Category Archives: In The News …

In The News …

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S&P’s Credit Downgrade for the U.S: Its Significance to Nonprofits and Communities (The Nonprofit Quarterly): “… its downgrading of the credit rating of the U.S. is, nevertheless, a powerful, serious and very conscious act, albeit mostly symbolic. But symbols are powerful [… And] if you listen to the television pundits, they seem to be floundering about how important the credit downgrading is, how the markets will react, and whether the solution is raising more revenues, cutting deeper into spending, reworking entitlements, or all of the above.” The NPQ points out that the nonprofit sector has not yet weighed in on the downgrade and what it could portend, and points to several areas of the S&P report that hold particular significance to that sector; but the article also adds that those points are, for the most part, old news. Do you agree or disagree? Let them know! Continue reading →

In The News …

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How to make a musical (Washington Post): “The 46 kids with parts in the show (another 16 work backstage or on costumes and lighting) auditioned in April. But rehearsals didn’t begin until the performers arrived at a summer camp that runs every afternoon for six weeks — and requires a lot of hard work […] But opening night, [director Lorraine] Robinson said, is very special, and gives all the kids an incredible sense of accomplishment.” Do read the full piece to learn more about Catalogue non-profit Sitar Arts Center’s production of Bye Bye Birdie, which will open this coming weekend in Adam Morgan. All the shows are sold out, but you can arrive one hour before curtain and jump on the waitlist.

First charter school approved in Montgomery County?(Gazette.Net): “Charter schools usually don’t appeal to Montgomery County Board of Education President Christopher S.

Barclay. But Monday night, he supported Community Montessori Public Charter School’s application, because he believes it might help the school system consider education from a holistic perspective. Community Montessori, which will serve students in pre-kindergarten through the third grade in Kensington, was approved in a 6-2 vote Monday evening by the Board of Education […] The school will be run by [Catalogue organization!] Crossway Community, a nonprofit organization that serves low-income women and children and already operates a Montessori school for children.” Continue reading →

In The News …

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This week’s bundle of non-profit news — most of it national this time around!

The Unemployed Cutting Corners in their Diets (DCentric): “Eating healthy can be a matter of having access to stores, but it’s also about having enough money to buy healthy food and having the time to cook it.” And to quote from the Huffington Post’s article, “Since housing costs tend to be fixed, many underemployed and unemployed people save money by eating cheaper and unhealthy foods.” That latter point is especially striking. Housing rarely comes cheap or simple, but food does. And inexpensive, convenient foods tends to be less healthy. Obviously, fixing the price of food benefits no one — so how can we keep the flexibility, but improve the health?

The Giving Pledge: Bill Gates, Warren Buffett Visit Obama (Huffington Post): “President Obama will host the nation’s two wealthiest private citizens, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, at the White House on Monday to receive an update on the Giving Pledge. […] As the White House and congressional Democrats push for a debt ceiling deal that includes taxes on the wealthiest Americans, the event shines a spotlight on the very people who would bear that burden.” So what should be the topic of chief conversation, the former or latter? Continue reading →

In The News …

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Preview: 2011 Capital Fringe Festival (DCist): “The Capital Fringe Festival starts its sixth year this Thursday with over one hundred productions being performed at venues all over the city. Fringe is an opportunity for actors and production companies to get a moment in the limelight — whether they’re unknowns or big players doing some experimenting — and for arts-goers to see lots of theater for relatively little money.” Not sure where to start with your arts-going? Capital Fringe’s website has a great tool for searching all shows by location, date, time, and genre. (Among others, Catalogue-nonprofits CHAW and Woolly Mammoth are serving as Fringe venues these next few weeks!)

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In The News …

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A bundle of non-profit and local news coming your way …

Capital Area Food Bank to begin charging members for produce (Washington Post): “For the first time in its history, the Capital Area Food Bank will begin charging its members for fruits and vegetables July 1, adding thousands in unexpected costs for some of the 700 agencies that rely on the organization to feed the region’s hungry.” The new initiative is a result of ever-increasing demands for the services of local food organizations, despite the improving economy. The trend is alarming, and indicates that local non-profits working to combat hunger will certainly require additional support in the coming year.

Gentrification a matter of economics, not ethnicity (Greater Greater Washington): At the NPR Building last week, a panel of young black professionals debated the question of DC’s gentrification … and “although the assembled group, almost entirely African-American with a majority female, acknowledged it is ‘dangerous to say that gentrification is not a race issue,’ the consensus held strongly that gentrification more closely correlates with economics.” Do you agree? Continue reading →

In The News …

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Good morning, Washington! Let’s see what’s in the non-profit news this week …

Stewards of the Earth: One Planet, Many Faiths — This past Sunday, CBS News aired a “religion special that examines the ways members of faith communities are caring for the environment.” Featured first on the program were Lisa and Chris Bright, founders of Catalogue non-profit Earth Sangha and practicing Buddhists, “living their dharma (or life’s path) repairing the earth.” You can watch the full video right here.

High school gets teen off the street and into college — Just weeks after their selection for the 2011/2012 Catalogue, Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School celebrated its first graduation … and was featured on CNN. The piece centers on newly-graduated Derontae Mason, who went from homeless to college-bound; Mason is part of the school’s “first graduating class of 70 students, all of whom have already been accepted to various colleges and universities.” Continue reading →

In The News … [Updated!]

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BREAKING NEWS!

The Catalogue for Philanthropy Class of 2011-2012 has been selected! Check out our 70 new and re-listed charities, as well as those who have been “re-certified” to remain on the web. (Several of whom have grown so much in the past few years that their budget renders them too large for the print catalogue!) Check them out right here. Congratulations!

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Welcome to Wednesday! Here comes a sample of non-profit news …

Reactions to the demise of the Kansas Arts Commission — As you likely have read, Gov. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) vetoed funding for the Kansas Arts Commission over Memorial Days weekend. An override was unsuccessful. But Create Equity does find something of a silver lining: “this controversy has revealed genuine, broad-based public support for funding the arts … the dogfight over the Arts Commission was the top story on the Topeka Capital-Journal’s website. I don’t mean it was on the front page, I mean it was the #1 story in all of Kansas.” In other words, arts have real political power. Maybe more than imagined.

The Giving Pledge Goes Hollywood — Inspired by Bill & Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett, “Laurence Fishburne, Kim Kardashian, Richard Gere, Ricky Martin, and Justin Bieber, have joined dozens of other entertainers and sports figures … to use their fame to promote their favorite charities and encourage their fans to donate time and money.” While celebrities directing their star power towards charitable causes certainly deserves acclaim, will interest in the cause or the celebrity be the driving force behind donations from fans? Interesting discussion topic …

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In The News…

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Welcome to a sweltering Wednesday, Washington! New news coming your way …

DC Region Faces Another Day Of Extreme Heat— Just an important reminder, as the temperatures climb into the mid-90s: the city operates Cooling Centers within the senior service network in every ward during heat emergencies. The Code Orange alert should continue into today; and WAMU cautions that “pollution levels may be unhealthy for children or anyone with a breathing or heart condition.” DCist also offers “more [information] about watering and pledge to take care of trees near you” during the heat wave.

7 Obvious Things in Education That Are Ignored –First written for the Education Week Teacher’s blog, this post by educator Anthony Cody (an 18-year veteran of inner-city Oakland schools) appeared in the Post blog Tuesday morning. #5 sure jumped out to me: “When unemployment levels are high, and opportunities are few, students struggle to see the purpose in their education. I do not have a study for this one, just my own observations […] There need to be visible, viable pathways to successful careers in order to keep students motivated.”

Pas de Deux With Parkinson’s — The current addition of Dance Studio Life includes a great feature on the weekly Dance with Parkinson’s Disease program, an ongoing collaboration between Catalogue non-profit Bowen McCauley Dance and the Parkinson Foundation of the National Capital Area, which is in turn modeled on a program pioneered in 2001 by the Mark Morris Dance Group. While certainly not a cure for the disease, “dance classes help alleviate symptoms and promote a stronger sense of well-being and physical agility.” Catalogue cheers to Bowen McCauley!

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In The News …

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Non-profit and related news for your Wednesday morning …

Shattered Missouri City Digs Out — The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that “the twister in Missouri was one of 68 reported across seven Midwest states over the weekend … the Joplin disaster extended a season of tornadoes and flooding that has staggered communities in the country’s midsection from Minnesota to Mississippi.” We discussed several ways to help out (and follow the aftermath) yesterday, plus you can check out the Kansas City’s Star’s list and the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation‘s Facebook page.

Why I got arrested for DC voting rights — Check out this compelling Post opinion piece by Diane Bernstein of DC’s Diane and Norman Bernstein Foundation. She writes: “I am proud of my work over the past 40 years as a staff member, officer, founder or funder of organizations serving the District?s children and families … It is in part for District children that I now take action on behalf of democracy in the District.” To learn more about DC voting rights, you can also check out Catalogue non-profit DC Vote.

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