Nonprofit Administration and Management Commons^™

2017 Zero8hundred's Continuing The Promise Of A New Day: Support For Service Members Transitioning To Civilian Life In San Diego, Kim D. Hunt, Mary Jo Schumann

Military

This report, prepared by the Caster Center, is a 2-year evaluation report about zero8hundred. Zero8hundred is a cross-sector community initiative whose mission is to proactively link transitioning service members and their families to resources and opportunities in the community, helping them successfully transition to civilian life.

2017 Two-Legged Stool: New Findings From California On Nonprofits And Overhead, Nancy Berlin, Jan Masaoka, Mary Jo Schumann

Nonprofit Sector Issues and Trends

Nonprofit overhead is a prevalent and controversial topic in the non- profit and philanthropic sector. Online raters (such as Charity Navigator) point to the overhead rate as a key indicator of nonprofit worthiness. Different govern- ment entities use wildly different indirect cost rates when contracting with nonprofits, which translate into billions of dollars of funding being gained or lost. Foundations rarely have explicit guidelines, but most have informal rules of thumb that affect how a nonprofit can use grant funds. Meanwhile, nonprofit executives struggle to make sense of it all as they manage their operations amidst the conflicting requirements of …

2017 Corporate Playbook For Supporting Military Families, Caster Family Center For Nonprofit And Philanthropic Research, University Of San Diego

Military

This report, by Blue Star Families and the Caster Center and sponsored by USAA, examines the unique strengths and challenges of military families, best practices for supporting military families, why your company should support these families, and the steps to begin or strengthen your company's plan to support military families.

2017 Executive Summary- The Nonprofit Sabbatical As A Catalyst For Capacity Building: An Evaluation Of The Fieldstone Leadership Network’S Clare Rose Sabbatical Program, Ahearne Michelle, Tessa Tinkler, Mary Jo Schumann

Nonprofit Leadership and Capacity Building

Year 2 Executive Summary 2017

This report, prepared by the Caster Center and funded by the Clare Rose Foundation, is a year two executive summary report on the Clare Rose Sabbatical Program. The program is intended to support the well-being of nonprofit leaders, build organizational capacity, and elevate leadership within organizations.

Beyond The Bike; Identity And Belonging Of Free Cycles Members, Caitlyn Lewis

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

A qualitative analysis was conducted at the community bicycle shop, Free Cycles, in order to examine participants’ identities and belonging within a community of practice. Semi-structured interviews with 19 members of the community and 50 hours of participant observation were conducted. Data analysis followed the grounded theory methodology of Strauss and Corbin (1990). Four research questions were proposed to examine the ways participants at Free Cycles identified with the bicycle-related practices of bicycle riding and maintenance, co-constructed the collective organizational identity, and developed a sense of belonging within the community amongst other members. The constructs of identity and belonging were …

Strategic Planning For A Community Focused Non-Profit Organization, Erik W. Williams

Liberal Studies (MA) Final Essays

This paper explores the process used to create the Engage 2020 Strategic Plan for Family Service of Roanoke Valley, a 116 year non-profit in Roanoke, Va. Utilizing a community based process that focused on the strengths, opportunities, aspirations, and results; the strategic plan focused on improving the people and culture, programming and impact, and the vitality of the agency over a three-year period. Discussed in this paper are the history of the agency, its previous strategic plan, the planning, the process, and the end product strategic plan.

2016 The Promise Of A New Day: Support For Service Members Transitioning To Civilian Life In San Diego, Kim D. Hunt, Mary Jo Schumann

Military

This report highlights the first year program evaluation of zero8hundred, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to proactively link transitioning military families to a broad range of resources, helping them successfully transition to civilian life in San Diego County.

2016 Food, Friends, And Health: An Evaluation Of North County Senior Connections Thyme Together Food Truck Lunch Program, Michelle Ahearne, Azadeh Davari, Tessa Tinkler, Mary Jo Schumann

Seniors

The North County Senior Connections Thyme Together Food Truck Lunch Program (subsequently referred to as NCSC) is a collaborative project initiated in November 2014 that provides affordable, nutritious lunches, recreational programming, and community information to seniors in the northern region of San Diego County (North County).

In May 2015, six months after NCSC launched, the Rancho Santa Fe Foundation commissioned the University of San Diego’s Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research (Caster Center) to: 1) evaluate NCSC’s progress towards meeting its objectives, and 2) provide feedback and recommendations for programmatic changes as necessary. This report presents the findings …

The Cost Of Feeling Good, Casey M. Field

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The Cost of Feeling Good attempts to quantify the optimum portfolio returns of Socially Responsible Investment Funds and Dual-Purpose Portfolios. In order to meet the demands of investors who want to create a social impact and generate financial returns, investors can choose two methods. For the purpose of this study, the social returns were quantified and the financial returns were quantified using net present value. In every scenario, the socially responsible investment decision generated higher financial returns. Because of the immediate loss to an investor after choosing the DPP strategy, financially, the SRI fund appears to be the better approach …

2015 State Of Nonprofits In Riverside County, Laura Deitrick, Fred Galloway, Dominika Bukalova

State of Nonprofits in California

Within the last year or so, two influential reports produced by the Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research at the University of San Diego – 2015 State of Nonprofits in San Diego and Causes Count: The Economic Power of California’s Nonprofit Sector – have helped practitioners, researchers, and government officials better understand both the trends and nuances of this rapidly expanding sector. Continuing that tradition, this report, 2015 State of Nonprofits in Riverside County, provides a much needed and long overdue look at the financial health and demographic profile of nonprofits in Riverside County.

2015 Food And Function: An Assessment Of The Capacity Of Food Pantry Programs In San Diego County, Mary Jo Schumann, Crystal Trull, Carolyn Noack

Food Security

Food pantry programs play a critical role in meeting a basic need for thousands of individuals and families each year. They are the front-line support mechanism for providing short-term or emergency assistance to those struggling with food insecurity. San Diego County has a wide variety of food pantry programs that are helping to meet the need of thousands of hungry residents across the region.

In 2012, several of the major emergency food provider agencies in San Diego County gathered to discuss how collaboration could support cost-saving efficiencies in the food distribution network, and subcommittees were formed to collaborate on achieving …

Non-Profit Financial Viability During The Great Recession: A Case Study Of The Ronald Mcdonald House Of Greater Cincinnati, Madison Holbrook

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Great Recession from 2008-­2010 adversely affected the non-­profit sector as charitable donations were greatly reduced in the United States. While aggregate measures are useful to look at the non-­profit sector as a whole, it does little to show how each non-­profit individually handled its finances during the recession. To show an individual non-­profit perspective, I examined data from the Ronald McDonald House of Greater Cincinnati to determine whether or not it was financially viable during the Great Recession. To answer this question, I used data from IRS 990 forms to complete a series of financial ratios that evaluated different …

2014 A National Review Of Community Leadership Programs, Caster Family Center For Nonprofit And Philanthropic Research, University Of San Diego

Nonprofit Leadership and Capacity Building

In May 2014, LEAD San Diego commissioned the Caster Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research (Caster Center) to conduct a national review of organizations that support leadership development and civic engagement (i.e., community leadership programs). The Caster Center researched 32 such organizations and conducted phone interviews with 12 of them. The interviewed organizations included nine community leadership programs: six were independent nonprofits, two were nonprofits housed within a Chamber of Commerce, and one was a Chamber of Commerce program. The remaining interviews were with two statewide community leadership programs that were foundation funded and a university research center.

2014 North County Senior Connections: Needs Assessment And Asset Mapping, Mary Jo Schumann, Crystal Trull

Seniors

In December 2013, the Rancho Santa Fe Foundation (RSFF) commissioned the Caster Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research (Caster Center) at the University of San Diego to conduct a Phase I research study to provide RSFF Grants and Projects Committee (GPC) with relevant data and research needed to help make informed decisions about a new program titled “North County Senior Connections” (NCSC).

Youthbuild Providence: Public Relations Plan, Madeline Armater, Clayton Durant, Michelle Ryder, James Paternostro, Kaiwen Zhu

Marketing and Communications

Understanding what incentives drive businesses to partner with non-profits, as well as understanding what media business owners will pay attention to can help our firm get YouthBuild Providence’s name and message in the correct places that will have a higher probability of being consumed by these higher level managers or small business owners. To get the message out correctly, we are going to leverage the use of social media and local media to push our message out to small businesses.

Community Preparatory School: Alumni Relations Plan, Arnold Robinson

Marketing and Communications

When trying to get people to understand your message, you can use the Uses and Gratifications theory which talks about how people tend to pay attention when they are entertained, informed, their opinions get reinforced and they have a sense of belonging. Our message will get people to pay attention because the Alumni already have a sense of belonging to CPS, and it informs and reinforces their opinions about caring for their Alma mater. We will get Alumni to believe this message by holding events and other activities in which they can be a part of.

2014 Causes Count: The Economic Power Of California's Nonprofit Sector, Laura Deitrick, Jon Durnford, Andrew Narwold, Fred Galloway, Mary Jo Schumann

State of Nonprofits in California

Causes Count describes, in economic terms, the stunning size, variety, activities and impact of California’s large and diverse nonpro t sector. The research was conducted by The Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research at the University of San Diego and was guided by an advisory panel of more than 30 leaders throughout California.

This study synthesizes multiple sources of data to generate the most complete picture of the power of California’s nonprofit sector to date.

The research identifies and documents trends in the financial health of nonprofits, employment, volunteerism, foundation grantmaking, and civic engagement, as well as provides …

2014 California's Lanterman Act 45 Years Later: A Study Of Service Recipients' And Providers' Experiences With The Law's Legacies, Caster Family Center For Nonprofit And Philanthropic Research, The Nonprofit Institute, University Of San Diego

Legislation

The California Disability Services Association (CDSA), an association of community-based nonprofit and for-profit organizations that provide assistance to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, decided in 2013 that it was time to take a close-up look at the impact of the legislation 45 years after the act became law. It collaborated with the University of San Diego’s Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research (the Caster Center) to conduct a focus group study exploring perceptions of, and experiences with, disability services in California.

The One Less Traveled By: A New Model Of Leadership For The Nonprofit Sector, Michael E. Guillot

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

How can we examine and address the nonprofit leadership dilemma? Nonprofit board members and executives, caught between a desire to advance a mission of service and a need to participate in the marketplace to acquire resources, are struggling to find scholarly direction that provides appropriate guidance while not succumbing to models of management designed by and for profit-oriented businesses. The Ten Building Blocks of Nonprofit Leadership is a new model of leadership that reconciles this dilemma through the articulation of ten key traits that distinguish the nonprofit leader and directs leadership behaviors in such a way as to retain the …

Well Traveled: Strong Relationships And Unique Challenges Are Revealed In “Driving Richmond: Stories And Portraits Of Grtc Bus Drivers”, Laura Browder

English Faculty Publications

Here’s a well-kept secret: The regional GRTC Transit System is among the most progressive organizations in Richmond. The nonprofit plays a major role in reducing pollution, easing traffic congestion and connecting people to jobs. Its reform-minded leadership is eager to play a larger role. Its unionized bus drivers, which included some of the first waves of black and female drivers, help hold it all together.

And those drivers love their jobs — to a degree unusual for workers in any profession. That’s what I learned through interviews with 16 current and former drivers this summer for an exhibition at the …

2013 Volunteering In San Diego: A Needs Assessment, Sue Carter-Kahl, Laura Deitrick

Volunteering

In Fall 2011, Volunteer San Diego closed its doors leaving a perceived gap in volunteer matching services in the region. Nonprofit and corporate leaders anecdotally indicated that the remaining volunteer matching services and programs were not meeting local needs sufficiently. The University of San Diego's Caster Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research conducted a needs assessment with support from local funders to better understand the nature of San Diego's volunteer matching needs.

2013 Applied Projects Evaluation Organizational Impact Report, Svetlana Krasynska, Jennifer A. Jones, Mary Jo Schumann

USD Evaluation of Applied Learning Model in Nonprofit Leadership and Management Master's Program

University of San Diego’s Nonprofit Leadership and Management (NLM) master’s degree program places a special focus on experiential learning, requiring students to complete multiple applied projects as part of the program’s curriculum. Applied projects give students various opportunities to work in teams to provide real-world consulting services to nonprofit and philanthropic organizations. In developing this curriculum, the NLM program serves both the students who are given these real-world consulting opportunities, as well as the client organizations who benefit from the services provided by the students.

In Fall 2010, the University of San Diego’s NLM program initiated an Applied Projects Evaluation …

2013 Study On Children Of Seriously Wounded Service Members, Mary Jo Schumann, Erika Nash Cameron, Laura Deitrick, George Reed, Dezaree Doroliat

Military

Over the course of one year, researchers from The Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic at the University of San Diego interviewed a total of 125 participants, including seriously wounded service members, their spouses and children, as well as military, civilian and nonprofit professionals who work with this population. The study included two phases to ensure a comprehensive understanding around the population and its unfulfilled needs: The first phase focused on understanding the specific needs of children of seriously wounded service members through interviews, focus groups, and reviews of existing research; the second phase focused on an assessment of …

Kroc Fit Kids Needs Assessment, Brandon Dotts, Jason Jarvinen, Maria Todaro, Morgan Wilson

Program Design and Evaluation

The Salvation Army Kroc Center, a 12.4-acre family support, education, recreation, and cultural arts center located in the Rolando neighborhood of San Diego, is interested in designing an intervention program to alleviate the issue of low levels of physical activity and combat the childhood obesity problem. The Kroc Center is well suited to designing such an intervention because it works closely with six partner elementary schools in its surrounding neighborhoods. To assist the Kroc Center in developing an intervention, this needs assessment examines factors that may lead to low fitness scores, and the potential dangers to students, and the community, …

2012 Reboot Program Evaluation: A Report To The Kisco Foundation, Laura Deitrick, Ian Martin, Roxanne Ruzic

Military

The Kisco Foundation commissioned researchers at the Center for Education Policy and Law and the Caster Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research at the University of San Diego to work with REBOOT, a nonprofit based in Southern California, to conduct an evaluation of its program, REBOOT WorkshopsTM (REBOOT). REBOOT is a three-week-long program designed to assist members of the military in making the social and career transition from military service to civilian life by “re-booting” their skills, attitudes, and behaviors. The evaluation detailed in this report was conducted during the summer and fall of 2012, two years after the first …

2012 Applied Projects Evaluation Interim Report, Caster Family Center For Nonprofit And Philanthropic Research, University Of San Diego

USD Evaluation of Applied Learning Model in Nonprofit Leadership and Management Master's Program

In order to assess the value of applied projects completed by NPLM students for client nonprofit organizations, evaluation surveys are sent biannually. The statistics below demonstrate key findings from 69 responses to surveys administered during both the spring and fall of 2011 and 2012. The quotations included here are from the most recent survey conducted in the fall of 2012.

Grant Document For Epiphany Prep P/I Work Plan, The Nonprofit Institute, University Of San Diego

Governance

Grant Document for Epiphany Prep P/I Work Plan

Small-Scale Aid Donors, Agribusiness, And The Zambian Export Sector, John R. Ledgerwood, Stephen N. Morgan

Publications

Production of high value agriculture and natural products has become a key instrument in economic development programs to accomplish the dual objectives of raising rural incomes and conserving valuable environmental resources. Rapid growth in global demand for organic and natural products has provided a strong economic incentive for small scale aid agencies to expand into this niche market. Through this analysis we investigate the economic impact that aid funded agricultural production has had on rural residents of Zambia and how this development strategy allows small scale aid donors to capitalize on the business and export opportunities in the Central African …

Problems Of Maintaining Adequate Accounting Records For A Non-Profit Organization In Sub-Saharan Africa, John R. Ledgerwood, Stephen N. Morgan

Publications

This paper looks at the accounting challenges faced by a small-scale non-profit organization operating in sub-Saharan Africa. We will look at the case of Enright Flight Ministries, Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Florida that carries out evangelical and humanitarian aid projects in Zambia. Building upon field interviews with administrative staff and project managers, we analyze the various problems facing the organization in maintaining adequate accounting records. After looking at both external and internal problems, we investigate the solutions employed by Enright Flight Ministries to maintain the integrity of accounting systems to derive best practices for the small-scale international …

Country Montessori School Of Poway Governing Board Handbook, The Nonprofit Institute, University Of San Diego

Governance

2012 board handbook for the Country Montessori School Board of Directors.