I took a little sabbatical from the blog, mainly because I took some time off from my too frequent flights on Alaska Airlines. Those days of bliss are over and before June I will again qualify for the 75K Gold status. But today, on one of the first trips in 2012, I’m off to Juneau. Every nonprofit leader who depends on state funding should schedule a trip during session. Even if you are not dependent today, it is a good practice to visit the Capitol, shake hands, and work on a relationship with legislators and their staff – on their turf. One day that effort will be rewarded. Unfortunately, I am a late-comer to public policy work. I’m convinced I should have started 30 years ago. Thankfully I have staff… Read more »

Alaskans aren’t strangers to snow, but last week’s storm in Prince William Sound was exceptional. Foraker certificate graduate Rochelle van den Broek produced a couple of videos that show the impact on local residents. Her work is being viewed extensively on Facebook and YouTube. Take a look here…. Read more »

Alaska Community Foundation (ACF) is a part of a much larger movement that is nearing the end of its first century of existence, according to ACF president Candace Winkler. As we compare ourselves with older community foundations across the nation, we realize the magnitude of the work we are doing – and the work that’s ahead of us. Established 16 years ago, the Alaska Community Foundation works to grow philanthropy and build community in an effort to improve the quality of life here, now and forever. In our large state, that can be a daunting task. Read more-… Read more »

What’s up with air travel? Every seat on every flight is full and there is always a long standby list. Today was no different. I was in Seattle to work with one of our long-term consultants, Suzanne Lagoni. We’re completing the last draft of our sustainability book so it can go to press in 2012. We can’t wait! This was almost my last flight of 2011. I only have a trip to Kenai, one to Juneau and one to Fairbanks for work this year – after Christmas we’ll fly south to see my parents. This year I will fly over 130,000 miles, most in Alaska and work related. This travel is in sync with a primary Foraker goal – to truly serve our whole state and not be viewed as… Read more »

Foraker has been publishing surveys to support human resources within Alaska nonprofits since 2002. This year brings more improvements for our Partners: Efficiencies from automating in 2010 make it possible to repeat the full survey in 2012 – salary and benefits – rather than doing a salary-only version as we’ve done in the past. We’re also moving up the publication date significantly to best support our Partners that operate on a July-to-June fiscal year. Survey participation will run November to mid-December. Pricing on the survey is the same as 2010 and greatly below other market surveys: $75.00 – Foraker Partners that participate in the survey $150.00 – Foraker Partners that do not participate $250.00 – Other nonprofit organizations that participate in the survey $300.00 – Other nonprofit organizations that do… Read more »

This week, Chicago and the Independent Sector’s conference entitled R-Evolutionary This topic will sound familiar to anyone who regularly reads our newsletter or this blog. The world is in a massive state of change led by technology and human nature’s adaptation to that change. The smidgen of insight this time is that when we have expressed our understanding of these pending changes, we have tried our best to not sound alarmist, nor too far out, so you could hear the message. What I learned this trip is that messengers far smarter and more articulate than I report the same frustration when they express their understanding of this new reality. We heard again that the new world will be less hierarchical, more networked, and institutions with the ability to quickly adapt… Read more »

Today I am in Kansas City, MO at the Midwestern Youth Summit sponsored by the US Department of Education. It is designed to hear the voices of youth throughout the country on what is needed to improve education in America. The summit is held in partnership with the National Leadership Conference for Camp Fire USA, where I am proud to serve as a trustee on the national board. The youth at the summit developed nine action plans to enhance the experience of high school students and encourage them to finish school and attend college. The Kaufman Foundation and Sprint Foundation were the lead sponsors for the event, which was attended by over 150 youth from the surrounding area. The smidgen of insight today is that while many organizations work with… Read more »

You’ll never guess where I am tonight – the Philippines! Well sorta. Tonight was the 31st year of Maharlika, a celebration of the Filipino community in Anchorage. Money is raised to support scholarships and other worthy causes. The sell out crowd was dazzled by great music and dancing that rivaled Vegas! And WOW, everyone was decked out in their finest. Foraker’s own Malu Antonio from Shared Financial Services was not only involved in planning and implementing this event, she and her family and friends entertained us with their great dance moves. Tonight’s smidgen of insight is that we live in a state full of opportunity to experience culture from around the world. Let’s celebrate this diversity while we acknowledge our common humanity through such exposure. Dennis… Read more »

Flathead Lake Montana — October 9, 2011 While this may look like Alaska, today I am at Flathead Lake where the University of Montana conducts research on fisheries and climate change. The Montana Nonprofit Association asked us to assist them in a retreat with one of their most significant members. I was lucky enough to get to come to this beautiful part of our country, just outside of Kalispell about 65 miles south of the Canadian border. My smidgen of insight this time is how lucky we are in Alaska to live in an environment that so many people in the Lower 48 wish for. While Montana is truly beautiful and has many wilderness areas, it is still easier for people to invade their remote places than it is in… Read more »

We are currently planning our educational program for 2012 and we want to be sure we’re offering the classes you want. We’ve prepared a very brief survey that will help us learn what classes you are interested in and when you would like to take them. As our thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, we will offer you a free two-hour class for participating in the survey. Please click here and you will go to the survey, which will take you less than five minutes to complete. Thanks…. Read more »