JTA: The Global News Service of the Jewish People

Guest Post: 2008 charitable giving represents spectacular results despite decline

By Robert Evans · June 15, 2009

American donors truly came together in 2008 for what any of us must attest as a remarkable statement of generosity, despite a horrendous economy and unprecedented pressures to support a variety of critically needed services and causes.  Giving USA, the annual examination and report of American generosity, announced on Wednesday that last year’s estimated giving surpassed $307 billion, barely a two percent decline from record-setting giving in 2007.

Of the ten sectors that donors historically support, giving to religion increased significantly and now represents 35% of all giving; philanthropy directed for social service agencies decreased very significantly, raising questions about what tantalizes donors today differently and what are the steps that non-profit leaders need to consider in a recession-focused economy.

The annual report examines trends and looks at how donors feel about the organizations and causes they support.  As a member of the editorial review board for Giving USA as well as the founder and managing director of a consulting firm that works closely with Jewish and non-Jewish non-profits, I, too, have paused to ask some critical questions.  And these questions are relevant for non-profit volunteers and professionals as well as the men and women who give generously.

Let’s ask:

• 1.    Why do some organizations attract significant charitable support today even though they are relatively new and have a track record that does not extend for decades?
• 2.    With “financial transparency” as a new mandate, how are donors obtaining compelling information that convinces them to make charitable gifts, even though many organizations seem reluctant to open their books?
• 3.    With public recognition of generosity changing – and with more and more donors giving anonymously again – how can donors feel loved by the causes they support and how can agencies express their appreciation for on-going dedication and devotion?
• 4.    How can non-profits take better advantage of new resources, especially by tapping into better research venues, software management options, and other innovations?
• 5.    Do Jewish donors function differently than non-Jewish donors, and if they do: what helps Jewish agencies position themselves better to attract more Jewish giving?
• 6.    What are best practices today for efficient operations and how deeply should donors expect their non-profits to institute cost cuts and staffing reductions?

The results from Giving USA set a tone for every Jewish non-profit that actively campaigns across the globe, either in North America or elsewhere.  While may have feared that 2008 charitable results would reflect a souring of giving, in fact, we are seeing that donors have responded well to a loud call for action.  The 2008 results also reflect a counter-intuitive approach that the most hard-working and successful non-profits adopted and which is a course that must continue for 2009 and 2010:  donors will usually respond positively when needs are spelled out and when a solid case is made but they expect to be asked! (The number one fundraising truism remains contemporary: most who give have been asked!) 

Some Jewish non-profits have not been able to contemporize their cases and others have not been nimble enough to respond to new paradigms.  That’s why we have seen some non-profits merge or vanish, but we are still seeing hundreds of thousands of new, legitimate non-profits develop each year as a response to changing or unmet needs.

But with the report from Giving USA, we wonder aloud how non-profits will function differently for the balance of 2009 and how donors will respond in the weeks and months ahead but we do this with an optimism that is likely to reflect commitment and unparalleled generosity . . . and giving at levels that are hard for many to imagine.

Robert I. Evans is the founder and managing director of The EHL Consulting Group, a Philadelphia-based firm that works with dozens of Jewish and non-Jewish non-profits on fundraising strategies, non-profit business practices, strategic planning and leadership development.  For further details about the Giving USA report, contact him at revans@ehlconsulting.com.

 

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San Francisco federation withdraws $7 million from endowment for emergency use

By Jacob Berkman · June 15, 2009

The rainy day has come in San Francisco, where the city’s federation has dipped into its Jewish Community Endowment fund to withdraw $7 million in rainy day funds to help bail out Jewish institutions in the area, according to j. The Jewish Weekly of San Francisco.

The S.F.-based Jewish Community Federation and Jewish Community Endowment Fund announced the withdrawal of $7 million from unrestricted “rainy day” assets to aid local Jewish social service agencies and to develop what they call a “new model for sustainable philanthropic outreach.”

Federation CEO Daniel Sokatch announced the Jewish Community Federation–Catalyst Initiative at the federation’s annual meeting June 11 at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco. Of that $7 million, $1 million in emergency grants has been disbursed to Jewish Family and Children’s Services, Jewish Vocational Service, Hebrew Free Loan Association and federation-run programs aiding synagogues and Jewish day school tuition scholarships.

“We know there’s great and growing need,” Sokatch told j. on June 9. “In frontline agencies, the need is up 100 percent. Nationally, American Jewish federations are down 20 percent in their fundraising efforts. I was talking to the head of the Detroit federation and he said there are bread lines.”

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Eisen announces more cuts at JTS

By Ami Eden · June 15, 2009

From the chancellor of JTS, Arnie Eisen:

June 15, 2009

Dear JTS Community,

In late April 2009, I reported that I had been working throughout the year with senior administration to resolve the budgetary problems imposed on us—and on all nonprofits—by the economic downturn. This work has not been easy. I shared with you then the steps we had already decided to take, and promised to come back to you once the Board of Trustees met to approve the final budget for 2009-2010. The board met last week. The major actions agreed upon in the board's approved budget, particularly in regard to JTS faculty and staff, are outlined below.

Let me emphasize that the most precious resource of JTS is our people: our students, our faculty, and our staff. We are fortunate to have so many dedicated and talented individuals in our community, some of whom have been part of the JTS family for multiple decades. With this in mind, it was a high priority for both the administration and board to limit the impact of the budget cuts on JTS faculty and staff -- and their families -- as much as possible. While everyone at JTS will feel the effect of the steps we have taken, I want to assure you that we have tried to minimize the pain caused by the fiscal constraints in which we must operate.

The following decisions have been reached since I reported to you in April:

    * Two additional nonfaculty jobs have been eliminated.
    * Effective July 1, 2009, salary rollbacks will take effect:
          o The chancellor will take a 10 percent pay cut.
          o Individuals making more than $150,000 will take an 8 percent pay cut.
          o Individuals making $100,001-$150,000 will take a 6 percent pay cut.
          o Individuals making $60,000-$100,000 will take a 3 percent pay cut.
          o As I reported in April, individuals making less than $60,000 will receive no pay cut.

In addition, we were able to recognize additional savings and/or new revenue that reduced the deficit, including:

    * Increased enrollment with an associated increase in tuition revenue
    * Further reductions to departmental operation costs
    * Additional investment income from the endowment

As a result of these adjustments, and strong support from our Board of Trustees, we will go into the next fiscal year on solid financial footing. It is our hope, and will be a major priority as we prepare the budget for 2010-2011, to restore salaries to their current (2008-2009) levels and put the 403(b) matching retirement plan back into effect as soon as we can.

I thank you once again for your understanding and patience during this difficult period. I remain confident about the future of JTS, the excellence of our work, and the critical role we play in the Jewish community and beyond.

Sincerely,

Arnold Eisen
Chancellor

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BBYO and Panim exploring merger, but is it a done deal?

By Jacob Berkman · June 15, 2009

The Washington Jewish Week has a story about a potential merger between the national youth group BBYO and Panim: The Institute for Jewish Leadership & Values, a Maryland-based young leadership training program.

By the end of the summer, reports the newspaper, BBYO will absorb most of Panim’s staff, who will then integrate the organization’s programming into BBYO.

While there has been a lot of talk about mergers recently, if they are going to happen, this will likely be how they work -- as acquisitions -- one large, more financially stable organization will take over a smaller less stable one.

Though the Washington paper reports this as a done deal, there has been some whispering that it is not quite set in stone.

“We are still very much working out the details about the full scale operation, and we hope to have a full scale sustainable model,” a BBYO spokesperson told The Fundermentalist.

Whether or not this deal goes through hinges on whether the two sides can line up funding to make it happen. Mergers may save money long term, but they certainly cost money in the short term.

“We are optimistic but still working out the details. We’re still trying to get the commitments from the philanthropists and still working out the details,” said the BBYO spokesperson.

I’ll be speaking with BBYO executive director Matt Grossman about some other topics and I’ll see what more I can find out about this.

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