The Foraker Group

Create a more fulfilling and engaged work life. Do you want to discover your unique strengths as a leader and how to apply them more fully for better results? Do you understand how your sense of purpose drives your work or connects to mission? We invite you to apply to the Catalyst in Nonprofit Excellence program. Apply today! What is Catalyst? Catalyst is a results-oriented personal and professional development program designed to help you discover your intrinsic ability to create excellence and grow your network of support. With a cohort of peers, you will explore tools that will elevate your leadership. The series is broken into five sessions that build on each other. Each step is separated by some time to allow you to integrate and apply your learning and prepare… Read more »

There has been a new development in the ongoing efforts to dismantle the Johnson Amendment. Here’s the scoop from the National Council of Nonprofits: “The U.S. Senate approved with broad bipartisan support its version of a $154.2 billion, four-bill fiscal 2019 spending package that does not include the anti-Johnson amendment language adopted in the House-passed bill. That House provision would effectively prohibit the Internal Revenue Service from enforcing the Johnson Amendment against churches for even the most egregious violations.” Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski has been appointed to the conference committee working on a compromise budget proposal and she is in position to play a pivotal role in helping protect the Johnson Amendment.  We ask Alaska nonprofits to join us in preserving nonprofit nonpartisanship by contacting Senator Murkowski with this short but powerful message: “Partisanship has… Read more »

  Congratulations to Carol Gore, President/CEO of Cook Inlet Housing Authority and member of the Alaska Census Working Group, who has been named chairperson of the U. S. Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee (NAC). Carol, who previously served as vice-chair of the NAC and who serves on its Committee on Racial, Ethnic and Other Populations, is the only member of the 27-person body who hails from Alaska, a state that poses unique challenges when it comes to the decennial census. As chair of the NAC, which acts as a critical channel of communication between the Census Bureau and on-the-ground practitioners across the country, Carol will continue to advocate for a fair and accurate count in 2020, especially for historically undercounted populations. And as the only member of the NAC representing… Read more »

Change is palpable right now – from the world stage, to the national landscape, to our local communities, to our organizational front porch. We see change in large ways in recent headlines marking the passing of American icons like Senator John McCain and Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul. And we see it in everyday life in our own families and communities. And, of course, our seasons are changing far too fast for most of us as we move into the waning summer days that feel more like fall with every gust of wind and change in leaf color. In eulogies and in daily life, in the confessions of great scholars, and in the ramblings at the water cooler, I am in awe of the constancy of change. Change can… Read more »

Every two years we ask you to tell us how you compensate your staff. With your participation in the Foraker Salary & Benefit Survey, we are able to create a tool for Alaska nonprofits to use in making important personnel decisions. The survey is designed to help you establish a salary for a new position, evaluate salary norms within the Alaska nonprofit sector, and compare your organization’s benefit offerings and total compensation competitiveness. The report can be used to find information relevant to you – breaking the data down by job titles, organization budget size, and by sub-sector. Again this year, we are asking organizations to specify staff gender in order to gauge pay equity in our sector. The link to the survey will take you to a secure online area… Read more »

There has been a new development in the ongoing efforts to dismantle the Johnson Amendment. Here’s the scoop from the National Council of Nonprofits: “The U.S. Senate approved with broad bipartisan support its version of a $154.2 billion, four-bill fiscal 2019 spending package that does not include the anti-Johnson amendment language adopted in the House-passed bill. That House provision would effectively prohibit the Internal Revenue Service from enforcing the Johnson Amendment against churches for even the most egregious violations.” We don’t know who will be appointed to the joint House/Senate Conference Committee, which will be tasked with coming up with a compromise budget proposal, but we ask Alaska nonprofits to join us and nonprofits across the country to preserve nonprofit nonpartisanship.  We are asking Alaska nonprofit leaders to get in touch with the three… Read more »

Foraker has a team of more than 20 consultants ready to help you strengthen your organization. Meet a few of the most recent additions to our team: Sammye Pokryfki has joined our consulting team and is available for board facilitation and executive consultation. Sammye has worked in the nonprofit sector as a staff, board member, volunteer, and mentor for 35 years. Before joining Foraker as a consultant, she experienced a yearlong sabbatical that included outdoor adventures in some of the most beautiful places on earth (including Alaska). Sammye’s most recent professional position was at Rasmuson Foundation where she worked from 2005-2017. Sammye is a proud UAA Alumnus with bachelor’s degrees in English and Social Work, and a master’s degree in Social Work. She received UAA’s Alumni of Distinction Humanitarian Award in 2016 and… Read more »

So many choices. So many great ideas. So much wishful thinking. We all have been in these meetings. It’s a real struggle to sort through all you are hearing and doing to get to the things that matter the most. Add the need to generate revenue, and the pressure can be overwhelming on a good day. So how do you choose which activity to run with? How can you be sure that whatever you choose will get you closer to not just more money, but more mission? Having a clear sense of your business model is certainly an essential step. But once you know if your mission is going to be primarily powered by earned income or charitable income only gets you off the starting line. Now you have to… Read more »

Join us for a thought-provoking session with Building Movement Project Co-Director, Sean Thomas-Breitfeld,as he leads us through the Race to Lead findings, which challenge the way the nonprofit sector has been approaching the racial leadership gap.  Date: Thursday, September 20, 2018 Time: 8:30am – 11:30am Where: Campfire Conference Room @ the Mountain View Services Center – Anchorage, AK Event Background: The Building Movement Project has surveyed more than 4,000 respondents nationwide about their current nonprofit job, interest in leading a nonprofit, training/supports, views of leadership, and personal background. The findings from the survey, found in the report, Race to Lead: Confronting the Nonprofit Racial Leadership Gap, challenge the way the nonprofit sector has been approaching the racial leadership gap. They show more similarities than differences in the background and preparation… Read more »

We are pleased to announce that Wendy Lindskoog has joined the Foraker Governance Board. Wendy is the Vice President of Communications and External Affairs at BP Alaska. She is an accomplished executive with 30 years of community and government affairs experience and extensive legislative, agency, and policy expertise. Wendy is no stranger to the nonprofit sector – she is a dedicated community member and serves on the boards of the Resource Development Council and the Alaska SeaLife Center. Wendy’s participation on the Governance Board marks another example of the generous support from BP and its employees for Foraker’s mission to strengthen Alaska nonprofits. We have been honored to have six BP employees serve on either the Governance or Operations Boards. And we greatly appreciate BP’s support both as a long-time… Read more »