Philanthropy and Nonprofit Research and Resources

The San Francisco Foundation offers monthly “how to apply” workshops to teach grantseekers the most effective approach to requesting support. Please contact us to sign up for workshops or for up-to-date information on availability.

Contact:
415.733.8500
info@sff.org
Attend a How To Apply Workshop

The Nonprofit GENIE is a project of CompassPoint Nonprofit Services and the California Management Assistance Partnership. The GENIE is a website that provides fast information to nonprofit managers, volunteers, and board members, including a FAQs section on nonprofit management, a features section containing interviews with grantmakers and nonprofit leaders, as well as links and publications. There is a new link for using Quickbooks for nonprofit accounting.

Contact:
www.genie.org

 
The University of Wisconsin at Madison Grants Information Center Website offers excellent guidelines for proposal writing. There are also links to advice on writing letters of inquiry, sample proposals, FAQs, information on seminars and workshop, as well as an extensive database on resources for nonprofit organizations and individuals.

Contact:
www.library.wisc.edu/libraries/Memorial/grants/proposal.htm

The Foundation Center is a library that provides research and services on philanthropy in the United States. It offers print and electronic publications on up-to-date trends in philanthropy; education and training on the grantseeking process, including fundraising, proposal writing, and budgeting. The Center, which is open to the public, also has a comprehensive and searchable database of funders. There are Center locations in Atlanta, Cleveland, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.

Contact:
415.397.0902
www.fdncenter.org/sanfrancisco

Give Voice
A place where you can speak directly to elected officials about the issues affecting the nonprofit sector. Offers email and fax action alerts.

Contact:
www.givevoice.org

Idealist

A global directory of nonprofit-related information, including nonprofit organizations, consultants, products, services, publications, and events. It also provides nationwide listings of jobs and internships.

Contact:
212.843.3973
212.564.3377
info@idealist.org
www.idealist.org

Fellowships

Read about the Foundation’s own Multicultural Fellowship Program.

 The Academy Fellowship Program of the Greenlining Institute is an annual leadership training program for multiethnic students who have at minimum completed their undergraduate studies and want experience working on low-income and minority economic development. Fellows conduct research, write reports and position papers, help organize community events, and interface regularly with multiethnic community, corporate, and government leaders. Applications can be downloaded from the website. The Institute also hires graduate-level summer associates.

Contact:
The Greenlining Institute
1918 University Avenue, 2^nd Floor
Berkeley, CA 94704
510.926.4000
greenlining.org/sections/view/fellowships

The Hesselbein Fellows Program is a yearlong program of the Leader-to-Leader Institute that supports the professional development of social sector leaders who have a demonstrated record of leadership and entrepreneurial performance and who are engaged in projects or programs that demonstrate community innovation. Application brochures are available online.

Contact:
320 Park Ave, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10022
212.224.1174
www.leadertoleader.org

Classes - Training - Consultation

The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University’s Fund Raising School offers courses for nonprofit professionals, including: Fund Raising for Small Nonprofits; Principles and Techniques of Fund Raising; Planned Giving: Getting the Proper Start; Preparing Successful Grant Proposals; Enhancing Donor Relations; and Developing Leadership for Major Gifts. Courses are offered at locations throughout the US and abroad, including numerous offerings in San Francisco.

The following scholarships are available:

• The San Francisco Foundation awards up to four scholarships per course. Courses are offered in San Francisco four to five times per year. These scholarships are awarded based on recommendations from Foundation Program staff. Contact the Koshland Program staff at 415.733.8500.
• The Dottie Rosso Scholarship Fund provides partial scholarships to participants employed by 501(c)(3) organizations with annual operating budgets under $1,000,000. Contact the Fund Raising School for more information.

Contact:
550 West North Street, Suite 301
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3272
317.274.4200
iucop@iupui.edu
www.philanthropy.iupui.edu

CompassPoint Nonprofit Services offers training and consulting to nonprofit organizations, as well as a wide range of low-cost workshops for individuals. Course topics include executive leadership, fundraising, financial management, marketing, computer training, the Internet, and more. Workshops are offered in San Francisco, San Mateo, San Jose, and the East Bay.

Additionally, nonprofit professionals and volunteers can sign up for a free subscription to CompassPoint’s newsletter, Food for Thought. Focusing on the nonprofit news in the South Bay, a publication that offers information about funding opportunities, conferences, and other timely resources. Its nonprofit web links provide many links to helpful services for nonprofits.

Contact:
706 Mission Street, 5th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94103
415.541.9000
info@compasspoint.org
www.compasspoint.org

Sign-up for a subscription to Food for Thought: food4thought-on@lists.compasspoint.org

The Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership of Marin provides resources and services aimed at creating a stronger nonprofit sector and a more engaged community.

Contact:
650 Las Gallinas Avenue
San Rafael, CA 94903
415.479.5710
info@cvnl.org
www.cvnl.org

Essex and Drake Fund Raising Counsel, along with its Roundtable partners, offers free workshops for nonprofit organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Each partner offers training sessions on its own unique specialty to the nonprofit community or brings in experts to cover topics of interest. The Roundtable workshops are held twice a year, in the spring and fall. See its website for a list of workshops and for registration.

Contact:
1202 University Avenue
San Jose, CA 95126
408.294.7779
contact@essexdrake.com
www.essexdrake.com/roundtable_workshops.htm

The Institute for Nonprofit Organization Management at the College of Professional Studies, University of San Francisco offers Certificate and Master’s degree programs structured for working adults. Research and publications on nonprofit management can also be ordered from its website.

Contact:
2130 Fulton Street
San Francisco, CA 94117-1080
415.422.6867
inom@usfca.edu
www.inom.org

The SPIN (Strategic Press Information Network) Project provides comprehensive media training, strategizing, and resources to community organizations across the country. SPIN helps grow the capacity of grassroots groups to shape public opinion and garner positive media attention.

Contact:
77 Federal Street, 2nd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94107
415.284.1420 x309
info@spinproject.org
www.spinproject.org

Walton El-Askari & Associates is a community health planning, education, and evaluation consulting team that connects professional consultants with nonprofits.

Its database of consultants includes such information as fees, communities served, expertise, and languages spoken. Each applicant’s résumé, biographical sketch, writing sample, and reference checks are also available. There is no charge for this community service.

Contact:
3255 Guido Street
Oakland, CA 94602
510.530.6177
info@waltonelaskari.com

Technological Resources

CompuMentor is a San Francisco-based organization that has become an international model for providing computer help to nonprofits and schools serving low-income communities. It provides nonprofits with discounted software and matches volunteer expert mentors with nonprofits that need technical advice. CompuMentor’s staff also provides in-depth consulting for a fee.

Contact:
435 Brannan Street, Suite 100
San Francisco, CA 94107
415.633.9300
800.659.3579
webmistress@compumentor.org
www.compumentor.org

TechSoup.org, powered by CompuMentor, is a community-wide portal that helps small to midsize nonprofits with an array of technology needs including products, software, and technical assistance. You can contact CompuMentor at the above phone number for more information.

Contact:
www.techsoup.org

The Beehive is a consumer website designed to provide low-income individuals with a range of web-based products and services- including financial services, education, jobs, health care, and homeownership- that help them build assets and raise their standard of living. The website, also available in Spanish at www.thebeehive.org/spanish, is written in language that is accessible to individuals with limited literacy. The Beehive is a project of One Economy Corporation, a national nonprofit organization.

Contact:
www.beehivesf.org

The Beaumont Foundation of America has three distinct grant programs for technology equipment: community grants for community-based organizations, education grants for schools, and individual grants directly to individuals.

Contact:
P.O. Box 1855
Beaumont, TX 77701
866.546.2667
www.bmtfoundation.com

The Alameda County Computer Resource Center is a nonprofit computer recycling organization that provides computers to those who would not otherwise have access to them. They provide technical training and refurbished computer equipment locally, nationally, and internationally to individuals, nonprofits, and governments. A request form is available online.

Contact:
1501 Eastshore Highway
Berkeley, CA 94710
510.528.4052
interns@accrc.org
www.accrc.org 

Groundspring.org's EmailNow service is an affordable and ad-free email messaging tool for nonprofits to send eNewsletters, raise money online, and communicate with supporters. EmailNow allows a nonprofit to easily and safely store thousands of email addresses and to conduct email outreach campaigns.

Contact:
Presidio Building 1014
P.O. Box 29256
San Francisco, CA 94129-0256
415.561.7807
support@groundspring.org
www.groundspring.org/services/emailnow.cfm

Community Technology Center Network is a network of more than 1,000 organizations united in their commitment to improve the educational, economic, cultural, and political life of their communities through technology. CTCNet provides resources and advocacy to improve the quality and sustainability of community technology centers and programs at the local, national, and international level. CTCNet works together with its member organizations to provide networking, capacity building, program development, and partnership opportunities.

Contact:
1436 U Street, NW - Suite 104
Washington, DC 20009
202.462.1200
202.462.3892
www.ctcnet.org/

Volunteerism

Energize, Inc. is an international training, consulting, and publishing firm specializing in volunteerism. Its website provides resources, information, and ideas on volunteer management.

Contact:
5450 Wissahickon Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19144
215.438.8342
www.energizeinc.com

The Taproot Foundation is a volunteer organization that provides Bay Area nonprofits with grants of consistent, high-quality professional services. Through a proposal process, it matches volunteers from the business and technology world with nonprofits.

Contact:
466 Geary Street, Suite 300
San Francisco, CA 94102
415.359.1121
bayarea@taprootfoundation.org
www.taprootfoundation.org

The Shanti National Training Institute (SNTI) primarily serves people who work as leaders of volunteers. SNTI provides training and technical assistance addressing a broad range of topics related to volunteer management and offers a unique values-based perspective.

Contact:
730 Polk Street
San Francisco, CA 94109
415.674.4700
snti@shanti.org
www.shanti.org/snti/about.html

Volunteer Match is a nation wide nonprofit, online service that helps interested volunteers get involved with community service organizations throughout the country. Organizations may also post when recruiting volunteers.

Contact:
385 Grove Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
415.241.6868
support@volunteermatch.org
www.volunteermatch.org

Community Career Center is a website dedicated to the employment needs of individuals and organizations in the nonprofit world.

Contact:
www.nonprofitjobs.org/

Community Building Resources

Center for Community Change
This website focuses on showcasing the resources and tools that build strong communities.

Civic Practices Network
Civic Practices Network (CPN) is a collaborative and nonpartisan project bringing together a diverse array of organizations and perspectives within the civic renewal movement.

National Neighborhood Coalition
The NNC serves as a crucial link to Washington for neighborhood and community-based organizations and an important networking resource for representatives of regional and national organizations involved in community development, housing and a wide range of other neighborhood issues.

Community Building Resource Exchange
This website provides a broad array of resources and information about innovative community building efforts to revitalize poor neighborhoods and improve the life circumstances of residents and their families.

Evaluation and Measurement Resources

Illinois Civic Engagement Project
Illinois Civic Engagement is a research and citizen action project designed to measure and describe the level and forms of civic engagement of the citizens of Illinois, and a citizen action project to help Illinoisans learn how to enhance and sustain civic engagement for the betterment of our communities.

The Measures for Community Research Database
The Measures for Community Research Database is a collection of measures used to evaluate outcomes viewed as important by Comprehensive Community Initiatives (CCIs), public policy makers, program funders and experts in relevant research fields. This collection of measures covers eight substantive areas: Community Building, Economic Development, Employment, Education, Housing and Neighborhood Conditions, Neighborhood Safety, Social Services, and Youth Development.

Campus Compact
This website contains articles and resources that assist in defining and mapping civic engagement. Resources include program models, assessment tools, service-learning toolkits, the Presidential Declaration on the Civic Responsibility of Higher Education, and Building the Service-Learning Pyramid.

Saguaro Seminar: Civic Engagement in America
The Saguaro Seminar: Civic Engagement in America is an exciting initiative of Professor Robert D. Putnam at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. The project focuses on expanding what we know about our levels of trust and community engagement. A signature effort has been a multi-year dialogue on how we can increasingly build bonds of civic trust among Americans and their communities. BetterTogether.org is an initiative of the Saguaro Seminar on Civic Engagement in America at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

Funding and Philanthropy Resources

Fundsnet Online Services
Fundsnet Online Services, perhaps the most comprehensive site of its kind on the Internet today, is a privately owned website created in 1996 for the purpose of providing nonprofit organizations, colleges, and Universities with information on financial resources available on the Internet.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy
The Chronicle of Philanthropy is the newspaper of the nonprofit world. It is the number one news source, in print and online, for charity leaders, fundraisers, grantmakers, and other people involved in the philanthropic enterprise.

The Affinity Group Network
The Council on Foundations-recognized Affinity Group Network is composed of 38 organizations, covering a range of issues and population groups. Affinity groups provide the field with the necessary resources, information, and expertise to enhance the effectiveness of philanthropic dollars.

Public Safety and Community Justice Resources

California Civic Unity Federation
This website is designed to increase the effectiveness of organizations working to preserve and promote human and civil rights, more specifically, but not limited to issues of intergroup conflict, hate crimes and violence, police-community relations, and human relations commissions. CAHRO provides resources for building the capacity of Human Relations and Human Rights Organizations

Not in Our Town
Not in Our Town is a national movement that encourages community response to hate crimes. The project combines PBS broadcast, grassroots events, educational outreach and online activities to help communities battling hate talk to-and learn from-each other. Since 1995, Not in Our Town has chronicled positive community organizing stories and provided practical tools to stimulate dialogue.

The National Conference for Community Justice
The National Conference for Community Justice, founded in 1927 as the conference for Christians and Jews is a human relations organization dedicated to fighting bias, bigotry, and racism in America. NCCJ promotes understanding and respect among all races, religions, and cultures through advocacy, conflict resolution, and education.

Training and Capacity Building Resources

California Center for Regional Leadership
This website focuses on how California can help young people and new citizens become more engaged in community and civic affairs.

National Civic League
The National Civic League (NCL) is a 109-year-old nonprofit, non-partisan organization dedicated to strengthening citizen democracy by transforming democratic institutions. NCL accomplishes its mission through technical assistance, training, publishing, research, and the All-America City Awards, the nation's oldest and most prestigious community recognition program.

The Community Collaborative Wellness Tool
The core instrument of the Together We Can Initiative is the Community Collaborative Wellness Tool: Improving Results for Children, Youth, Families and Neighborhoods. The goal of the Tool is to strengthen the capacity of collaborative systems reform initiatives to change how public, private, and community institutions work together to support children, youth, and families. The Tool reflects the experiences of many community collaborations in working toward comprehensive reforms. It raises issues collaboratives must address in accomplishing their ultimate goals of improved results for children, youth, families, and neighborhoods.

NeighborWorks Network
NeighborWorks is a national network of community-based organizations creating healthy communities through the work of thousands of residents, business people, government officials and other partners.

Neighborhood Funders Group
The Neighborhood Funders Group is a national network of foundations and philanthropic organizations. Our members support community-based efforts that improve economic and social conditions in low-income communities. NFG provides information, learning opportunities, critical thinking, and other professional development activities to our members.