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An informational gathering for area nonprofits brought together more than 250 board members and executive directors, representing more than 50 organizations, at Placer Community Foundation’s Leadership Summit held in early May in Lincoln Hills.

Volunteers are swarming over the home of an 81-year-old Oak Park man today, completing a three-week “extreme makeover” to produce an upgraded, comfortable and safe residence.

The effort is being overseen by Rebuilding Together Sacramento, which helps seniors and people with disabilities stay in their homes and remain independent. The nonprofit also has a goal of preserving affordable housing in the community…

This morning, a significant realignment of the national nonprofit infrastructure occurred. The National Council of Nonprofits (NCN) has just announced a plan to absorb the Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest (CLPI)…

The Nonprofit Finance Fund’s (NFF)  most recent survey holds little in terms of surprises, although it may make some of you feel a little less alone in your organization’s financial and service issues. According to NFF, 85 percent of nonprofits responding to the survey experienced an increase in the demand for service and more expect increases in demand next year.

Legislation that would provide incentives for Benefit Corporations pursuing city contracts in San Francisco has run into opposition from the state’s network of charities, questioning the need to provide an advantage to for-profits with a social mission.

The New York Times has eliminated its philanthropy beat, a move that could make it harder for nonprofits to get their stories told to a national audience…

Today, you may be subjected to yet another round of specious judgment about the management skills of nonprofit organizations. This is thanks to a newly-released report, “Financial Literacy and Knowledge in the Nonprofit Sector”.

The report is heralded by a press release entitled “Gaps in Financial Knowledge Challenge Mid-Size Nonprofits” but there is no information in the survey results or even in the report that supports the claim that the nonprofits represented have any particular or acute challenges that could not be explained by a bad economy. In fact, about half have more than four months of operating funds in the bank and about a quarter have more than seven months’ worth…

YouTube in recent weeks has turned its focus to helping nonprofits create more powerful, effective videos, with a new “playbook” guide and a chance to participate in a one-day video boot camp in San Francisco…

The United States climbed from fifth place to the rank of most generous country in the world, according to a recent global study.  In its second annual study of 153 countries, the Charity Aid Foundation concluded that the U.S. has demonstrated “strong” behavior across all three criteria measured – volunteering, helping strangers and donating money. The U.S. has increased its charity by 3 percentage points this year, up to $212 billion…

Many people probably rejoiced when they heard about a study released last week showing that 12 million baby boomers want to start their own nonprofit or socially oriented business over the next decade.  But it’s hard to imagine those findings cheered many people who understand the nonprofit world.

Overhead is a touchy subject for many nonprofits. Donors who want most or all of their contributions to support an organization’s cause may be overly critical of administrative costs and other overhead. Nonprofits, in turn, often feel pressured to keep overhead down and so may misrepresent those costs, reinforcing donors’ unrealistic expectations.

United Way California Capital Region has awarded grants totaling nearly $1.2 million to 13 nonprofit groups in the Sacramento area.

The groups take part in United Way projects designed to improve children’s reading, teach “financial literacy” to low-income households and helping kids embrace good nutrition and exercise.

A new type of company intended to put social goals ahead of making profits is taking root around the country, as more states adopt laws to bridge the divide between nonprofits and businesses.

California is the latest state to adopt a statute permitting what is called flexible-purpose corporations, new companies that are part social benefit and part low-profit entities.

The watchdog group Charity Navigator revamped its ratings system this week as part of a plan to move beyond evaluating charities based solely on their financial performance.  The Web site now places equal weight on a charity’s governance and openness about its operation as it does on financial information.

The growth in nonprofit jobs slowed in 2010 compared with other recent years, according to a new analysis of U.S. labor statistics.

The number of nonprofit jobs grew by just under 1 percent from 2009 to 2010, according to a study of figures in 45 states by the Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Civil Society Studies, in Baltimore. Year-to-year nonprofit job totals increased by 1.2 percent in 2009 and 2.6 percent in 2008.

After two consecutive years of actual declines in charitable giving, 2010 saw a modest increase of 2.1%, according to the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy. But a survey of charities conducted by The Chronicle of Philanthropy (“Giving’s Recovery Lacks Momentum, Say Charities,” by Holly Hall and Heather Joslyn, June 30, 2011) reveals that most have low expectations for 2011.

Pessimism about giving in the mid-term future is evident not only in the survey responses but also in the data collected by the Center on Philanthropy for their publication Giving USA; they indicate that a full recovery to pre-recession levels of giving for most groups may not be possible before 2016. The survey results suggest that the nonprofit organizations which have been most successful in restoring their revenue streams are those that persist in sending funders and donors clear messages about their missions and their work.