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Teacher quality in DC region… Citizen philanthropists… Update from Red Cross [News, 1.29.10]

EDUCATION | Report: “[T]eacher policies often work against the goal of improving teacher quality. Overall D.C. gets a D minus, Maryland a D and Virginia a D plus.” (WAMU, 1/29) – Report here.

HAITI
- Update from the Red Cross (wire, 1/28) – “To date, 79 percent of the funds have been committed or spent on food and water”
- Disturbing article: “thousands of children orphaned and consequently vulnerable to being preyed upon by child traffickers and Haiti’s shameful tradition of keeping child slaves…” (Time, 1/27)

CENSUS 2010 | Ex-convicts in District flock to apply for census jobs (WaPo, 1/29) – “Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) has introduced a bill that would ban felons from being census takers.” Because we prefer our ex-convicts unemployed and desperate!

WAGES | Obama Proposes New Tax Credit for Nonprofit and Other Employers (Chronicle, 1/28) – a proposal to help small employers–including nonprofit groups–hire workers and raise wages. [And the Chronicle redesigned its website.]

ENVIRONMENT | District bill would create fund for green upgrades (WBJ, 1/29)

INTERNET! | Why We’re In the Age of the Citizen Philanthropist (Mashable, 1/28) – in which I learned a new term: “slacktivism.”

TRANSIT | Va., Md. get nearly $140 million for rail projects (WaPo, 1/29)

GIVING BACK | ‘Athletes have a responsibility to the world we live in’ (USAToday, 1/28) – Who doesn’t, really?

“Relationships are primary, and all else is derivative.” [News, 1.28.10]

Feb. 4: Children, Youth & Families Working Group – Quarterly Meeting
Washington Grantmakers, 1400 16th St. NW, Suite 740
(For WG members)
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Tamara Lucas Copeland speaks to grantmakers and donors. (Photo: Bisnow)

P.P.PARTNERSHIPS | On Tuesday, WG and Arabella convened, if we may say so, an excellent meeting about public-private partnerships” (Bisnow, 1/27), which can lead to Big Change. Panelists discussed how to make these partnerships work.

DC SCHOOLS
- Speaking of PPP, yesterday Chancellor Rhee spoke to grantmakers about the i3 fund. (WGDaily, 1/28)
- Chancellor thinks discipline policies for teachers should be reformed (WAMU, 1/28/10)

POLICY AND ADVOCACY | Opinion: “The High Cost of Playing It Safe” - Foundations and nonprofits should participate in budget and governance reform debates, says Peter Manzo. (SSIR, 1/27)

COMMUNICATIONS? | 86% of nonprofits characterize their messages as difficult to remember (GettingAttention.org, 1/25)

GRANTEES | Opinion: Foundations’ Four Biggest Faux Pas – (Fast Company, Feb. 1 issue)

EDUCATION | Administration pushes to rework No Child Left Behind law (WaPo, 1/28) … to seek up to $4B in new education spending (AP, 1/27)

HOMELESSNESS | Homeless count a unique challenge for census workers (WaPo, 1/28) – COG’s annual homeless census was yesterday.

Rhee speaks to grantmakers about the i3 fund

Yesterday, DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee spoke with grantmakers about her vision of how nonprofits can partner with DCPS to apply for federal Investing in Innovation (“i3″) funds. She focused on three areas:

1. Great people–efforts to recruit/retain and provide professional development.
2. Turning solidly performing schools into great schools.
3. Services for students. DC has 45,000 children in its public schools. The small scale allows for wraparound services, before and after-school opportunities, and Saturday opportunities as well.

Washington Grantmakers members will continue to explore with their grantees and DCPS how best to pursue these funds. On Feb. 11 we’ll convene Part Two of the i3 Fund Briefing. Funders and grantees will hear from Andy Lee, chief of staff for the Office of Innovation and Improvement at the Department of Education, about the newly released guidelines for the i3 Fund. Nonprofits will share their proposal ideas with funders, and then funders will meet to discuss how to be strategic in their support of local applicants.

Local census outreach efforts… Haiti donations… Affordable housing in Fairfax Co. [News, 1.27.10]

CENSUS 2010
- Funding outreach efforts–WG members: Please check yesterday’s “News for Grantmakers” email from Tamara for information about partnering with your colleagues on funding census outreach efforts. Your response needed by Friday!

- Census count begins in remote Alaskan village (WaPo, 1/26)
- Census Bureau has hiring spree (MercuryNews, 1/25) -  “For some people, this will be their first paycheck in months.”
- Why should you care about the 2010 Census? (WGDaily, 1/20)
- Find a Census Toolkit for Nonprofits and more at NonprofitsCount.org.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING | Fairfax County supervisors approve affordable housing plan (WaPo, 1/27) – “a sweeping blueprint…to increase its support for affordable housing through developers, nonprofit organizations and faith-based groups…”

GIVING | Haiti Donations Soar Despite Economic Crisis (NPR, 1/26) – Americans have donated $518M in 13 days.

RHEE | …clarifies remarks on laid-off teachers (WaPo, 1/27), noting that her examples “involved a very small minority of the teachers who were terminated in the budget reduction.” In other news, Chancellor Rhee met with WG members this morning about the i3 fund. Follow-up to come shortly.

EDUCATION | Yearbooks hit history’s dustbin (WaPo, 1/27), along with chalkboards and long attention spans.

Supreme Court decision & nonprofit advocacy… Teen pregnancies up [News, 1.26.10]

ADVOCACY | Opinion: A New Era for Nonprofit Advocacy? (Chronicle, 1/26) – The recent Supreme Court decision about campaign financing may apply to nonprofits, too…I think. That’s how the Chronicle article reads to me, but Robert Egger thinks nonprofits are still being muzzled. Maybe it’s still unclear. Here’s a passage from the Chronicle article:

Charities are currently prohibited from using any money for partisan electoral politics or even sponsoring a political-action committee. Yet under the logic of the Citizens United decision, such special treatment may violate the Constitution, though the deductibility of contributions to charities could allow the courts to differentiate them from other types of nonprofit groups that do not receive this special tax subsidy.

RHEE | WaPo: Rhee should provide answers (1/26). This afternoon Rhee did, explaining her comments about abuses by laid off teachers (WaPo, 1/26). Chairman Gray has launched an inquiry (WAMU, 1/26).

TEEN PREGNANCIES | …are on the rise (WaPo, 1/26) – The rate rose between 2005 and 2006–the first jump since 1990.

HAITI
- Grants for Haiti relief (Foundation Center)
- Hitachi Foundation donates $270,000 to Red Cross (wire, 1/26)

I CAN HEAR YOU NOW | Virgin Mobile USA offering free cell phones to low income Virginians (WAMU, 1/25)

HEALTH  | Pr. George’s leader wants to curb county’s fast-food eateries (WaPo, 1/26) – Sen. David Harrington wants healthier choices.

COMPENSATION | Opinion: Nonprofit CEOs Are Worth Every Dime (Forbes, 1/22)

Grab a seat on the bus for the DC Public Education Learning Tours

By Erica Pressman, Washington Grantmakers

As the first semester of the DC Public Education Learning Tours draws to a close, I want to thank Banyan Tree Foundation, CityBridge Foundation, DC Public Education Fund and the Community Foundation for bringing these valuable learning opportunities to the local funding community.  We covered topics ranging from early childhood to human capital to wraparound processes. We visited schools – most often one traditional public school and one charter – and had conversations with administrators from DCPS, OSSE and the Charter School Board.

We’ve found many reasons for optimism, meeting with outstanding principals and classroom educators, dedicated administrators and experienced curriculum developers.  We have seen their passion for ensuring that every child entrusted to them receives a  quality education.  But these tours do not gloss over the realities that teachers and principals work within – impoverished neighborhoods, violence outside the schools doors, achievement gaps and parents who aren’t involved in their children’s academic lives.

There is much work to be done, but I am more encouraged than ever about the possibilities that exist for our students, and of the importance of collaboration among colleagues.

If you’re interesting in attending, act fast—a few of the second semester tours still have space. Contact Deborah Julian, Banyan Tree Foundation, at djulian@banyan.org to learn more.

> Collaborative for Education Organizing
> WG’s Public Education Working Group

ThinkTwiceB4YouSlice… PEPFAR, PEP-NEAR… “Give DC a seat” [News, 1.25.10]

Feb. 3: Debunking the Myths: Creativity, Health, and Positive Changes of Aging
Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation 1250 Connecticut Ave, Suite 800
(For funders and government agency leaders)

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LOCAL BUDGETS | Social profit organizations to local officials: “Think Twice Before You Slice” – a new advocacy campaign from the Center for Nonprofit Advancement and the Nonprofit Roundtable.

PHILANTHROPY
- As assets decline, Chicago foundations scramble to maintain missions, answer rising needs (Chicago Business, 1/25) – with a big section about foundations, including “Four traits of effective foundation leaders.”
- Gates, the philanthropist, on lessons learned (Q&A) (CNET, 1/24)

HIV/AIDS | Opinion: “To fight HIV in D.C., bring PEPFAR home” – by Shannon Hader, director of the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration.

WORKFORCE | Paid sick-leave law “is ineffective is workers are unaware of their rights.” (WaPo, 1/25)

DC VOTING RIGHTS | WaPo opinion: “Give DC a Seat – Obama should speak up.” (1/24)

DC SCHOOLS | Rhee says laid-off teachers in D.C. abused kids (WaPo, 1/23) – “[She did not respond] when asked by e-mail why such teachers were allowed to remain in the school system before the Oct. 2 job cuts.” This interview with Fast Company is what we call borrowing trouble.

Living to be 100

It’s far more common than it used to be because America is quickly aging:

“The number of Americans ages 65 and older will more than double over the next 40 years, reaching 80 million in 2040. The number of adults ages 85 and older…will nearly quadruple between 2000 and 2040.”

It’s no surprise that more thinking and research is going into aging well, and maximizing our later years. Some of the most interesting research comes from the late Dr. Gene Cohen, confirming that older adults who participate in arts and creative activities have fewer illnesses and injuries, as well as more independence. However, a critical gap exists between arts provision and aging services.

Join Washington Grantmakers on Feb. 3* for a boundary-crossing discussion about Dr. Cohen’s groundbreaking work, Debunking the Myths: Creativity, Health, and Positive Changes of Aging, featuring:

- Dr. Lauren LeRoy (moderator), President and CEO, Grantmakers In Health
- Dr. Gay Hanna, Executive Director, National Center for Creative Aging
- Susan Perlstein, Artist/Founder, Elders Share the Arts

* Funders and government agency leaders only, please. This meeting is co-sponsored by WG’s Working Group on Aging, Arts and Humanities Working Group, and Health Working Group.

DC’s battle against HIV/AIDS… School lunches in Md… Haiti’s logistical hurdles [News, 1.22.10]

Jan. 27: “Investing in Innovation” Fund Briefing Part 1 – with DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee
Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation 1250 Connecticut Ave, Suite 800
(WG members and invited guests)

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ARTS
- Abandoned underground trolley station under Dupont Circle could become arts space (WaPo, 1/22) – Now that’s some low overhead. (Sorry.)
- Arts group seeks site, development partner (WBJ, 1/22) – “The new project is [the Cultural Development Corp's] first attempt to solicit developers directly.” (CDC’s funders include several WG members.)

HIV/AIDS
- Commentary With Walter Smith: D.C.’s HIV/AIDS Efforts (WAMU, 1/22)
- District, NIH prepares for battle against HIV/AIDS (WaPo editorial, 1/22)

HAITI
- Haiti’s logistical hurdles are thwarting small nonprofits (WaPo, 1/22)
- US charity for Haiti outpaces giving after tsunami (AP, 1/21), but lags behind Katrina giving. It seems that the closer the disaster, the more we give.

HUNGER & NUTRITION | |School lunch program adds 30K more Md. students (AP, 1/22), according to research by Md’s Advocates for Children and Youth. (ACY’s lead funders in 2009 were WG members the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Freddie Mac Foundation, and Open Society Institute.)

CHILD WELFARE | Foster teens to tell DC Council how to fix system (WaPo, 1/22) – “They have been practicing their testimonies at night at the Young Women’s Project.” (YWP’s funders include WG members the Moriah Fund, Eugene and Agnes Meyer Foundation, Freddie Mac Foundation, Hill Snowdon Foundation, Consumer Health Foundation, DC Child and Youth Investment Trust, Gwendolyn and Morris Cafritz Foundation, Community Foundation of the National Capitol Region, Commonweal Foundation, and Summit Fund.)