “information intermediary” (including Charity Navigator, GuideStar, BBB, etc.) and calculated there were over 100 of us. . . . Whatever barriers to entry there were in starting such groups have largely dissolved, given... Read More
The Cedarmere Foundation is a small foundation that my husband, George, and I founded in 2006. We started the foundation to involve our children and grandchildren in philanthropy. We wanted to create something that would bring them together for years to come—to make decisions together, learn more about their community, and give them a focus... Read More
To kick-start your thinking about leadership at the organizations you fund: Start by building trust—To assess leadership well requires an honest dialogue between funder and nonprofit, and building the trusting relationship that facilitates such dialogue takes time. To build trust, be forthright in your communications with nonprofits and clear about your expectations. Make your grant... Read More