Bricks and Mortar
A Clearinghouse on Faith, Development and NonprofitsArchive for Affordable Housing
Nonprofit Career Month
November 13, 2009 at 9:41 am · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Economic Crisis, Favorite Blogs, Favorite Personal Links, Higher education, Holistic Missions, International Development, Jobs, Microfinance, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, Social Entrepreneurship, Social Justice, Social Work
As I am finishing up my nonprofit management course, I found this new website – Nonprofit Career Month. There is a blog, podcast and links to state based nonprofit associations and resources. This project is powered through the work of Idealist.org the first place people go to find a nonprofit job or understand the nonprofit sector. If you are a young professional looking for a job, check this website out!
New website for Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives
November 10, 2009 at 12:01 pm · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Faith, Holistic Missions, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, Social Justice, Social Work
Received this from a list serv:
Friends –
Good news!
The White House has just launched the new Internet home of the Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. You can find it at www.whitehouse.gov/partnerships.
This website will help faith-based and neighborhood organizations learn more about how they can partner with government to better serve individuals, families and communities in need.
I’m particularly excited about our new Partnerships Blog which will be updated regularly with the latest information about the Office. In the coming days, the Partnerships Blog will feature profiles of our agency Centers, information about the President’s Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, spotlights on local organizations and much more.
We’re looking forward to using this website to communicate important information to local organizations and community leaders. Thanks for all the great work that you do!
Best wishes,
Joshua DuBois
2010 Community Reinvestment Awards
October 29, 2009 at 7:00 pm · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Disaster Relief, Economic Crisis, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, Social Entrepreneurship, Social Justice
The 2010 Community Reinvestment Awards
Improving Access to Financial Services and Education: Building a Foundation for Inclusive Economic Recovery
The organizing committee of the 2010 National Interagency Community Reinvestment Conference invites nominations for the 2010 Community Reinvestment Awards. The Community Reinvestment Awards recognize and honor the work of financial institutions that are advancing innovative solutions to the challenges facing lower-income communities.
The year’s awards will focus on innovations in financial products and financial education. The recent subprime crisis, as well as the continued proliferation of alternative financial products such as check cashing and payday lending, suggests that more needs to be done to expand access to responsible financial products and effective financial education. Ensuring that people are equipped with the skills, knowledge and appropriate products to make informed decisions that contribute to their financial well-being is a key component of an inclusive economic recovery.
Financial institutions are invited to submit nominations that detail their innovation—be it a product, financial education program, or a service—for the award. Nonprofits, community development finance institutions, local government agencies and community development corporations may also submit entries for nomination on behalf of their partnering financial insitution(s) or collaborative.A panel of nine judges will evaluate and vote on the submissions. Three awards will be given: 1) Innovation in Financial Education Delivery, 2) Collaborative Approaches to Expanding Access to Financial Services, 3) Product Innovation.
Nominations will be judged on three criteria:
- Innovation: How is the initiative new or different? How does it meet the needs of lower-income and underserved consumers?
- Effective use of partnerships: How does the initiative collaborate across a group of stakeholders?
- Impact: What has been the impact of this initiative on lower-income families and/or communities?
To submit a nomination, please send an email with a description of the project (750 words or less) answering the questions above to cra.awards@sf.frb.org by January 11, 2010. Please also provide your detailed contact information on the submission.
Recipients of the award will be recognized at a special awards luncheon at the 2010 National Community Reinvestment Conference, to be held in New Orleans, Louisiana, March 14-17, 2010. Winning financial institutions will receive three (3) free conference registrations which they can use for their staff or to sponsor representatives from partnering nonprofits.
For questions about the awards or the nomination process, please email cra.awards@sf.frb.org.
For more information about the conference, visit http://www.frbsf.org/community/conference2010.html.
Becoming a Federal Grant reviewer
October 29, 2009 at 12:29 pm · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Economic Crisis, Favorite Blogs, Higher education, Holistic Missions, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, Social Justice, Social Work
There are opportunities for qualified experts to become federal grants – they even come with a small stipend. I learned about this possibility from a nonprofit blogger, named Don Griesmann. Check out information about this process from his blog here.
Top schools for Urban planning students
September 29, 2009 at 8:08 pm · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Higher education, Nonprofits
If you are thinking about getting your masters’ degree in planning, I recently came across this website that might help you in your search for a quality program. Remember – a school’s ranking is just but one indicator…
Best places to live while in college
September 17, 2009 at 7:15 pm · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Economic Development, Higher education, Jobs, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, PhD, SNHU
The American Institute for Economic Research recently published their annual College Destinations Index for 2009-2010. Cities are divided into three categories – large metro regions (over 2.5 million people); mid-size metro area (over 1 million people); small cities (250,000- 1.0 million people); small/college towns (under 250,000 people). If you would like to see the list, you can find it here. Manchester, NH where my doctoral program at Southern New Hampshire University is housed, is 16th on the small cities list. 
Impact of Recession on Nonprofits
August 31, 2009 at 9:55 am · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Economic Crisis, Globalization, Higher education, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, Social Entrepreneurship, Social Justice
I recently read a interesting report from the Johns Hopkins Center for Civil Society Studies on the impact of the recession on nonprofits here in the United States. You can find the report here. Based on a survey of 363 nonprofit organizations through the center’s Nonprofit Listening Post Project, the following findings are described:
- Nonprofits faced significant financial stress (duh): 83% of the nonprofit surveyed endure significant financial hardship during the target period
- Nonprofit showed an impressive resiliency during this period: nonprofits report on the whole that the level of fiscal stress was less during the target period than after 9/11.
- Nonprofits employed diversified funding streams: a number of nonprofits engaged in new fund raising efforts, improve marketing strategies and cut administrative budgets.
I hope that the report is helpful to your organization as you attempt to be innovative and creative during these difficult economic times.
IRS to reach out to Nonprofit Management education programs
May 29, 2009 at 10:15 am · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Higher education, International Development, Microfinance, Nonprofit Management, Nonprofits, Social Entrepreneurship, Social Work
In case you have not heard, the IRS is in the process of developing a new endeavor to reach out academic institutions which offer degrees related to nonprofit management. If you would like to comment or provide suggestions, you may do so on or before June 6. Here is the link to the IRS page which provides more information on this new initiative.
Community Organizing job outlook
April 13, 2009 at 9:18 am · Filed under Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Economic Development, Community Organizing, Economic Crisis, Jobs, Social Justice, Social Work
The NY Times just did an article about the potential rise in interest in the field of community organizing. There is a claim in the article that this surge in interest is related to President Obama. I think this is a bit of a stretch. Whatever the reasons for this, it is wonderful to see young people engaged on a public level to leverage change in their communities.
Community Economic Development Programs – United States
March 24, 2009 at 12:23 pm · Filed under About me, Affordable Housing, Community Development, Community Organizing, Higher education, International Development, SNHU, Social Work, Taylor University
I’m on Spring Break and I am in the midst of reading social theorists, grading and writing papers. No break for me! Enough whining…
I received a list of Community Economic Development programs (certificate, bachelor, master and doctoral) from one of my professors. I will not be able to post the list, but I am willing to send the document to you by e-mail, should you be interested. If you would like to receive the list, e-mail me at rkfernando at taylor dot edu.
