Funding: Patterns and Guideposts in the Nonprofit Sector

Although funding is a pressing concern for nonprofit organizations across the United States, detailed information about how dollars flow within the sector is hard to come by. For example, are there distinct patterns to the ways in which nonprofit organizations are funded? If the answer to this question is "yes," those patterns could provide important "guideposts" for similar organizations planning their funddevelopment strategies.To begin answering this question, the Bridgespan Group researched the funding for three samples of nonprofit organizations using Form 990 returns, complemented by company-specific reports and personal interviews. 1. The largest organizations tend to rely on a single type of funding for the majority of their revenue, rather than having a balanced mix from a variety of funders. Among youth services and environmental advocacy organizations, there are distinct transition points across a spectrum ofrevenue sizes where organizations move from heterogeneous to singletypefunding.2. Among the largest organizations, the kind of work an organization does influences, but does not dictate, the identity of its dominant funding type.3. In the fields we selected for in-depth analysis -- youth services and environmental advocacy -- growth to a significant size is extremely rare, and the largest organizations control most of the resources.4. In youth services and environmental advocacy, there seem to be transition points in the typical funding mix used by organizations of different sizes, suggesting that the size of an organization influences its dominant funding type

A Teacher’s Terminal Illness in the Secondary Classroom: The Effects of Disclosure

How does it affect learning when cancer becomes the prevailing metaphor through which students see their teacher

Risk and Uncertainty in Youth Sport: A Philosophical Look at Specialization

An increasing number of children playing sports face pressure (both parental and societal) to specialize at an early age, to focus exclusively on one sport with the hope of securing a college scholarship. So-called “travel teams,” once the domain of tweens and teens, now extends to the very youngest children, with athletes (and parents) traveling exceedingly long distances, and spending large sums of money, virtually year-round. Through the course of this paper, I glean from both American philosophical themes, and current literature related to social change, to help at least partially answer this question regarding youth sport specialization. I contend that these conceptual ideas help provide language for us to think more clearly about some of the issues surrounding youth sport specialization. To begin, the potential downsides of youth sport specialization are patently clear. Focusing on one particular sport at a young age presents latent hazards. At an appropriate point, however, this specialization holds the potential for exploring the notion of commitment in extremis. After engaging in multiple sport options during elementary school years, the adolescent soccer player, for example, may decide to pursue the “beautiful game” to see what potential it may bring. My aim is to examine sport participation, specifically during the process where youth become committed to a particular sport. In this way, I move from issues of early exploration with youth sport to issues related to commitment and immersion. My contention is that youth sport participants who choose to focus on a particular sport, to make it their own, and make this decision (largely) on their own – act in a way which is consistent with the language of American philosopher, William James. James is fitting here, as Ilundain-Agurruza (2015) explains, because his works are “suited for a holistic conception of enactive performance . . . [and include a focus on] asceticism and risk, and those regarding cognition and action” (p. 259)

The Impact of Faith and Experience on the Development of Coaching Philosophies

The purpose of this paper is to address coaching philosophies in the context of experience and faith. In particular, how do coaches at Christian colleges develop their ideas and beliefs about coaching which guide their actions and behaviors? To what extent does faith impact these philosophical commitments? What is this process of decision-making and growth like? Does this development process occur intuitively, through rational discourse and planning, or perhaps through some sort of symbiotic process? This paper is both descriptive and normative, both reflective of the experiential process in developing one’s coaching philosophy as well as prescribing effective ways to integrate faith, experience, and coaching ideals and practices. Establishing a coaching philosophy is indeed a developmental process. For the attentive coach, coaching guidelines and principles change over time. Second, a coaching philosophy is developed through experience more so than being derived from abstract principles. While individuals may promote concepts like fairness or compassion, these principles are fleshed out and modified through relationships. Third, a coaching philosophy informed and constructed by faith, when properly and consistently applied, can play an important part in this process. Coaches may draw from their own faith experiences in ways that positively impact the team climate

Does the Brazilian presidential system shape environmental policy there?

In her latest publication, Kathy Hochstetler, examines environmental policies and outcomes during three successive presidential administrations in Brazil, and questions whether the Brazilian presidential system helps shape the country’s environmental policy

Climate institutions in Brazil: three decades of building and dismantling climate capacity

What kinds of national climate institutions can solve the governance challenges that the Paris Agreement devolves to them? This article identifies three stages of climate institutions in Brazil, a major emitter of greenhouse gases through deforestation that managed to reduce such emissions for nearly a decade. It shows that a narrow definition of climate institutions that seeks purpose-built state institutions fails to capture important dynamics there, and that such institutions have little direct impact on outcomes. In Brazil’s political landscape, national presidents exercise a decisive influence on their climate ambitions and capacities. However, positive and negative feedback loops also brought some effective climate action from the layering of climate purposes into existing institutions, as well as through non-traditional institutions like private governance arrangements for agriculture

Protecting Youth from Mexican Drug Cartel Recruitment: The Prospects of Educational Interventions

This investigation considers the impact of Mexico’s War on Drugs since 2006 and the influence of widespread cartel networks on the youth population. As both victims and perpetrators of drug-related crime, the young individuals of Mexico are the center of this research. The goal of this investigation was to determine how education in Mexico’s grade schools could be leveraged to protect its youth from drug-related violence and cartel recruitment. Therefore, the study examines both the challenges suffered by the education system due to the Drug War and the prospects for educational interventions to strengthen and protect youth over and against the drug cartels. The findings determine that the complexity of drug-related crime in Mexico and its effect on youth must be matched by diverse educational interventions. More than simply working to keep students enrolled in school, educators and policy-makers must also work to fortify youth’s social and psychological resources

In with a bad crowd : an analysis of criminal decision-making in small groups

The recent turn toward analysis of crime situations is driven in part by core findings in criminal decision-making research. These findings demonstrate that decisions to engage in crime often are spontaneous and based on immediate stimuli. That many crimes are committed with accomplices and that others play an important part in criminals\u27 situational assessment of opportunity and their experience of crime usually is neglected. I use data collected in interviews of 50 adult thieves and 89 student accounts to examine how groups of thieves deliberate over criminal decisions, decide to commit crimes and carry them out. Crime Groups assemble in risk-taking contexts. Important effects of these situational and group contexts on criminal choice are identified. Groups move toward crime through successive decisions made by different individuals in them and through manipulations by situationally influential participants. Their composition changes as they approach crime and this further constrains their decisions. I conclude with summary statements of the importance of groups for understanding criminal decisions

Is It You, Me, Or Am I Just Too Good? An Examination Of Behavioral Intentions And Recreation Activity Persistence

ABSTRACT Personal causation has been the subject of scholarly inquiry for some time. The theory of planned behavior attributes behavioral intentions to influences of subjective norms, attitudes, and perceived behavioral control (PBC). Behavior may be influenced by the pressure of important others, personal feelings toward the behavior, and people\u27s perception of performing a behavior with ease. Self-efficacy refers to an individual\u27s confidence in his or her ability to perform a given behavior that leads to a specific outcome. This study explored the connection between behavioral intention and activity persistence via an adapted model of the theory of planned behavior by adding the construct of self-efficacy. Leisure Skills courses at Clemson University, which provide skill development in a variety of recreation pursuits, served as the setting for the study. Quantitative analyses were employed to understand the influences of behavioral intentions to persist in recreation activities. Four categories of activities were examined in this study: outdoor recreation, sport, personal maintenance, and dance. Results provided insight to the motivating factors of college students\u27 engagement in collegiate recreation class activities and also provided potential programming delivery ideas

Letter from S. P. Hochstetler regarding Our Florida Friend

Letter from S. P. Hochstetler about subscription to Our Florida Friend. The one-page handwritten letter is dated 11 February 1913. There is a transcript of the correspondence in the item PDF