ACE May 2012 Newsletter by Arkansas Coalition for Excellence

May 2012

Arkansas Coalition for Excellence: Helping Nonprofits Help Arkansas We are proud to work with you to achieve ACEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mission and vision together: Mission: Strengthen Arkansas Nonprofits Vision: A strong, vibrant, united and effective nonprofit sector that is well positioned to meet the diverse needs of all Arkansans. Our Core Values: Best Practices | Inclusive | Unity in Diversity | Connecting & Equipping | Statewide Vision | Regional Approach

Nominate a Buiness for Northeast Arkansas Outstanding Philanthropic Corporation now through June 15 Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s doing good in your community? Each year Arkansas Community Foundation recognizes local businesses that are committed to good citizenship and worthy philanthropic endeavors. Our Outstanding Philanthropic Corporation of the Year awards are presented at the annual Arkansas Business of the Year ceremony hosted by Arkansas Business. This year, in partnership with Arkansas Business, we're also selecting a Northeast Arkansas regional winner for the Outstanding Philanthropic Corporation award, which will be presented at the second annual Northeast Arkansas Business of the Year ceremony on September 20 at the ASU Convocation Center in Jonesboro. Eligibility: Any for-profit business in the Northeast Arkansas region. (Nonprofit and governmental organizations are not eligible for this award.) We're looking for businesses that show a commitment to community service in Northeast Arkansas through corporate giving, community leadership and/or employee volunteerism. Eligible Counties Include: Craighead, Greene, Crittenden, Poinsett, Jackson, Independence, Mississippi, Cross, Randolph, Lawrence, Sharp, St. Francis or Clay

IN THIS EDITION 3

Greetings from ACE

4-6

Upcoming Trainings and Events

Member Spotlight

Federal and State Policy Updates Grants Corner

9 10-11

Resources & Other Links Contact Us

Nomination Process: Submit nominations now through June 15, 2012. Click here for the nomination form. Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

GREETINGS FROM ACE

You’re Invited… ~~~ Arkansas Coalition for Excellence is excited to welcome our new executive director,

Stephanie Meincke

Please join us for a reception in honor of Stephanie and enjoy refreshments and networking with your nonprofit friends and colleagues. June 7, 2012 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. ACE Office Located in the Charles A. Frueauff Foundation offices 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 Little Rock, AR 72201 Please R.S.V.P. to rzimmermann@acenonprofit.org or call 501.375.1225.

To learn more about ACE’s new executive director, click here to read Stephanie’s full resume.

Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

UPCOMING TRAININGS, EVENTS & PROGRAMS Arkansas Coalition for Excellence Summer Tech Series Member Benefits—Tech Edition In this webinar learn more about ACE online benefits that will help strengthen your organization’s funding sources, data management, online conferencing, websites, risk management policies, and tech knowledge. Hear from the following representatives - ReadyTalk, GrantStation, Firespring, Nonprofit Risk Management Center, and Idealware. Tuesday June 19 12:00p.m.-1:00p.m. Webinar– online and by phone FREE Register Here

Life in the Clouds Nonprofits are increasingly looking to cloud computing (an internet server) as a way to save, edit, and manage files online. But what exactly is a cloud? Is it safe to use? What are the benefits and drawbacks of clouds? Find out in this workshop lead by Whitney Montague. Ms. Montague has twenty-five years of experience in the nonprofit sector, including nonprofit management, environmental resource management, and web-based marketing and management. A civil engineer by training, Ms. Montague authored many articles on environmental protection, watershed management, and sustainable development. With a specialty in mathematical modeling of natural systems, she has spoken around the country on the use of technology in non-traditional settings. Through her consulting firm, Quiddity, Inc. Ms. Montague currently lectures and consults provided a variety of web-based support services to small nonprofits, including online membership management, conference registration support, and website development. Monday, June 25 12:00-1:00 Webinar– online and by phone Free Register Here Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

Quickbooks Basic and Intermediate Quickbooks most likely plays a central role in your organization’s financial tracking, but unfortunately it can be difficult to navigate. This great workshop will be taught at both basic and intermediate level to help you understand the ins and outs of Quickbooks. The workshops will cover the following topics: Getting Started| Setting Up QuickBooks | Working with Lists | Working with Bank Accounts| Using Other Accounts in QuickBooks | Entering Sales Information | Receiving Payments and Making Deposits | Entering and Paying Bills| Analyzing Financial Data | Customizing Forms and Writing QuickBooks Letter Conducted by. Paul A. Bax Paul brings experience, skill and expertise in financial management of small businesses and not-for-profit organizations. Holding positions such as chief accountant, accounting manager, auditor and controller in various companies, Paul gained basic understanding from both the operational and management perspective. He has been in the accounting field for over twenty (25) years. Currently, Paul provides accounting and income tax services to individuals and small businesses. He also offers QuickBooks training and facilitates seminars and workshops in the area of financial management. His practice has provided services to over 300 small businesses and not-for-profit organizations and has prepared over 1,000 tax returns, both individual and corporate. Basic Quickbooks Tuesday July 3 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. Little Rock Cost: $60 for ACE Members $85 nonmembers Register Here

Intermediate Quickbooks Tuesday July 17 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. Little Rock Cost: $60 for ACE Members $85 nonmembers Register Here

Online Communications Strategy 101 Still haven’t quite mastered social media, e-mail blasts, and e-newsletters? Have trouble integrating new trends in technology to your overall communications strategy? In this workshop learn important tools and goals to utilize online communications. And learn how to create an online community of volunteers, donors, staff, and even clients that will help to form a solid base of support for your organization. Conducted by. Rebecca Zimmermann– ACE Membership and Communications Coordinator– AmeriCorps VISTA Thursday, August 2 12:00p.m.-1:00p.m. Webinar– online and by phone FREE Register Here

Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

Webinars Now is the Time– Mobilize Your Board to Raise Funds: Part 1 Board members today no longer have the option of saying "I don't fundraise." In this webinar, Judi Margolin provides tools to incentivize board members and help them become more comfortable with the fundraising process. Participants will learn who should and should not be on your board, what policies and structures need to be in place to facilitate fundraising by board members, and how your organization can best achieve a state of grantseeking readiness to ensure board member success at this critical undertaking. Nonprofit development staff and volunteers should consider attending with a member of their board. This webinar will be held on Thursday, July 12, 2012. Part II of this series will be held on Thursday, July 26, 2012. (These webinars may be taken individually.) Judith Margolin is an independent consultant and workshop leader on foundations and grants. She served as Vice President for Planning and Evaluation at the Foundation Center for a number of years. She is the author of several books, including The Individual’s Guide to Grants and Financing a College Education and has served as editor of multiple editions of the Foundation Center’s how-to books. Thursday, July 12 1:00p.m.-2:30p.m. Location: ACE Offices Cost: $20 for ACE Members/ $35 for non-members Register Here.

Now is the Time– Mobilize Your Board to Raise Funds: Part 2 This webinar, presented by Judi Margolin (see description above), addresses in a highly specific and proactive way the reluctance of board members to fundraise. There are many roles that board members can play in helping to secure financial resources for your organization, beyond simply asking for money. The webinar identifies and fully explores each of these roles, with the goal of making your board members far more proficient at fundraising. Practical advice is provided on developing an action plan to establish and maintain a fully engaged fundraising board. Nonprofit development staff and volunteers should consider attending with a member of their board. This webinar will be held on Thursday, July 26, 2012. ( Thursday, July 26 1:00p.m.-2:30p.m. Location: ACE Offices Cost: $20 for ACE Members/ $35 for non-members Register Here. AFP Arkansas Chapter Spinning Like a Top: 8 Secrets to Well-Oiled Fundraising Operations Webinar ACE Members Pay AFP Member rate of $15! To register and for more information click here. Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

MEMBERSHIP Thank you to all of our new and renewing members! Hand Up Housing, North Little Rock | Arkansas Association of Correctional Employees Trust, Cabot | Brenda Long Mauldin Grant Writing and Development Consulting, LLC, Sherwood | El Dorado Connections, El Dorado | Compassion’s Foundation Inc., Magonolia | Beverly Thomas, North Little Rock | Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, Little Rock | Malvern Brickfest, Malvern | 13th Judicial District CASA North, Fordyce | Bread of Life Ministries, Russellville | THEA Foundation, North Little Rock |Arkansas Women in Agriculture, Texarkana | Dr. Tom Bruce, Little Rock | Arkansas Society of Association Executives, Little Rock |Arkansas Community Bankers Association, Hot Springs |Help for the Homeless, Inc., Greenwood |The Haven of N.E. Arkansas, Inc., Blytheville | Main Street West Memphis, West Memphis | York W. Williams, Jr. Child Development Center Inc. | Argenta Community Theatre, North Little Rock | Hot Springs Jazz Society, Hot Springs|Our House, Inc., Little Rock

ACE MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: CampFire USA El Dorado Chapter Camp Fire USA is a co-ed youth development organization with independent councils nationwide. The El Dorado Council operates two facilities in South Arkansas: the Camp Fire Office which houses office space and meeting areas, and Camp Wotapi, our 42-acre recreational facility consisting of campsites, a lodge, bunk house and hiking trail. Camp Fire USA is an El Dorado tradition which gives children and youth the opportunity to learn how to become caring, self-reliant individuals who are responsible to themselves and the community. El Dorado’s council received its initial charter in 1961 and has continued to provide quality programs to area youth in numerous ways. Through club settings, camp adventures and self-reliance courses, kids in our community have learned about everything from how to build a campfire, how to shoot a bow and arrow, party planning, cooking and sewing, and self-defense classes. Most importantly, they learn how to give back to their communities through service projects, field trips and special programs. Above all, they learn how to make responsible choices and positive decisions. Camp Fire is committed to help mold today’s children into tomorrow’s leaders. Our council has over 400 registered members and over 100 volunteers. We also reach an additional 200 kids through various outreach programs.

MEMBER BENEFIT OF THE MONTH GiftWorks Donor Database is a fundraising software tool that any organization can use to manage their financial development. ACE members receive a 20% discount on GiftWorks software.

Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

PUBLIC POLICY AND ADVOCACY House Votes to Increase Defense Spending, Forcing More Domestic Cuts Their Addiction~ Our Recovery, Bella Vista | Loaves & Fishes Food Bank of the Ozarks, Inc., Berryville |CASA of Crawford County, Inc., Van Buren |Treatment Homes, Little Rock | United Way of Northeast Arkansas, Jonesboro | HOPE Landing, Inc., El Dorado | Quantum Solutions, Inc., Illinois | Fort Smith Public Library Endowment, Fort Smith | Arkansas Nonprofit Services, Little Rock | Hamiltion House Child and Family Safety Center, Fort Smith | Arkansas Public Administration Consortium, Little Rock | United Way of Garland County, Hot Springs | Arkansas County Partners in Health, Stuttgart |United Way of Union County, El Dorado | CASA of the 20th Judicial District, Conway |Arkansas Festival and Events, Little Rock | Arkansas Economic Acceleration Foundation, Little Rock | Independent Living Services, Inc., Conway | White County Aging Program, Searcy| Bentonville Public School Foundation, Bentonville|

On May 18, the House passed a bill to increase defense spending by more than the amount requested for the Department of Defense and $8 billion more than the House agreed to last August as part of the deficit reduction agreement. According to the Washington Post, “House Republicans argued that they had identified non-defense [domestic] spending to offset the increases.” A week earlier, the House passed the Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act, a bill declaring that previously agreed to automatic spending cuts to defense programs “shall have no force or effect,” thereby shifting cuts to domestic programs Reuters reports that the largest cuts will hit “food stamps, Medicaid healthcare for the poor, social services block grants that fund various programs including Meals on Wheels for the elderly.” Neither bill is expected to pass in the Senate. Leaders Stake Positions on Debt Limit, Spending House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) recently reiterated the position that Republicans will not agree to increase federal borrowing authority, known as the “debt limit,” without spending cuts of a greater value. President Obama responded by calling on Congress to pass a “clean” debt-limit increase and asserting that no new deficit reduction agreement will be reached without higher taxes for upper-income taxpayers. Both leaders spoke last week,presumably while looking ahead to the November elections and the post-election traffic jam of legislation. In addition to the debt limit, which will be reached in early 2013, Congress is facing the 2012 expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts, estate tax rates, the alternative minimum tax, many other tax provisions, and the automatic across-the-board spending cuts enacted as part of the Budget Control Act of 2011. Ways and Means Subcommittee Hearing The Oversight Subcommittee of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing last week to look into the operations and oversight of tax-exempt nonprofits. Nonprofit witnesses addressed current IRS compliance initiatives related to universities, recently enacted reporting requirements for tax-exempt hospitals, efforts by tax-exempt organizations to design and implement good governance standards, and concerns about the redesigned the Form 990. The National Council of Nonprofits submitted written testimony noting the diversity of the nonprofit sector and recommending that Congress not impose a single set of "best practices" on all nonprofits. This hearing was the first in a series regarding nonprofits that the Subcommittee plans to hold.

Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

GRANTS CORNER Phase I Research and Development Grants Available National Science Foundation The Small Business Innovation Research Program provides support to stimulate technological innovation in the private sector by strengthening the role of small business concerns in meeting federal research and development needs, increasing the commercial application of federally supported research results, and fostering and encouraging participation by socially and economically disadvantaged and women-owned small businesses. Proposed investigations should conform to the interests of the high-technology investment sector and address one or more of the following topics: biological and chemical technologies; education applications; information and communication technologies; and nanotechnology, advanced materials, and manufacturing. A proposal checklist and other guidance materials are available here. Applications are accepted from May 19 to June 19, 2012.

Support for Groups Addressing Poverty Issues Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People The Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People (SDOP) participates in the empowerment of economically poor, oppressed, and disadvantaged people who are seeking to change the structures that perpetuate poverty, oppression, and injustice. SDOP currently supports groups in the United States who are oppressed by poverty and social systems, want to take charge of their own lives, are organizing to do something about their own conditions, and have decided that what they are going to do will produce long-term changes in their lives or communities. Supported projects must be presented, owned, and controlled by the groups of people who will directly benefit from them and must address long-term corrections of the conditions that keep people bound by poverty and oppression. Grants of up to $20,000 are provided. Applications may be submitted throughout the year. Visit the SDOP website to review the grant criteria.

Innovative Healthcare Initiatives Funded Robert Wood Johnson Foundation The mission of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is to improve the health and healthcare of all Americans. The Foundation works with a diverse group of dedicated people and organizations to address problems at their roots and to help make a difference on the widest scale, particularly for the most vulnerable among us. Grants are awarded for projects in the United States and U.S. territories through Calls for Proposals that target specific health issues. In addition, support is provided in response to unsolicited proposals that address the Foundation's Pioneer program area, which supports innovative ideas that push beyond conventional thinking to explore solutions at the cutting edge of health and healthcare. Unsolicited proposals are reviewed throughout the year; Calls for Proposals have specific deadlines. Visit the Foundationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website for a list of current Calls for Proposals and detailed information on submitting unsolicited proposals.

Interested in becoming an ACE Member? Call or e-mail us at 501-3751224 or rzimmermann @acenonprofit.org to find out how ACE can help strengthen your organization.

Find more great grants on GrantStation.com. Get a free subscription with your ACE membership. Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

RESOURCES AND OTHER LINKS TIP OF THE MONTH 6 Pitfalls to Avoid in Risk Management By Melanie Lockwood Herman Is your road to a great risk management program paved with only the best of intentions? Even skilled and experienced nonprofit leaders sometimes find their risk management efforts falling victim to internal and external booby traps. Consider the following tips to avoid common planning pitfalls:

1. Communicate freely and visibly. An essential part of any risk management framework is communication but, unfortunately, “communicate” is too often an afterthought. When you wait until your risk management strategies have been fully outlined to communicate them to stakeholders, you are setting a potentially disastrous trap for your program. When people feel uninformed or “out of the loop,” they generally resist new ideas, programs and policies, however great they may be. 2. Shift your focus. Instead putting most of your energy into “preventing losses," shift your focus to spend as much if not greater effort on the efficacy of response strategies and your nonprofit’s “bounce back” ability after a major loss or crisis. Over time, every nonprofit will face their share of losses and even crisis events. To quote former Center board member Felix Kloman, “Resilience… is the essence of effective risk management.” 3. Start small and experiment. Consider testing new risk management activities, policies or processes on a small group instead of unleashing an unproven approach on your entire workforce or clientele all at once. Better yet, involve hard-to-please constituents in the design of any new risk management activity. Those involved in early versions of your approach will likely be your most effective ambassadors once the plan is rolled out. 4. Keep it simple. When you aim for simplicity in your risk management policies you do yourself and those who must comply with those policies an invaluable favor. As you review draft policies, identify words, phrases and sections that are unnecessary and therefore can be deleted, rather than asking, “what’s missing?” or “what else could we include?” 5. Embrace redundancy. A risk management program aimed at protecting a nonprofit’s mission, financial assets and vulnerable program participants should include overlapping strategies to avoid any single point of failure. Like a car with anti-lock brakes, a camera on the rear bumper, always-on headlights, and side-impact airbags, a “safe” program has built-in redundancies. Never rely on a single policy, staff person or piece of equipment to keep your mission, people and facilities safe. 6. Strive for feedback, not perfection. The delay in rolling out many risk management strategies is often due to the desire to create the “perfect” solution that will be widely embraced. Instead of over-thinking your approach, build easy-to-access feedback mechanisms into your programs which encourage others to make suggestions… or to submit complaints. Following these six tips will help you make your risk management policies “stick” and also help you avoid common pitfalls inherent in the design, launch and implementation of a risk management program. Melanie Lockwood Herman is Executive Director of the Nonprofit Risk Management Center. She welcomes your ideas about any risk management topic, feedback on this article and questions about the Center’s resources atMelanie@nonprofitrisk.org or (202) 785-3891. The Center provides risk management tools and resources at www.nonprofitrisk.org and offers consulting assistance to organizations unwilling to leave their missions to chance. Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

TIP OF THE MONTH Help Your E-mail Reach Its Destination Some email will simply never reach its destination—it might go to a bad address, get caught in a spam filter, or routed to a “junk” folder where it’s deleted or overlooked. This can be frustrating for nonprofits who work hard to nurture a list of email addresses. How can you help ensure people receive the emails you send them? Mail server administrators subscribe to blacklists run by organizations that create a database of computers and domains known to send spam. Every time a mail server sends an email, these lists catalog the domains and IP addresses—the numeric code that designates a particular computer—and recommend which should be denied. Mail servers basically check incoming emails against these databases and reject those from a “bad” source. Getting off one of these lists is relatively difficult, and can take some time. You can get on this list pretty quickly, however, if lots of people flag your email as spam. You can also get on it through guilt by association—if you’re using a broadcast email tool, you’re sharing an email server with other organizations and businesses whose bad behavior has the potential to negatively influence your email deliverability. The content and layout of your individual emails can also have an impact on deliverability. Email can be flagged as spam either automatically, as by an automated scanner installed on the recipients’ mail servers or at one of the routing points along the messages’ journey, or manually when recipients mark it as spam using their email software. Preventing these from happening is one of the most critical ways to ensure your messages get through. Equally important is that if a lot of people flag your emails as spam, your entire email domain is tagged as a “spammer.” It can be very difficult to change that, which will affect all your email to all recipients, not just broadcast messages to the person who marked them as spam. Read more.

JOBS CENTER Executive Director– Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund Communications Intern– Arkansas Coalition for Excellence Director of Programs– Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation Project Coordinator– East Arkansas Planning and Development District Major Gifts Officer– American Red Cross Major Gifts Associate– American Red Cross Executive Assistant– American Bankers Association Grants Coordinator– Arkansas Department of Human Services VISTA Volunteer– Argenta Community Development Corporation

Create a JOBTARGET account on our site to post your organization’s open positions. ACE members post for free! Arkansas Coalition for Excellence | 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 | Little Rock, AR 72201 | 501.375.1223 | www.acenonprofit.org

Thank you for reading this monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s edition of our newsletter. Questions or Comments? Contact us.

Emily Ingram, Interim Director eingram@acenonprofit.org Rebecca Zimmermann Membership & Communications Coordinator, AmeriCorps VISTA rzimmermann@acenonprofit.org

Helping Nonprofits Help Arkansas

Located within the Charles A. Frueauff Foundation Offices 200 River Market Avenue, Suite 100 Little Rock, AR 72201 (501) 375-1223 www.acenonprofit.org