Nonprofit Administration and Management Commons^™

Crowdfunding Challenges For New Charity Organizations, Katherine M. Lowe

Marriott Student Review

A look into the complicated and competitive world of nonprofit fundraising in the modern world. With a special emphasis on the struggles new nonprofits face in differentiating their services and attracting donors through online crowdfunding.

Nonprofit Reputation And Bitcoin Use, Crystal A. Evans, Abigail B. Schneider

Journal of Ideology

In recent years, cryptocurrencies, digital assets used as mediums of exchange that use cryptography to secure the creation and exchange of the currency, have gained in popularity. One cryptocurrency in particular, Bitcoin, has received a considerable amount of attention in the media. As the general public’s awareness of Bitcoin increases, one must consider the impact that aligning a nonprofit with such a currency could have. The present research uses three studies to examine the impact that advertising the nonprofits’ alignment with Bitcoin has on perceived effectiveness as well as potential donors’ attitudes toward investing nonprofits’ assets in the currency. Results …

Occupational Fraud: Executive Compensation And Enforcements Against Auditors And Perpetrators., Erlina Papakroni

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation is comprised of three studies that examine the association of executive compensation with financial statement fraud and enforcements pursued against the independent auditor and the principal perpetrators when occupational fraud is detected.

The first study examines competing, though non-mutually exclusive, hypotheses for the path that equity compensation follows on its way to financial misreporting. We find that firms that experience financial statement fraud pay their executives higher levels and a higher proportion of equity compensation across the entire executive’s tenure. This starts in the first year of an executive’s tenure and continues up until the fraud period. These …

Quantifying The Return On Investment Of After School Programming, Ayesha Patel

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

Each fiscal year, there is a battle on Capitol Hill as lawmakers wrestle with reconciling political promises to financial reality. This process is completed with the goal of efficiently allocating scarce resources, in this case tax dollars and other government revenue, across the needs of the over 325 million diverse residents of the United States. Some budget items garner almost universal support, such as defense funding, infrastructure and education. While individuals may differ on how much funding each of these causes should receive, almost all agree that they should be funded by the federal government. Other budget items, such as …

Microfinance: Combating World Poverty One Small Business At A Time, Alison Basney

Senior Honors Theses

Poverty is a major problem that reaches millions of people around the world. Although many organizations and individuals work daily to combat this, much of the work done to reduce poverty lacks sustainability and serves only to remedy to the effects of poverty, rather than create a solution to the causes of poverty. Microfinance can be very basically defined as the provision of banking to the impoverished who would not otherwise have access to these services. This purpose of this thesis is to show that microfinance is the ideal solution to the poverty problem by using research and evidence from …

The Balance Between Financial And Quality Performance In For-Profit Hospitals Versus Non-Profit Hospitals, Blake Seidner

CMC Senior Theses

Recent trends of financial distress for non-profit hospitals and the uptick in acquisition of these hospitals by for-profit entities indicate different focuses from the management of each type of hospital. Using data on hospital quality and basic financial measures, this study examines shift in the balance of financial and quality performance. The dataset focuses on private non-profit and for-profit hospitals with low bed counts, ranging from 50-200 total beds. Results indicate a positive relationship between for-profit status and basic financial performance measures, such as profitability, and a negative relationship with patient experience, cost reduction for the patient, and overall quality. …

Zips Rifle Endowment Project, Christopher Catalano

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This Research project serves predominantly as a feasibility index for the permanent funding and endowment of the Zips rifle club at the University of Akron. Among the objectives covered was the description and assessment of the clubs financial needs, the calculation of capitalization, and best options for permanent funding.

Philanthropy Under The Microscope: A Cost-Benefit Analysis Of Small Nonprofits Conducting Financial Statement Audits, Sarah Samaniego

Senior Honors Theses

External audits are conducted by Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) and ensure the reliability of financial reporting and internal controls of a given organization. Publicly traded corporations are required by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to conduct a yearly external audit. In addition, some large or government funded not-for-profits must produce audited financial statements upon request. If an organization is not required to conduct an audit, it may still choose to undergo an independent audit. Among those that may voluntarily conduct an audit are small nonprofit organizations. Due to the unique characteristics of small nonprofits, some elements of an external …

Show Me The Money: A Study Of Interrelationships Between A Regional Theatre's Revenue And Location, Rebecca Snedeker-Meier

Senior Independent Study Theses

Regional theatres are non-profit organizations that survive off earned and contributed income. In particular, contributed, or donated, income can change depending on the community a theatre is located in. However, there is no consensus whether there is a relationship between the two. This study compares Arena Stage, Guthrie Theater, Cleveland Play House and Alley Theatre to answer the question; how does geographic location relate to the ratios of revenue sources? The income ratios were based off numbers derived from 990 tax forms and the theatres’ operating budgets. Those numbers were then analyzed and compared to the other theatres’ income ratios. …

Shareholder Advocacy In Corporate Elections: Case Studies In Proxy Voting Websites For Retail Investors, Robin Miller

Sustainability and Social Justice

One of the key rights shareholders retain is the right to vote on issues affecting the companies in which they invest. This voting right is seen as one of the primary means of exercising diligent corporate governance (Cole 2003, Fairfax 2009). Only 28 percent of individual investors vote in corporate elections compared with 91 percent of institutional investors. Informed voting decisions at corporate elections can be very information intensive, and theories of rational apathy and the free rider problem may explain a lack of participation from individual investors.

Many shareholders cannot attend annual corporate meetings, so they …

The Financial Stability Of Nonprofit Organizations, Heather M. Blalack

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

Abstract

This thesis evaluates the financial stability of nonprofit organizations and their ability to effectively facilitate the accounting functions of a business. Specifically, it focuses on the companies’ ability to maintain steady cash flow and fulfill all financial obligations while also achieving commitments stated in the company’s mission statement and core values. In addition, this analysis concentrates on the immense lack of knowledge and experience pertaining to financial management within many nonprofits as well as the scarcity of related trainings. As most administrators of nonprofits lack the proper training or background pertaining to financial oversight, there is often an imbalance …

Crowdfunding: Is It A Viable Financial Model For Nonprofits?, Colleen M. Kenost

All Capstone Projects

Background: As traditional funding models become exhausted in response to fiscal constraints, successful leaders are forced to use innovative and non-traditional social entrepreneurial tools in order to bring their goals to life. One of these new tools is crowdfunding.

Purpose: This paper analyzes the relationship between social entrepreneurship, leadership and crowdfunding, as a growing number of nonprofits are deploying crowdfunding as a revenue stream for fundraising.

Methods: Analyzing nonprofit data from Kickstarter, this study utilizes descriptive statistics as well as two-sample t-test and logistic regression models to identify success metrics for crowdfunding being a viable financial model for the nonprofit …

Se(C)(3): A Catalyst For Social Enterprise Crowdfunding, Dana Brakman Reiser, Steven A. Dean

Indiana Law Journal

The emerging consensus among scholars rejects the notion of tax breaks for social enterprises, concluding that such prizes will attract strategic claimants, ultimately doing more harm than good. The SE(c)(3) regime proposed by this Article offers entrepreneurs and investors committed to combining financial returns and social good with a means of broadcasting that shared resolve. Combining a measured tax benefit for mission-driven activities with a heightened burden on shareholder financial gains, the revenue-neutral SE(c)(3) regime would provide investors and funding platforms with a low-cost means of screening out “greenwashed” ventures.

Initial Public Offerings In The Microfinance Industry: Does A Mission Drift Occur?, Sarah Segill

Honors Projects in Finance

This thesis analyzes whether or not there is a mission drift when microfinance organizations become publicly traded entities. One of the most debated criticisms of microfinance institutions (MFIs) today involves becoming for-profit organizations in attempt to raise more capital. Donor funding is limited for non-profit organizations and does not give an MFI much room to grow to serve a maximal number of people. The entry of for-profit microfinance institutions has a great deal of possibility in terms of generating scale, efficiency and innovation. Yet these for-profit institutions can easily lose track of their social mission to serve the poor and …

San Diego Center For Children Audit Committee Handbook, San Diego Center For Children

Finance

2012 edition of the San Diego Center for Children's Audit Committee handbook.

San Diego Center For Children Finance Manual, San Diego Center For Children

Finance

2012 edition of the San Diego Center for Children's Finance Committee handbook.

Alternative Models Of Funding Higher Education: Past And Present Trends, Gus Gregorutti

Faculty Publications

The present study is built around the following general research question: why is Adventist higher education in a tight budget? This is approached using a comparative time frame analysis of past and present needs and characteristics affecting funding tertiary education. The main idea throughout this paper is that the different funding systems are setting up models of Adventist higher education that aren’t always the best fit for the institutional ideology and organization. Possible alternatives to shift into a more suitable funding system are provided and discusses as well. 

The Mexican Idea Of Twoyear University Degrees: A Model Of Opportunities And Challenges, Gus Gregorutti

Faculty Publications

This study had the following general goals: a) Map some of the political and social factors that prompted the establishment of two-years Technological Universities in Mexico; b) Describe the main features of the model and how it differs from other models; c) Discuss Neoliberal Human Capital Theory as one of the main theoretical backdrop for expanding this kind of institutions; and finally, d) Assess the model’s strengths and weaknesses. To accomplish these goals, the study drew data from existing policies and from a set of six interviews to human resources directors in Monterrey area, Northern Mexico. These recruiters belonged to …

Financial Policies And Procedures Manuals For Nonprofit Organizations: Applying Best Practices To The Environmental Health Strategy Center, Jennifer Rottmann

Muskie School Capstones and Dissertations

Nonprofit organizations are exempt from taxation specifically because they do not distribute profits to shareholders or owners. It is expected that their purpose is to benefit the public good. Nonprofit organizations rely on public trust to raise the funds needed to carryout their work and to recruit and retain board members and volunteers who can amplify their efforts.

Socially Responsible Investing: A Comparative Analysis For The Bluegrass Community Foundation, Andrew Hedrick

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

In the fall of 2010 the Blue Grass Community Foundation began considering whether an updated investment strategy that included Socially Responsible Investing would be advantageous and in line with the mission of the organization. The question was raised whether this type of investing meant that the return on investment from securities currently held in the Foundation’s portfolio had to be sacrificed in order to incorporate this type of investment philosophy into the existing criteria used to invest the organization’s assets.

This paper examines literature relevant to the topic and conducts an analysis of a sample of mutual funds currently available …

Islamic Banking In Nigeria: Issues And Prospects, Ismaila S. Abdullahi

Bullion

This paper analyzes the challenging issues and highlight the prospects of Islamic banking in Nigeria. Following this introduction is section two which discusses the evolution of Islamic banking including the basic principles as well as the products/services offered by the system. Section three reviews Islamic banking practices in Nigeria. Section four analyzes the challenging issues and highlights the prospects of practicing Islamic banking in Nigeria. Section five concludes the paper and proffers policy recommendations.

Comparative Analysis Of The Financial Performance Of Nonprofit Organizations: Focusing On The Franklin County Senior Activity Center, Shinwoo Lee

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Franklin County Senior Activity Center is a nonprofit organization founded in 1966 to provide services to help older residents lead independent lives. Cooperating with twelve board members, a staff of 24 people operates the Center and makes huge efforts to accomplish its mission. The mission of the Center is to contribute to and empower the quality of life of the aging citizens in Frankfort and Franklin County, Kentucky. The Center delivers various public services to them including opportunities for socialization, health promotion, benefit counseling, transportation service, home care service, recreation and exercise programs, adult day care, caregiver support, and …

Financial Management For Nonprofit Organizations: Father Joe's Village, Anna Plaster, Karen Pretzer, Simi Rush, Jim Stone

Finance

What started as a modest shelter for homeless families in downtown San Diego, has grown into Father Joe’s Villages (FJV), a multi-program, multi-dimensional approach to break the cycle of homelessness.

Since 1982, Fr. Joe’s Villages’ vision and mission reflect the aim the organization is determined to achieve within the communities it serves: to ensure that all neighbors in need will have access to food, housing, career development, healthcare, and education that will promote independence, self-sufficiency and fulfillment of one’s potential. To address these needs, FJV provides short and long term transitional housing for homeless men, women and families, and offers …

A Funding Challenge For Charities: Getting The Right Mix, Yew Kee Ho, Gregory Tan

Social Space

The current financial crisis has sparked many new challenges for charities with regards to the inflow of charity dollars. Ho Yew Kee and Gregory Tan examine current income sources of 37 institutions of public character (IPCs) in Singapore and urge charities to revisit their current funding mix.

Manchester Center: A Comparative Analysis Of Similar Local Nonprofits Using Financial Ratios, Brittani Wilson

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Manchester Center is a nonprofit agency located in Lexington, KY whose mission is "to enrich lives in our neighborhood through educational, recreational, and social activities." A project team from the University of Kentucky studied the Center's finances, internal business processes, employee development, and services to customers to develop a balanced scorecard. It became evident to the team that the center was strained financially and additional funds would be beneficial to the organization However, before any suggestions could be made it was important to determine where the Manchester Center stood financially compared to similar nonprofit organizations in the Lexington area. …

Entrepreneurial Spirit In Government Managed Enterprises: Evidence From The U.S. General Aviation Airports, Vitaly S. Guzhva, Massoud Bazargan, David A. Byers

Management, Marketing and Operations - Daytona Beach

While a number of studies introduce entrepreneurship in the public sector, there is still a need for empirical research in this field. We use a survey of U.S. general aviation airport managers to investigate the benefits of entrepreneurial spirit in public sector management. The results of logistic regressions suggest that the airport managers’ beliefs in importance of self-sustainability significantly improve the likelihood of general aviation airports to be self-sustaining. On the other hand, the airport specific characteristics, such as a favorable location, county population, and others are not statistically significant in achieving self-sustainability. Our findings support the literature that argue …

Financial Efficiency In The Nonprofit Sector: An Analysis Of Factors Affecting Expense Ratios Of Kentucky Nonprofits, Emily A. Lane

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Statement of Problem

Recent events in both the public and private sectors have lead to an environment of mistrust and caution surrounding the way organizations are managed and funds are handled. For the nonprofit sector, this has led to an emergence of charity rating or watchdog organizations and increased scrutiny of finances. Individual donors, charity rating agencies, and funding institutions have begun using expense ratios as a measure of financial efficiency. Decisions on the financial efficiency of organizations are being made without a good understanding of what factors affect these ratios.

Research Questions

The purpose of this paper is to …

Identifying The Potential Advantages And Disadvantages Of Creating A Separate Foundation For Development At The University Of Kentucky, David Shellhorse

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Statement of Issue

The question of whether or not the University of Kentucky should create a legally independent, institutionally related foundation to receive, hold, invest, and administer the private gift support of the University has been an ongoing debate between UK administrators for many years. This study seeks to identify the potential advantages and disadvantages of creating such a foundation by: (1) conducting a qualitative analysis consisting of personal interviews with officials from the University of Kentucky, the University of Louisville, Western Kentucky University, and Murray State University; and (2) conducting a quantitative regression analysis to determine whether or not …

Raising Capital For Not-For-Profit Organizations: Tax-Exempt Bond Financing, Christopher T. Tucker

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Preliminary Assessment Of Client Interest In And Needs Of The New England Environmental Finance Center, New England Environmental Finance Center, University Of Southern Maine

Planning

The New England Environmental Finance Center (NE/EFC) has been conceived as a knowledge-based clearinghouse, training, and change-agent program aimed at helping EPA's constituencies find financially successful approaches to environmental improvements. The NE/EFC will develop approaches to needs of particular priority in New England and potentially useful throughout the nation; share such approaches through the EFC national network; and help make tools from that network accessible throughout New England. In 1999 we began exploring with potential users how this ninth of the nation's EFCs might best address the region's needs. The assessment continued through the Muskie School's EFC proposal to EPA …