New @ the National Center: May 2011
E-Newsletter Article,
May 2011
Featured this month are upcoming events in our Family Philanthropy Teleconference series, including two new calls scheduled for July and September, new resources in the Family Philanthropy Online Knowledge Center, and updates on other exciting events in the field of family philanthropy…
A special welcome to the newest member of the National Center's family - Anastasia Alberta Zimmerman, who entered the world on April 16th and is the first child of National Center Program Associate Rebecca Zimmerman. Congratulations and Happy Mother's Day to mom and daughter!
We've got a diverse and exciting line-up of Family Philanthropy Teleconferences coming up. See below for details...please note that all calls take place on Thursdays from 12 to 1:30 p.m. (EDT).
May 12: Do More than Give - The Six Practices of Donors Who Change the World. Leslie Crutchfield presents her latest study of high-impact family foundations and donors that have successfully catalyzed change. Featuring a conversation between Leslie, the author of Forces for Good: The Six Practices of High-Impact Nonprofits, and one of the funders profiled, this call will provide valuable insight for any funder interested in leveraging their philanthropic resources.
June 9: Values to Action at the Graustein Memorial Fund. Many family foundations and funds have values statements, but do those values really drive their work? That’s the question the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund asked when it commissioned a study by outside experts. Told through stories, the report shares how the foundation’s values play out in their various projects and relationships.
July 14: Seeding Your Family's Philanthropic Tradition: Legacy Statements and Ethical Wills. Donor legacy statements and ethical wills have joined bylaws, values statements and mission statements as important documents for describing a family’s philanthropic activities and dreams.
August 4th: Early Results from the CEO Initiative Research Studies. What makes a family foundation CEO effective? What advice do current CEOs and board chairs have for individuals currently in this position? Hear early results from the National Center's groundbreaking CEO Initiative.
September 8: The Future of Philanthropy Rating Sites: What's In it for You? What are philanthropy rating sites and where are they headed? Can these sites inform and enhance the work of small and locally based family foundations and advised funds seeking to make wise use of their resources?
May 17 (Webinar): Moving the South out of Poverty: A Case Study of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. In 2004, the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation made a conscientious decision to focus much of its financial power into alleviating poverty in the south. Seven years later, the foundation has evaluated this journey and their progress and logged its findings, recommendations and conclusions in a report, Helping People and Places Move out of Poverty. Join Gayle Williams, Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation Executive Director for a webinar and discussion on their journey over the past seven years, how they strategically refocused their foundation, tested their beliefs about how people move out of poverty, learned with and from grantees, developed foundation and grantee outcomes, and made significant impact on poor people by supporting grantees to boost community infrastructures, influence state policies, and strengthen state or regional groups or networks working on poverty issues.
May 19-20 (Grand Rapids, MI): Charity Begins at Home: Families Rebuilding Communities. The Johnson Center National Summit on Family Philanthropy is an opportunity for a pragmatic, peer-to-peer dialogue about how families play an essential role in rebuilding communities. Join other family donors to share lessons learned in diverse communities, and to craft a strategic agenda for revitalizing, empowering, and sustaining your local area.
June 15-16 (New York City) 2011 Annual Conference on Scaling Social Impact. The Social Impact Exchange 2011 Conference on Scaling Impact is by invitation only for funders interested in learning about innovative methods to support high-impact nonprofits that are growing. The conference includes presentations from foundation CEOs and nonprofit leaders, as well as knowledge sessions and peer networking opportunities.
June 27-29 (Anaheim, CA) "Youth on Board" Retreat for Family Foundations. This special event is for youth ages 8-21 who are involved in philanthropy through their family’s foundation, donor-advised fund, or other philanthropic giving, and for the parents, families and trustees who work with them. Youth will meet peers from other family foundations, teen boards and giving circles, to share and learn in age-appropriate sessions, break out groups and plenary lunches with their peers and families. The Planning Committee for the retreat includes representatives from the following organizations: the Frieda C. Fox Family Foundation, The Tarsadia Foundation, Lumpkin Family Foundation, and the National Center for Family Philanthropy.
Summer 2011 (Ghana): Next Generation Film Trip. This summer in Ghana, West Africa, Philanthropy Indaba will be leading a two week learning adventure where a small group of next generation family members will become their own documentary film crew: citizen journalists capturing stories on the ground as well as their own experiences and impressions.
Keeping Grantmakers and Grant Seekers from Drowning in Paperwork. Inefficient grant application and reporting procedures make extra work for both grantmakers and grantseekers. A number of new tools and practices to ease the paperwork burden are now available thanks toProject Streamline, a collaboration of several organizations and managed by the Grants Managers Network. On this teleconference you’ll learn how foundations small and large are using new streamlining methods to be more effective grantmakers. Speakers include Jessica Bearman of Bearman Consulting, who has worked on the project, and Kathy Reich, program officer, organizational effectiveness and philanthropy program, David and Lucile Packard Foundation.
Balancing Data and Desire: The Science and Art of Family Giving. The values, ethics, and personal beliefs of families and donors – as well as existing relationships, family dynamics, local commitments, and commitments to particular causes or issues – play a key role in how a family’s philanthropic investments are made. This teleconference featured a discussion with the co-authors of "What Do Donors Want?" published in the September 2010 edition of Nonprofit Quarterly.
The Art of Intuitive Grantmaking in Family Giving. With the current emphasis on strategic giving and measurement of impact, the role of intuition is often overlooked. This teleconference examines how family philanthropists can quickly harness their semi-conscious knowledge and experience built over a lifetime to bring informed intelligence to their grant decisions.
Special Focus Area: Aging and Older Adults. Our latest Special Focus Area in Family Philanthropy Online presents a quick summary of some of the best information available for family philanthropies interested in this important and growing population.