Hello Nonprofit Leaders and Supporters, |
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The beginning of September is a week of painful memories, reflection, and a chance for us all to join together, grieve, and take action to build a better future. In all of our minds is the tragic and terrible attack on America 20 years ago this Saturday. So much of the last two decades have been shaded and influenced by 9/11. This 20th Anniversary is especially poignant and raw in the wake of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan and the withdrawal of all U.S. troops and diplomatic presence in what can only be described as the most ignominious way. For an entire generation of Afghans that began to build and hope for the future and Americans that sacrificed so much, the last weeks and this Saturday’s anniversary is going to be especially difficult.
For communities across Oregon, this week marks the 1st anniversary of the devastating Labor Day wildfires. Even as those communities start on the long road to recovery and rebuilding, new fires threaten or have already burned (or even reburned) wild areas and structures across our state. Remembrances for the wildfires survivors have been curtailed due to concerns of the spikes in COVID cases across Oregon and the heavy load placed on hospitals.
Throughout all of this, the work of the nonprofits that have been responding to community needs has been incredible. Afghan refugees (of what is projected to be 300-400) have started to arrive in our community. Nonprofits, including refugee aid organizations, veteran's groups, and faith-based institutions are leading the support services and resettlement, welcoming these people into their homes and providing them the opportunity of a new life. Wildfire recovery and rebuilding organizations are providing case management services and on-going wrap-around support to wildfire survivors. And across both groups, behavioral and mental health organizations are making themselves even more available to assist people processing the trauma and displacement. All of this with the backdrop of a surging Delta variant of the COVID virus.
Thank you to all that are working, volunteering and supporting these noble efforts. You are what makes the nonprofit sector great.
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Stay healthy and be safe,
Jim White
NAO Executive Director
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Governor's Office Release Proclamation on Labor Day Wildfires
The Governor’s Office released a statement and proclamation on September 7th for the One-Year Anniversary of historic Labor Day wildfires in Oregon. The full statement can be found here. There was no other official event organized by the state to mark the wildfires. Many community-based organizations and nonprofits held vigils, commemoration and get-together events in the communities that were most impacted. Both the New York Times and Oregon Public Broadcasting have done excellent articles highlighting the impacts of the fires and the recovery efforts.
Redistricting: The Maps are out!
The legislature's draft maps have been released. Maps drawn by members of the public to be considered by the legislature were due on September 7th. And the last public hearings in Oregon started yesterday and are being held virtually until September 13th. It is interesting to note the way that the various political caucuses have divided districts, some which will definitely split service areas for holistic communities across two or even more districts. If your nonprofits participate in advocacy efforts on behalf of your program participants and mission, please take a look and comment on how the different models of redistricting will impact the communities you serve.
As a reminder, redistricting is the once-a-decade process of redrawing United State House of Representatives (Congressional) and Oregon State Senate and State House of Representatives (Legislative) district boundaries to account for changes in population that were counted in the most recent census. The biggest activity on redistricting is occurring between now and September 27. All official details can be found at the Oregon State Redistricting site.
The League of Women Voters Oregon redistricting site contains all the key dates, deadlines, and resources for participation in the redistricting process over the next weeks. For more information on how your nonprofit can help spread the word on the redistricting efforts and get involved, you can also contact the LWVOR at Voter Service.
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Oregon Nonprofits Support ERTC Expansion
Over the last few days (and during the holiday weekend), 128 charitable nonprofit organizations from across Oregon signed on to a letter supporting the expansion and extension of the Employee Retention Tax Credit. Yesterday, NAO delivered that letter to the Senator Wyden’s staff and staff members of the Senate Finance Committee, which Senator Wyden Chairs. A similar letter has already been supported by many national nonprofits and charities. It is our sincere hope that during the mark-ups for budget reconciliation, Senator Wyden continues to show leadership on prioritizing continued and robust support for the ERTC.
Thank you to all that responded so quickly to our request and signed on advocating for these important provisions!
Budget Reconciliation
Multiple House committees are working frantically to complete their legislative portions of the Budget Reconciliation Bill by the September 15th deadline. None of the bill texts released so far are vehicles that the various nonprofit agenda items would naturally be attached; those measures should be released in the coming days. We will keep you posted as those come out. What has been released and scheduled so far may be of interest to some of you:
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Education and Labor: Markup on September 9 to consider “Committee Print to comply with the reconciliation directive included in section 2002 of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2022, S. Con. Res. 14.” Committee markup notice. Here are the Committee Print (original version) and the Chairman’s Substitute dealing with workplace training, education spending, and more.
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Financial Services: Hearing on Friday, Sept. 10: Protecting Renters During the Pandemic; see Committee Memo. Markup on Monday, Sept. 13.
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Ways and Means: On Thursday, September 9, 2021, and Friday, September 10, 2021 at 10:00 a.m., the Committee will mark up measures spanning from universal paid family and medical leave and access to child care to strengthening retirement savings and trade programs that prioritize American workers.” News release with links to legislative text. Notably:
Continuing Resolution
The Biden Administration called on Congress to pass a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government funded past the September 30 end of the 2021 fiscal year. In making the call, they also are seeking to include: 1) a hike in the debt ceiling, 2) Hurricane Ida disaster relief funding, and 3) Afghan resettlement funding. Their goal, reportedly, is to put all of these items in one bill and dare Republicans to vote to shut down the government and deny disaster aid.
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NAO's Upcoming Learning and Convening Opportunities |
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NAO 2021 Virtual Networks |
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Registration for individual network sessions are open! Due to the continued rise of the Delta variant, all NAO networks will be virtual only through the end of the year. We will continue to prioritize the safety of our communities, monitor COVID-19 cases, and hospital capacities on a regular basis – we're hopeful that we can convene in person safely in 2022. Members can purchase our Member Pass for a deep discount and priority registration for up to 10 sessions. Members and non-members can also purchase individual tickets to any sessions. |
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Fundraising in the New Environment - Tackling Long-Term Change While Meeting Today's Needs
September 15, 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Presenter: Laurel McCombs, The Osborne Group
Every organization has long-term goals it's looking to reach, whether it be growing major gifts, shifting portfolio balance, or building a powerhouse board, but too often those long-term goals are pushed off by short-term revenue requirements or immediate demands. Through a combination of focusing on vision and big impact, shifting philanthropic culture, and implementing processes and systems that support better time and priority management, you can achieve both short and long-term development goals. More details and registration information here.
Leveraging Increased Awareness to Advance Organizational Equity and Inclusion
September 23, 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Presenter: Cliff Jones, Capacity Building Partnerships
2020 offered new levels of awareness and challenge in advancing organizational equity and inclusion efforts. In his groundbreaking book Theory U, Otto Scharmer invites us to embrace the process of ‘leading from the future as it emerges’ as we look at equity and inclusion through the lenses of: Disparities illuminated by and related to COVID-19; the movement for Black Lives and racial justice; widening economic disparities; disparate impacts of substantial changing patterns in climate, and Political and ideological polarization! More details and registration information here.
Strategic Fundraising in an Uncertain World
September 29, 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Presenter: Ron Frey, Frey Resource Group
The last two years have shown that the world around us can be volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous and we know that constant change can completely upend your organization's fundraising efforts. This session is designed to give you hope as well as practical strategies to turn your fundraising campaigns into a positive force even during uncertain times. You’ll leave with tools to help you focus on the most strategic fundraising moves to make right now and build a powerful framework for long term success in donor development. More details and registration information here.
How Are Nonprofits Responding to Our New Reality Through HR?
September 30, 7:30 a.m. – 10 a.m. | Presenter: Mark Kajitani, IRCO
How are nonprofits moving forward using an HR lens to reimagine their success? This session will share four core strategies Oregon nonprofits are using to adjust to new business realities: Caring for Employees: Employee Assistance Plans; Staffing Crisis: Are you becoming the side-hustle; Workplaces Conflict: Pay Equity's Definition; Hybrid, Hoteling, and rethinking space. More details and registration information here.
The Art and Practice of Adaptive Leadership
October 13, 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Presenter: Steve Patty, Ph.D., Dialogues In Action
The times we live in require leadership. One of the key characteristics of a leader is the ability to take a group of people to a place they would not have gone otherwise. This is much more than managing people. This is seeing the good potential in people and providing thoughtful, skillful, and courageous engagement that calls them forward and develops them in service to a virtuous cause. Adaptation, in an evolutionary sense, is about people developing new ways of facing the challenges and making the most of opportunities to thrive and help others thrive in a changing world. More details and registration information here.
Compliance Concerns and Considerations for Federal Funds
October 21, 7:30 a.m. – 10 a.m. | Presenter: Lesley Bennett, CFO Selections
Many organizations received increased federal funding or received federal funding for the first time since the pandemic began. Does your organization have compliance measures in place to meet the requirements of these funds? What is a federal audit? This session will address these issues and answer your questions about federal funding compliance. More details and registration information here.
How to Manage the Opportunities and Challenges of Shifts in Funding
October 27, 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. | Presenter: Lesley Bennett, CFO Selections
Since the beginning of the pandemic, many organizations have seen major shifts in funding. What are the common pitfalls of short-term changes in funding? What should organizations do to weather these shifts in funding? This session will focus on how to manage short-term shifts in funding without overextending their long-term capacity or missing the opportunity to build for the future. More details and registration information here.
These sessions are Member Pass eligible!
NAO Member Pass holders may register for events across all six of NAO’s networks. The unique discount code may be used for 10 registrations (per pass). Passes are shareable across your organization - Purchase now through October 31, 2021.
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Nonprofit Learning Cohorts
Effective Board Management for Small Nonprofits (Intensive)
September 22 to November 17, 11 – 12:15 p.m. | Facilitator: Jess Hampton, NAO
Join a cohort of nonprofit leaders to learn about board management best practices while gaining insight from each other’s challenges and solutions, and problem solving together. This eight-week cohort is for new and potential board members who want to understand the fundamentals of board service, seasoned board members looking to increase their board’s effectiveness, and staff and volunteers who support the board. Each session will include a facilitated training component as well as discussion-based peer learning opportunities. More details and registration information here.
Grantwriting for Results (Intensive)
September 22 to November 10, 12 – 1 p.m. | Facilitator: Allison Shirk, Spark The Fire Grantwriting Classes
This expanded series is an advanced learning cohort in grantwriting and grants management through a combination of online study and weekly zoom meetings for problem-based and case-based discussion. By the end of this eight-week course, you will have completed a grant proposal with your instructor’s individualized, guided assistance and peer review. The course will also teach you where to find grants, how to write grant reports, ethics, and how to build relationships with grantmakers so that you have all the information you need to write and manage grants successfully. Participants who complete the grant proposal will receive a digital badge and electronic Certificate in Grantwriting from Spark the Fire Grantwriting Classes. More details and registration information here.
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Rural Convening Opportunities
Fall 2021 Learn at Lunch Series
Are you on a nonprofit board or staff member looking for practical training and tools to strengthen your organizational leadership skills? Join NAO for an opportunity to learn at one of our regional Learn at Lunch sessions. Each series is made up of four, one-hour sessions held each week over the lunch hour, in person. We'll provide bite-sized training in Board Management, Board Recruitment & Retention, Engaging Your Board in Fundraising and Finance Fundamentals. Sessions are provided a la carte, so you can join us for all of them – or what topic you think is most applicable to your work now.
Upcoming Learn at Lunches are taking place throughout the state: McMinnville (Oct 7 - Nov 4); and Roseburg (Oct 21 - Nov 11). More details and registration information, click here.
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NAO Webinars
Board Bright: NAO's Quarterly Board Roles & Responsibilities Training
October 5, 3 – 4:30 p.m. | Presenter: Jess Hampton, NAO
In this 90-minute webinar, participants will learn about the fundamentals of nonprofit governance and gain an understanding of the board’s role in the management of the organization. This quarterly learning opportunity is designed for emerging and seasoned board members alike, and anyone else looking for a governance refresh! More details and registration information here.
Let’s Talk: Tips for Emerging Nonprofits
October 19, 11 – 12:00 p.m. | Hosted by: Rational Unicorn Legal Services
NAO is co-hosting a virtual panel discussion with our friends at Rational Unicorn Legal Services to talk about nonprofit law and compliance, programming, best practices, and tips for emerging nonprofits! Join us and ask them all real questions you might have about your nonprofit. More details and registration information here.
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Thank you to the following SUPPORTERS and SPONSORS who are supporting NAO’s online events and communications during these challenging times. Their support is vital in helping NAO to bring much-needed resources and information to Oregon’s nonprofits – thank you. |
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FRIEND PLUS PARTNER SPONSORS |
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FOLLOW NAO ON SOCIAL MEDIA |
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