pic by boris rasin 

Nonprofits have to look at all views and just may find that it helps them devise their own plan.

The recent compromise of extending all tax breaks to ensure unemployment benefits seemed a little strange.  The math does not work to show me it was an equal return for both.   The amount of money for the rich compared to amount of time limited benefits the unemployed will receive is not even close. 

This approach has only provided the voter with more reason to support the Tea Party candidates because less government means fewer games with policy making. 

The Republicans and Democrats are equally at fault and should take their cue from the nonprofit industry.  A survey by American Express showed that 70% of Americans trust nonprofits more than government or business to deal with the most pressing issues.

If Congress wants to create maximum benefit it should compromise and accept they do not have all of the answers.  Ask the nonprofit sector to submit a plan on how it would balance the budget and pay off the national debt in the shortest amount of time.  Nonprofits represent every sector of the economy, carry with them lots of voter support and have access to capital. 

 pic from Jelene

There was a time where government and nonprofits were joint allies in working to create solutions to a challenge.  As time pass these partnerships became nonprofits 100% reliable on government funding and the partnership ceased.  In reality you have nonprofits functioning as quasi government agencies doing the governments work.  It is privatization of government services.  It is time for the government to reestablish that the solution is not government only. 

There should be no funding of awards to nonprofits or for profits without a required match.  It has been shown that when one is not responsible for a level of the funding that the effective allocation of the dollars is not as efficient.  The federal government has at times required a 10%-50% match when competing for a grant.  However, this needs to be across the board and standard practice at all levels of government.  It must be the goal to maximize the taxpayers’ dollars.  

I would advocate that a minimum requirement of 10% be required for receiving any government funds.  This includes states, city and towns looking to receive government funds from each other.  If a government or nonprofit entity wishes to show an initiative is important, than it needs to put money forward to show its commitment.  This will quickly prioritize the projects that the private sector, nonprofit sector or government sector wishes to support. 

It is alright for government to say I cannot do it alone.  It is alright to say how much money it has, what it wishes to resolve and invite proposals willing to provide a solution.  It will quickly show what the private sector, nonprofit sector and community is able to do with the funds.  Government needs to be more interested in measuring whether it got the result it wanted. 
Those entities willing to put a higher match into an initiative should be given more weight especially if it shows a partnership of multiple entities supporting the effort.

 Pic from Aragga

Do you teens, youths, or the bigger brother get annoyed by your own sibling? I have a little brother that’s nine and he always pushes me to get in trouble and he doesn’t get in trouble. I learned that brothers and sisters fight because that’s the way of humans. We learn from each other so we don’t make the same mistake. So here’s my advice to those big brothers, just ignore the problem, change the subject, and don’t kill each other. And for the adults, try to not get upset and after the fight between your kids is over, take a vacation.

From Dad: If your kids fight, just separate them in different rooms or let them watch some t.v. I have a son that’s thirteen and some of the things they bicker about is sometimes annoying and sometimes funny. Keeping the Communication is the bottom line to making things work out for everyone.

 pic from richard scott 33

The economics of existing as a nonprofit should focus on two factors:  raising money to lower the costs charged for your service and showing measurable results.  If a nonprofit cannot show both than it needs to seriously think about closing. 

Raising funds can be through in kind donations, cash, selling a good or service, and volunteers. 

Measurable results require that the nonprofit has set clear goals and objectives and with their data is able to show results. 

The future is about being part of a solution; the reason you exist.  If your nonprofit is part of maintaining the status quo until the problem is solved, your nonprofit is at risk of early extinction.    Nonprofits that are part of the solution are those that evolve to meet the changing needs with their focus on the mission and vision.

 pic by Sangre de Chivas

I just had my vacation and it was awesome. I went snowboarding with my friends in NH. But I was a little upset because I had homework  but my dad says that I should just try and enjoy my vacation. I did my homework everyday to make it less pressure. Then I became less overwhelmed. So here’s my advice, just try enjoy your vacation, do your homework a little bit everyday, and have lots of fun.

pic by Alan Cleaver_2000 

It’s no secret that even Harvard University is feeling the effects of the recession. Most pointedly, Harvard’s $37 billion dollar endowment has shrunk to $26 billion dollars. According to npr.org, Harvard investors for the endowment put money into investments such as, “hedge funds, private equity real estate holdings and junk bonds —all of which have been hurt in the past year.”

As a result of these poor investments and a major land acquisition, that “cost Harvard more than $4 billion”, Harvard officials are forecasting job cuts. Perhaps instead of thinking only in increasing the endowment through investments that went south, Harvard could have put some of that endowment to good use in the community, since it is a non-profit organization.

Let’s think about what Harvard has done for the residents in the communities where the school has some kind of presence. As far as I am concerned Harvard has done plenty of work through its student body to bring volunteers to the surrounding communities. In a wide range of areas, from health services, tutoring, developing low income housing, and access to cultural centers at the university. Harvard’s influence is felt world wide. The communities in which Harvard has a strong influence has substantially valued from its presence.

Hey, you know I respect everything that Harvard offers to the communities in which it occupies property. But was it really necessary to purchase 4 billion dollars worth of land in Allston for even more research facilities? What if Harvard donated all that money to developing low income housing in Boston, Cambridge, Allston, and Brighton? You think there’d be anymore issues with residents finding homes? I highly doubt it.

Harvard and other nonprofits with endowments need to be more fiduciary with the donations they receive.  Even below market rate student loans and investments in ones community would be closer to ones mission.  

The IRS with Congress should change the rules on non program related income to t the community and society gains.  Such areas should be in student loans and affordable housing.  For assistance in the economy Congress could create a nonprofit investment bond that endowments can invest in that can fund private or public infrastructure such as Internet, rail, alternative energy, etc.  It is time to tap the wealth of nonprofits in a logically way and create safer returns. 

pic by Slydon 

Recent graduates from college are more than likely going to have to face a huge amount of loan payments when they start to look for a job. Most likely a starting job for these recent graduates will be between $30,000 and $40,000 in either the non-profit sector or for profit sector.

What if the government were to mandate a risk tax for companies in either the non profit or for profit businesses that invested money in places other than housing developments, health services, or education issues? It would be safe to say that more for profits would be charged with such a tax and therefore allowing the non profit organizations a chance at hiring recent college graduates with a competitive salary.

Working for a non-profit organization is not going to make you a millionaire. However, if the mission and views of the organization are similar to the things you want to see happen in the community, state, or even the country, then working for a non-profit organization is a great way to break into the workforce. In particular, with smaller non-profits a new employee has the opportunity to accomplish challenging tasks that most for-profit companies would avoid assigning new employees from the get go. Responsibility, independence and accountability will be formed in these situations, and those characteristics are what employers are looking for. And if the offered salaries are the same when your considering job offers, the chances to thrive and advance in the work place with a non profit is much greater than non profit job offers. 

Plenty of college graduates claim they’ll never work behind a desk for the rest of their lives. Since there are literally thousands of different kinds of non-profit organizations out there, employees may never see another desk again throughout their career. The options for employment in the non-profit sector are just as wide and varied as those in the for-profit sector. The only difference is if you’re willing to work for a cause other than increasing profits for the board and instead help the community.
 

If a college student has a Perkins or Stafford loan they may be eligible to have part or all of it cancelled if they work for the right type of nonprofit.  Now that would be a great investment return for the former college student and the nonprofit they work for. 

I urge you graduates to pick up the phone and call your local nonprofits that meet the cancellation requirements and take a bite out of those loans. 

I urge the nonprofits that meet the cancellation requirements to promote such a fact in their recruitment. 

I have noted a few examples from the Federal Student Aid web site. 

 pic by Sir Realist

Definition of the Middle Class:  1. A class of people intermediate between the classes of higher and lower social rank or standing; the social, the economic,  cultural class, having approximately average status, income, education, tastes, and the like.  2. The class traditionally intermediate between the aristocratic class and the laboring class.  3. An intermediate class.  (Webster’s Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language)

The Federal Government standard for the percent of health care expenses is 7.5%, if one was to use the 1040 Attachment A Tax Schedule.  The Commonwealth of Massachusetts standard is any individual with an annual income above $21,660 or family with an annual income above $36,624.  The expected percent of income on health care premiums is 2.16% to 8.89%.  The Medicare Tax is required regardless of income. 

The poor are exempted, those age 65 and above have Medicare and those making $250,000 or more can afford to pay for their own health care. 

Health Care is really about one thing:  The need for affordable health insurance.  Unless Congress and the states reform how health care costs are controlled and keep health care premiums affordable there is no incentive to innovate low costs solutions.

It is one means to create innovation of low costs devices and models is by capping the spending in an industries.  Creating a health care cost cap per individual places pressure on the health care industry to evolve to innovative to lower cost solutions.  If you are a nonprofit in health care services and do not change over the next three years I would predict your organization will be struggling to survive or be closed in 2014. 

The Middle Class demands changed to the accessing of health services.  I predict that Community Health Centers and the health clinics in Pharmacies are the growth areas of health care delivery.  Transportation has been one of the largest obstacles for people seeking preventative medicine and managing their health with a primary care giver.   These health service options will expand affordable health care to many local communities.
 

Our nation’s liberty has been its foundation.  Let’s not allow Health Care to be it’s downfall. 

pic by Ddonar 

The political rhetoric about which Party has the right message is meaningless when the result is the same; talk verses results.

Every human being can talk about anything,
Every human being has control over some fraction of capital.
Every human being requires food, clothing and shelter to survive.
But not every human being has the ability to make the same impact with their fraction of capital. 

A simple action that every human being does is to balance spending to their capital.  This action is both on a personally level and in the decisions one makes as an employee, a business owner or public servant.  Ultimately whether as an individual, business or government not controlling ones costs will eventually outpace ones capital. 

The number one uncontrollable expense of an individual, business or government entity is health care costs.  It is not a choice of whether to limit spending in this area.  The spiraling costs are not sustainable.  Each year individuals drop health insurance coverage, each year businesses drop health insurance coverage and the government picks up more of the burden.  However, government is funded by We the People and if we already cannot afford it relabeling does not make it any more affordable. 

The solution for sustainability is to limit health care insurance to a percent of a person’s income either paid by the individual or their employer.  Let’s have the discussion be about what that percent should be and pass a law to that effect. 
But it does mean that we all have to admit the following:
1. Does everyone get sick during their life time? YES
2. Is health care free? No   (Health care just does not come out of the air)
3. Do laws require you to be treated in an emergency if you cannot pay?  Yes
4. Does the USA have the highest health care costs in the world? Yes
5. Does the USA have better health care outcomes than other industrialize countries?  No
Let’s be real in our discussion to recognize that legal expectations created by Congress over centuries and supported by We the People have now created a health care system that should be recognized as a utility.  It’s required to be made available for all regardless of the ability to pay.  Therefore, everyone needs to be required to pay for their future health care needs of the basic services.   

I wish to remind everyone that most employees pay a Medicare tax to cover health care services for those age of 65 plus. I have not heard any objections to this mandated health care insurance coverage. 

If this change occurred, we as individuals, business owners, executives could make plans to use our capital in ways that promote our growth based on our missions; not on uncontrollable health care costs. 

The alternative is a bankrupted economy.

 Pic by Robin Hutton

There have been two areas of the economy where costs have outpaced the cost of living index: health care and education.  For the purpose of this post I am concentrating on the public education system. 

It is funny how failure in education is viewed by government as a reason to give an education system more money.  When one researches successful schools districts or individual schools it is not the money that has created the positive educational outcomes but the staff and curriculum.  Do not get me wrong about money not being needed to improve education but government needs to stop rewarding failure. 

In business if you sell a lousy service or product the consumer goes elsewhere.  Therefore, reward good schools and have them take over the failing schools.  Let them replicate their model. 
The truth of the matter is to quickly increase positive outcomes for failing students and those dropping out.  Due to the diversity of student needs and interests this would promote and facilitate more innovation.  

The Charter School movement as part of the public education system is a laboratory to show that for a set price students can be educated.  It shows parents, federal and state officials how educational dollars can be better allocated with the right staff and curriculum to create great results. 

I would promote that any student attending what it’s state educational authority consider a failing school  should be allowed to attend any District School, Charter  School or Private School for the set Charter School Tuition set by the authorizing government entity.  District schools should no longer be given the latitude of years to make changes when each year thousands of students are failing to be educated.  Any limit on the number of students given this opportunity is a discriminating practice and should be legally challenged if it continues. 

Any educational system that is based on the luck of a lottery for which school one is placed including a failing school should be considered criminal.  A failing school should not be allowed in a lottery based system unless the student is allowed to take their tuition elsewhere.

A District school must be made accountable for their failure to educate students and when said failure reaches a percent of the school that students can transfer to any other school that will accept their tuition. 

Many of these charter schools show a public school model that competitively beats many District School models and private school models on price and outcomes.    If anything, charter schools are a threat to the private school model.  The charter school offers parents and students many of those services they selected private schools for. 

Today, charter schools promotion of a free public school education is bringing more students back into the public school system from the private sector.  

It just might be the way to bring the price of private schools down or increase the amount these schools give in scholarships.