As has been expected, the U.S. Department of Labor issued its Overtime Final Rule yesterday. This new rule will go into effect on December 1, 2016, and will become part of DOL regulations. It will have an impact on many Alaska nonprofits. The National Council of Nonprofits, a Foraker national partner, has just launched a new page on its website that includes all the latest information on the rule and how it will apply to the nonprofit sector. We encourage you to click here and review the National Council’s summary. It should help you better understand how the rule could affect you. The National Council will update the page whenever new information becomes available, so we encourage you to check it frequently. Please note the section on Does this Regulation… Read more »

Foraker is experiencing technical difficulties.  Our phone lines are down – if you need immediate assistance please call Andrew at (907) 440-8519. Foraker staff  are still available via email, for general inquiries you may email info@forakergroup.org. We expect to have the issue fixed by Monday, May 16.    … Read more »

Our friend Kit Gillem, Program Director for the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, is retiring this spring. Over the years Kit  has elevated the work we do at Foraker in many ways. His thoughtfulness, critical eye, and big picture thinking has changed the way many organizations across the state do their work – and we’re all better for it. We thank you, Kit, for your friendship over the years…. Read more »

In an effort to increase individual philanthropy in the Alaska, Foraker is pleased to be a part of the planning of Wills Week offered and facilitated by The Alaska Chapter of The Association of Fundraising Professionals.  Wills Week (May 9 -13) is designed to increase the number of Alaskans who have wills and provide nonprofit professionals with the knowledge and tools they need to help people make charitable investments. Details and registration for individuals who want more information on wills and training opportunities for nonprofit professionals is at www.alaskawillsweek.org… Read more »

Thanks to everyone who participated in Pick.Click.Give. this year. With pledges of $3.19 million, 2016 marked the second highest level of donations since the program started eight years ago. Jason Grenn, PCG manager, has reported that a total of 29,543 individuals made 49,856 pledges. Of the 543,879 people who filed for a 2016 Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD), 5.5% of them chose to share with a PCG organization. You can review the results for all organizations in alphabetical order by clicking here, or by total pledge amount here…. Read more »

The Certificate in Nonprofit Management is designed for Alaska nonprofit professionals in leadership positions who want to enhance their management skills and explore a full range of issues and best practices to use in their organizations. The program features courses developed to apply classroom teachings directly to your workplace, case studies directly related to issues facing Alaska nonprofit organizations, and a network of fellow professionals. Information on program dates and a curriculum overview can be found here. The deadline for applications is July 1, 2016…. Read more »

We are in the final stretch of the Pick.Click.Give. campaign —  for many nonprofits this is the most important time to encourage giving to their organization. Thousands of Alaskans have yet to file for their PFD. As the March 31 deadline draws near, your organization has the opportunity to connect with potential donors and share your mission widely. To encourage your efforts, the Alaska Community Foundation has announced several bonus grants for organizations in the final push of the campaign: – THREE $5,000 bonus grants (one for the organization with the highest % increase in donations from 2015 to 2016, one for the highest increase in donors from 2015 to 2016, and one for the organization with the greatest increase in total donations from 2015 to 2016.) – A $1,000 bonus grant to a first-year… Read more »

Philanthropy Northwest has started a new series called the Virtual Roundtable. This month features a “discussion” among state nonprofit association leaders, including Foraker’s Laurie Wolf, on the challenges facing nonprofits and the strategies the associations are using to meet them. The leaders outline the key public policy issues they are addressing and offer ideas on how funders can support capacity building. We encourage you to read Laurie’s thoughts and learn what’s happening in the other states in our region…. Read more »

Foraker and CEO Laurie Wolf received a nod today in the “Knowledge Matters” blog from the National Council of Nonprofits for our “values-based” approach to budgeting. Check out the post below: “In Alaska, the state association of nonprofits, The Foraker Group, led by Laurie Wolf, urges nonprofits to prepare for an uncertain future: “…know who you are and where you are going. Make values-based decisions – this applies to every decision from programming, to staffing, to board composition, to budgeting.” Laurie’s recent blog post reminds us of the strong force that nonprofits can be – together – by using our voices and working together to solve problems, and by maintaining our values-based approach.”… Read more »

Each year 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. New this year, we are asking organizations to specify staff gender in order to gauge pay equity in our sector. The link below will take you to a secure online survey that allows you… Read more »