Research paper words (2400)

Final Notes, Thoughts, and Links from 1.29 Civics Conversation (Amanda Cowgill)

Types of nonprofits:

There are many types of nonprofits. As I discussed, some are specific to providing direct services like feeding people experiencing homelessness; however, there are also organizations devoted just to fundraising for certain causes (e.g., Wounded Warrior Project, Susan G. Komen Foundation), to provide capacity building services to other nonprofits (e.g., many state-level organizations), and to advocate for others (e.g., lobbying organizations like the National Organization of Women). If you’re unsure about what an organization has to offer, just call them and ask! Many people who work in nonprofits are there to help any and all people, including those of you who want to volunteer.

Resources for volunteering:

- Volunteermatch.org: great collection of national, state, local, and virtual opportunities; also provides a list of nonprofits by subject area (anti-hunger, animal welfare, tutoring, etc.)

- Idealist.org: great collection of international, national, state, and local opportunities; also lists internships and jobs available with nonprofits.

- Hungervolunteer.org: national database on volunteer opportunities with anti-hunger organizations.

- Volunteer.dc.gov: resources and information on local volunteer opportunities (although not updated regularly. Best to check VolunteerMatch or Idealist first)

- Breadforthecity.org/volunteer/ : volunteer positions with Bread for the City. The organization does much more than just anti-hunger stuff including job readiness programs, resume writing, clothing assistance, and much more.

- Volunteer.capitalareafoodbank.org: also offers various volunteer opportunities including nutrition education, community gardening, and benefits outreach.

- Dccfh.org (DC Coalition for the Homeless): they don’t list any volunteer opportunities on their website but just reach out to them to see if they are in need of assistance.

- Humanerescuealliance.org/volunteer : DC’s animal humane shelters recently united to become the Humane Rescue Alliance of DC. They are often looking for volunteers to help take care of the animals in their care.

Notes on volunteerism: Most organizations need volunteers for all types of positions, not just bagging food or ladling soup. Many offer other services, such as helping people know about benefits for which they may be eligible. Also, many need other types of assistance, such as help with grant writing, volunteer engagement, or just simply helping them balance their budget. Reach out to organizations directly to see what assistance they may need. From there, assess your skillset and see what may match. You’d be surprised how your skills in something that seems unrelated can be applied to administrative or other ways to progress a nonprofit’s mission.

Resources for fundraising:

If fundraising sounds interesting to you, check out grants.gov and foundationcenter.org. Both have training resources on how to get into grantwriting.

Worried about the status of a nonprofit/not sure if they’re a good one with which to volunteer? Check out guidestar.org or charitynavigator.org. Both provide objective rankings based on various indicators such as how much money they raise goes to directly providing services versus fundraising, their tax documentation, if they have a Board of Directors, and much more. Both are great, free services for looking into the legitimacy of an organization.

Want to work for a nonprofit? Just like with the business world, check out glassdoor.com. This site allows current and former employees to post anonymous reviews of their experience with the organization. A word of caution though: just like product reviews, there may seem to be many more negative reviews than positive. Generally, I take these with a grain of salt because, generally, the more satisfied or dissatisfied we are with something, the more likely we are to post reviews. However, it’s still a good resource for both the private and nonprofits sectors to get a sense of how an organization treats its employees.

Want to give back to the community and earn money for tuition? As long as you have a work visa or are a citizen, you may be eligible to become an AmeriCorps member. Check out https://www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/join-americorps to learn more about the program. If you want to see what positions are currently available, go to my.americorps.gov. If there aren’t many listed yet, they will be come March-July as that’s prime AmeriCorps recruitment season. (I worked with AmeriCorps for the last 12 years before coming to UDC. If you have ANY questions, please feel free to ask. If I don’t know the answer, I can get you in contact with someone who does!)

As I said before - please reach out if you have any questions about nonprofits/AmeriCorps/fundraising/volunteerism. If I can’t answer, I may be able to help you find the resources you need. It was a pleasure speaking with you all. Good luck in civics class!

Amanda Cowgill [email protected]