Now this is not all of my survey results: I still need to hear back from the ESL and youth program respondents.
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Week 8: Survey Results
This week, I began to collect a significant amount of responses for my survey. The majority of the responses were for the GED program, although I was able to get a few from the ESL students. I have posted the results below. So far, the responses have been overwhelmingly positive. That said, that may be due to the fact that all of the respondents are regular users of these services, with the vast majority using them at least once a week. Also, the percentage of respondents who are not American citizens is nearly the same as the percentage of those for whom Spanish is the primary language spoken in the household.
Sunday, April 3, 2016
Week 7: The Beginning of the End
This marks the 7th week of my internship, meaning I am beginning the final phase of my research. I began administering my survey to DCC's clients. I expect to get the results of my research collected in a couple weeks and see how DCC's community value their services, but I wanted to examine the value of DCC's services from a different perspective; their monetary value. Originally, I planned to do this on my survey, by asking what monetary value the participants would assign to the surveys they use at DCC. However, after discussion with my onsite advisor, I decided to eliminate that question for several reasons, including the fact that the question could potentially be construed as demeaning. Instead, I decided research private companies that offered similar services and compared their rates to that of DCC's.
In my research, I decided to focus on four of DCC's services: GED Tutoring, ESL Classes, youth program(specifically their after school and summer programs), and Citizenship Classes. DCC charges a very low rate for all these services. oftentimes a single payment to cover the costs of registration. The youth program is a little different and is payed regularly. GED and ESL classes were easy to research, as they were offered by local community colleges which also charged a single price to cover the cost of registration. Citizenship classes and youth programs were a little more difficult; citizenship classes are not that widely offered and most childcare centers do not list their prices on their websites. Furthermore, it would likely be very difficult for me to observe their programs to see how they compare to DCC. Instead, I research the average cost of childcare for school age children in Arizona according to a study done by a child advocacy group, Child Care Aware, which they calculated to be $6,198.00. In coming weeks, I plan on breaking down the value of the services offered within the youth program, such as the complementary lunch.
This week, I also began drafting a rough draft of a grant proposal for the SRP Health and Human Services Grant, with the hope of receiving a Grant to help fund the GED program. My main focus is on developing a compelling narrative of what DCC does for the community of El Mirage and the West Valley. It will be interesting to see where the application takes me.
In my research, I decided to focus on four of DCC's services: GED Tutoring, ESL Classes, youth program(specifically their after school and summer programs), and Citizenship Classes. DCC charges a very low rate for all these services. oftentimes a single payment to cover the costs of registration. The youth program is a little different and is payed regularly. GED and ESL classes were easy to research, as they were offered by local community colleges which also charged a single price to cover the cost of registration. Citizenship classes and youth programs were a little more difficult; citizenship classes are not that widely offered and most childcare centers do not list their prices on their websites. Furthermore, it would likely be very difficult for me to observe their programs to see how they compare to DCC. Instead, I research the average cost of childcare for school age children in Arizona according to a study done by a child advocacy group, Child Care Aware, which they calculated to be $6,198.00. In coming weeks, I plan on breaking down the value of the services offered within the youth program, such as the complementary lunch.
This week, I also began drafting a rough draft of a grant proposal for the SRP Health and Human Services Grant, with the hope of receiving a Grant to help fund the GED program. My main focus is on developing a compelling narrative of what DCC does for the community of El Mirage and the West Valley. It will be interesting to see where the application takes me.
Saturday, March 26, 2016
So, my SRP advisor was arrested(Or how I learned about nonprofits and political advocacy)
This past Saturday, one of my onsite SRP advisors was arrested in Fountain Hills at protest blocking the road to a Donald Trump event. He was detained for 14 hours and then released. You may have seen his mugshot on the local news
I mention this because it ties in with the topic of this week's blog post, the political advocacy of nonprofits. Before I begin, however, I want to make a few things clear: This post is not in support or opposition to Donald Trump, nor do I want a discussion/argument over Trump himself. Also, Mike, my supervisor, was not at all acting in his capacity as executive director of DCC during the protest. Rather, he was participating in a protest organized by Puente Arizona, a migrant rights nonprofit.
With all that established, lets talk about nonprofits and the political advocacy. Due to their tax exempt status, non-profits face very strict rules in how they go about influencing politics, and these rules can vary, depending on nonprofit. For the purpose of this discussion,however, we are going to focus on two types of nonprofits: 501(c)3s and 501(c)4s. 501(c)3s are defined by the IRS as organizations with goals to provide "charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering national or international amateur sports competition, and preventing cruelty to children or animals." There is a noticeable lack of any explicit mentions of political activity in that definition, and as a result, 501(c)3s are extremely limited in how they can influence the political process. Most significantly, they cannot participate in any election campaign. That means they cannot even issue a written statement in support or opposition of a candidate. However, they are allowed to educate and mobilize voters in the communities they serve, as long as they do so in a non biased and nonpartisan manner. For example, a 501(c)3, such as DCC, could publish a voter guide as long as it did not clearly favor one candidate over the other. 501(c)3s can also engage in a limited degree of legislative activities, more commonly known as lobbying. However, this lobbying cannot form a substantial part of the organization's activities. There are two tests to determine if 501(c)3 violates this rule: the substantial part test and the expenditure test. The substantial test, according to the IRS, is based off of a variety of factors, including the time a 501(c)3's compensated and volunteer workers spend on the lobbying and what percentage of its expenditures the 501(c)3 spends on lobbying. The expenditure test is more rigid and harder to explain, so I pasted the IRS table describing it:
I mention this because it ties in with the topic of this week's blog post, the political advocacy of nonprofits. Before I begin, however, I want to make a few things clear: This post is not in support or opposition to Donald Trump, nor do I want a discussion/argument over Trump himself. Also, Mike, my supervisor, was not at all acting in his capacity as executive director of DCC during the protest. Rather, he was participating in a protest organized by Puente Arizona, a migrant rights nonprofit.
With all that established, lets talk about nonprofits and the political advocacy. Due to their tax exempt status, non-profits face very strict rules in how they go about influencing politics, and these rules can vary, depending on nonprofit. For the purpose of this discussion,however, we are going to focus on two types of nonprofits: 501(c)3s and 501(c)4s. 501(c)3s are defined by the IRS as organizations with goals to provide "charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering national or international amateur sports competition, and preventing cruelty to children or animals." There is a noticeable lack of any explicit mentions of political activity in that definition, and as a result, 501(c)3s are extremely limited in how they can influence the political process. Most significantly, they cannot participate in any election campaign. That means they cannot even issue a written statement in support or opposition of a candidate. However, they are allowed to educate and mobilize voters in the communities they serve, as long as they do so in a non biased and nonpartisan manner. For example, a 501(c)3, such as DCC, could publish a voter guide as long as it did not clearly favor one candidate over the other. 501(c)3s can also engage in a limited degree of legislative activities, more commonly known as lobbying. However, this lobbying cannot form a substantial part of the organization's activities. There are two tests to determine if 501(c)3 violates this rule: the substantial part test and the expenditure test. The substantial test, according to the IRS, is based off of a variety of factors, including the time a 501(c)3's compensated and volunteer workers spend on the lobbying and what percentage of its expenditures the 501(c)3 spends on lobbying. The expenditure test is more rigid and harder to explain, so I pasted the IRS table describing it:
| If the amount of exempt purpose expenditures is: | Lobbying nontaxable amount is: |
|---|---|
| ≤ $500,000 | 20% of the exempt purpose expenditures |
| >$500,00 but ≤ $1,000,000 | $100,000 plus 15% of the excess of exempt purpose expenditures over $500,000 |
| > $1,000,000 but ≤ $1,500,000 | $175,000 plus 10% of the excess of exempt purpose expenditures over $1,000,000 |
| >$1,500,000 | $225,000 plus 5% of the exempt purpose expenditures over $1,500,000 |
If a 501(c)3 violates these rules, its tax exempt status is revoked by the IRS, which can be a huge blow for the organization, as all of its expenditures become taxable.
The second type of nonprofits discussed in this post are 501(c)4s. Their primary purpose is to maintain the social welfare of the communities they serve. As a result, they allowed more freedom to participate in the political process. They can lobby legislation related to the welfare of the community they serve. They can also participate in a candidate's election campaign, either in support or opposition. However, it cannot comprise a majority of their activities.
So what does this mean for DCC? Since they are a 501(c)3, they cannot officially engage in any explicit political advocacy. However, that does not mean they cannot influence their local government or focus on certain political issues. For example, if there was a candidate running on an anti-immigration and pro-deportation platform, DCC would be able to inform their local community about this candidate and his or her beliefs, as long as it is a nonpartisan manner(they can't take a side). DCC can also use its services to support other nonprofits(specifically 501(c)4s), that engage in political advocacy. For example, during the "Yes for Dysart" vote on whether to continue an override to fund Dysart Unified School District Schools, DCC lent its space to the Valley Interfaith Project(VIP), a 501(c)4 dedicated towards maintaining and raising school funding throughout the Valley. Using DCC's space as base of operations, VIP was able to run a door to door campaign throughout El Mirage. As cuts to education can particularly affect low income neighborhoods, DCC engaged in an indirect form of political advocacy by supporting groups that represent the interests of their clients. However, DCC cannot discriminate in how it offers its services. That means if a group opposed to the override want to use DCC's services in a similar way to VIP, DCC could not deny them.
Unlike DCC, whose primary goal is to provide services to the community of El Mirage, Puente(who organized the Donald Trump protest) seeks to represent and maintain the social welfare of their community, immigrants in Arizona. Therefore, they are classified as a 501(c)4. As a result, they can play a far more direct role in the political process, such as the protest they organized last Saturday against Donald Trump. However, they are not solely political in their methods, as that would violate IRS rules. Outside of their political campaigns, Puente also runs arts programs that help migrant communities express and describe their experiences and also organizes courses that educate migrants on their legal rights when detained by immigration enforcement officers.
That's the basics of political advocacy and nonprofits. In the future, I hope to expand on the relationship between the funding nonprofits receive and the political advocacy they engage, as well as the national role of nonprofits in the political process.
Unlike DCC, whose primary goal is to provide services to the community of El Mirage, Puente(who organized the Donald Trump protest) seeks to represent and maintain the social welfare of their community, immigrants in Arizona. Therefore, they are classified as a 501(c)4. As a result, they can play a far more direct role in the political process, such as the protest they organized last Saturday against Donald Trump. However, they are not solely political in their methods, as that would violate IRS rules. Outside of their political campaigns, Puente also runs arts programs that help migrant communities express and describe their experiences and also organizes courses that educate migrants on their legal rights when detained by immigration enforcement officers.
That's the basics of political advocacy and nonprofits. In the future, I hope to expand on the relationship between the funding nonprofits receive and the political advocacy they engage, as well as the national role of nonprofits in the political process.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Week 5: Grants
This week, the majority of my research focused on grants and the grant writing process. Therefore, I should probably talk about then, especially since they are such an important part of the nonprofit sector.
Grants are sums of money given by foundations to nonprofits to fund certain programs or, in the case of general support grants, the nonprofit as a whole. As they provide a means for a nonprofit to fund programs without having to engage in fundraising or collect dues its members, they are obviously very enticing. However, grants hold certain limitations that oftentimes makes it unwise for nonprofits to solely rely on them for funding. First and foremost, the vast majority of grant applications are denied. If and when a grant is awarded, the money can only be used for a specific program unless the grant is a general support grant, which are rare. Many grants are not renewed and even if they are, nonprofits can risk focusing too much on certain programs merely to ensure they receive the grant. Most important, however, is the fact that grants make nonprofits beholden not to the community which they serve, but rather the foundations which dole out grants. As a result, most nonprofits, such as DCC, try to draw funds from a variety of sources, from foundations to local fundraising.
The actual grant application process starts with researching foundations to ask for grants. Foundations focus on a certain issues(adult education, environmental awareness, etc.) and will hand over grants to nonprofits that runs programs that address such issues. For example, DCC handles adult education, human services, and youth education and applies for grants from groups such as Valley of the Sun United Way that have an interest addressing problems in those fields.
Once a potential foundation and grant have been identified, the grant proposal is drafted, which begins with developing the case statement. The case statement describes the nonprofit applying for the grant, what issues the group addresses, and how the nonprofit hopes to address the issues. The case statement also includes information about the groups history, structure, and financials. The case statement is not include in the actual grant proposal; its more of a reference for when nonprofits have to describe themselves when applying for grants.
Once the case statement is finished, the cover page and executive summary, which briefly outlines the project the nonprofit hopes to fund with the grant, is written. Generally, the cover page does not exceed a page and serves to briefly summarize the goals of the nonprofit. Next, the grant proposal should further elaborate upon the issue which the nonprofit hopes to address, outline the organizational structure of the nonprofit along with its history and successes, and its goals and strategies. The proposal should also include a budget for the program, as foundations prefer to how money is being raised to help run the program they are being asked to contribute. Some foundations also require extra documents, such as the names of the nonprofits board members or a copy of the IRS letter listing the nonprofits status as tax exempt. The final part of the grant proposal is the cover letter, which, since it is generally the first part of the proposal read, tries to establish a relationship between the nonprofit and the foundation.
Once a grant is submitted, it can take often months for a response. Usually, that response will be a denial. However, if the grant is awarded, the process does not end. Nonprofits have to file regular reports with foundations regarding the status of the programs that their grants are funding. These reports include information on how successful the program is as well as what the grant money is being used for the program. Furthermore, effort has to be made to maintain a relationship between the foundation that provided the grant, so that they may be more willing to renew the grant.
That is the basics of the grant application process. There is probably a lot more I could go into, but I think I will save that for a later blog post, which I can also hopefully combine with some of the personal experience of the staff at DCC in regards to applying for grants themselves.
Sources
Robinson, A. (2004). Grassroots grants: An activist's guide to grantseeking. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Grants are sums of money given by foundations to nonprofits to fund certain programs or, in the case of general support grants, the nonprofit as a whole. As they provide a means for a nonprofit to fund programs without having to engage in fundraising or collect dues its members, they are obviously very enticing. However, grants hold certain limitations that oftentimes makes it unwise for nonprofits to solely rely on them for funding. First and foremost, the vast majority of grant applications are denied. If and when a grant is awarded, the money can only be used for a specific program unless the grant is a general support grant, which are rare. Many grants are not renewed and even if they are, nonprofits can risk focusing too much on certain programs merely to ensure they receive the grant. Most important, however, is the fact that grants make nonprofits beholden not to the community which they serve, but rather the foundations which dole out grants. As a result, most nonprofits, such as DCC, try to draw funds from a variety of sources, from foundations to local fundraising.
The actual grant application process starts with researching foundations to ask for grants. Foundations focus on a certain issues(adult education, environmental awareness, etc.) and will hand over grants to nonprofits that runs programs that address such issues. For example, DCC handles adult education, human services, and youth education and applies for grants from groups such as Valley of the Sun United Way that have an interest addressing problems in those fields.
Once a potential foundation and grant have been identified, the grant proposal is drafted, which begins with developing the case statement. The case statement describes the nonprofit applying for the grant, what issues the group addresses, and how the nonprofit hopes to address the issues. The case statement also includes information about the groups history, structure, and financials. The case statement is not include in the actual grant proposal; its more of a reference for when nonprofits have to describe themselves when applying for grants.
Once the case statement is finished, the cover page and executive summary, which briefly outlines the project the nonprofit hopes to fund with the grant, is written. Generally, the cover page does not exceed a page and serves to briefly summarize the goals of the nonprofit. Next, the grant proposal should further elaborate upon the issue which the nonprofit hopes to address, outline the organizational structure of the nonprofit along with its history and successes, and its goals and strategies. The proposal should also include a budget for the program, as foundations prefer to how money is being raised to help run the program they are being asked to contribute. Some foundations also require extra documents, such as the names of the nonprofits board members or a copy of the IRS letter listing the nonprofits status as tax exempt. The final part of the grant proposal is the cover letter, which, since it is generally the first part of the proposal read, tries to establish a relationship between the nonprofit and the foundation.
Once a grant is submitted, it can take often months for a response. Usually, that response will be a denial. However, if the grant is awarded, the process does not end. Nonprofits have to file regular reports with foundations regarding the status of the programs that their grants are funding. These reports include information on how successful the program is as well as what the grant money is being used for the program. Furthermore, effort has to be made to maintain a relationship between the foundation that provided the grant, so that they may be more willing to renew the grant.
That is the basics of the grant application process. There is probably a lot more I could go into, but I think I will save that for a later blog post, which I can also hopefully combine with some of the personal experience of the staff at DCC in regards to applying for grants themselves.
Sources
Robinson, A. (2004). Grassroots grants: An activist's guide to grantseeking. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Sunday, March 6, 2016
Week 4: Surveys
This week I began drafting my survey to administer to DCC's clients. To help me do so, I used resources such as a guide by the University of Wisconsin-Madison on the fundamentals of survey writing. The survey had two goals: to determine the demographics of the community DCC helps and to figure out how satisfied the community is with that service. Considering DCC offers a multitude of services, my survey could easily pass 50 questions(which it did in its first draft). However, as I wanted to minimize the response bias of my survey, I needed to limit my questions to a maximum of 20 questions. To do so, I condensed several of my questions and allowed for more opened ended answers. At the same time, I ensured that the instructions for each question were clear, sometimes to point of redundancy, so that the none of the respondents misinterpret the questionnaire reduce the reliability and validity of my results. Thankfully, I was able to reduce my draft to about 15 questions, albeit a few more may added or cut as the survey is reviewed by my advisors at both BASIS and DCC. Hopefully, I can begin administering the survey the week after next.
I also began reading some literature one of my supervisors at DCC, Mike Cassidy, recommended I read so that I can better understand the relationship between nonprofits like DCC and the communities they serve directly. One of the most interesting pieces I read was from a book "The Revolution Will Not Be Funded" which discusses the dysfunctions and contradictions of modern nonprofits in a collection of essays written by those who have worked in the nonprofit sector. One of the major focuses of the book is on how the nonprofit sector has become increasingly corporatized, with foundations focusing more and more on obtaining grants and not on actually helping and empowering their community. As nonprofits have become increasingly businesslike, the book argues, they lose their power to bring about real social change as they begin to treat the communities they serve as victims. It also draws a contrast with the current state of the nonprofit sector in the US with Latin American social and political movements, such as the Landless Workers Movement, that eschew a traditional hierarchy and are "horizontal based", meaning they seek a group consensus.
Finally, I spent the majority of this week at DCC reorganizing the filing system of their executive director, Mike. Despite sounding deathly boring, it was actually a pretty interesting process, mainly because it allowed me another insight into the inner machinations of nonprofit management. Most of what I sorted through was junk that Mike threw away, but some of it was pretty interesting, such as the partner resources from other nonprofits that DCC would refer people to when they needed help. The ecosystem of nonprofits is quite fascinating to learn about, which I will go into in a future blog post.
I also began reading some literature one of my supervisors at DCC, Mike Cassidy, recommended I read so that I can better understand the relationship between nonprofits like DCC and the communities they serve directly. One of the most interesting pieces I read was from a book "The Revolution Will Not Be Funded" which discusses the dysfunctions and contradictions of modern nonprofits in a collection of essays written by those who have worked in the nonprofit sector. One of the major focuses of the book is on how the nonprofit sector has become increasingly corporatized, with foundations focusing more and more on obtaining grants and not on actually helping and empowering their community. As nonprofits have become increasingly businesslike, the book argues, they lose their power to bring about real social change as they begin to treat the communities they serve as victims. It also draws a contrast with the current state of the nonprofit sector in the US with Latin American social and political movements, such as the Landless Workers Movement, that eschew a traditional hierarchy and are "horizontal based", meaning they seek a group consensus.
Finally, I spent the majority of this week at DCC reorganizing the filing system of their executive director, Mike. Despite sounding deathly boring, it was actually a pretty interesting process, mainly because it allowed me another insight into the inner machinations of nonprofit management. Most of what I sorted through was junk that Mike threw away, but some of it was pretty interesting, such as the partner resources from other nonprofits that DCC would refer people to when they needed help. The ecosystem of nonprofits is quite fascinating to learn about, which I will go into in a future blog post.
Saturday, February 27, 2016
Second and Third Week
So this is post is going to be for both my second and third weeks at DCC. I wasn't able to update last week because I was pretty busy(Mock Trial and some college visits).I also missed a few days of my internship due to my college visits, so that also limited what I could talk about.
Anyway, this past two weeks, I have continued my observer role at DCC. I watched their youth program for a day and continued to help with their GED program. I also researched job resources and job fairs for DCC to give to its clients to help them find employment.
I have also began drafting my survey to administer to DCC's clients. My first draft had 65 questions, which I am planning on cutting down to at most 20. I will also have to receive approval for the survey from DCC itself, so I also have to take into account what questions may or may not be appropriate.
Next week, I should resume working on the grant research and application process and continue working on my survey, so I should have a lot more to talk about with my next post.
Anyway, this past two weeks, I have continued my observer role at DCC. I watched their youth program for a day and continued to help with their GED program. I also researched job resources and job fairs for DCC to give to its clients to help them find employment.
I have also began drafting my survey to administer to DCC's clients. My first draft had 65 questions, which I am planning on cutting down to at most 20. I will also have to receive approval for the survey from DCC itself, so I also have to take into account what questions may or may not be appropriate.
Next week, I should resume working on the grant research and application process and continue working on my survey, so I should have a lot more to talk about with my next post.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
First Week
After today, I will have completed my first week at Dysart Community Center(DCC). For my first week of my internship, my focus was on observing what goes on during a normal day at DCC. I also learned a bit about the history of DCC and its role in the city of El Mirage.
First, I would like to provide some information about DCC, which I feel I left out of my last post. DCC is a nonprofit located in old town El Mirage. Named after what was then the nearest road, it was founded 1962 to provide health and human services to the residents of El Mirage, who were mostly agricultural migrant workers. It is a very small nonprofit, with a full time staff of about 4 people, with a part time staff of 2. Despite its smallness, DCC provides a wide range of services to the community of El Mirage, such as but not limited to ESL courses, after school programs, GED courses, and financial coaching.
On Mondays and Tuesdays, I intern from 10 to 2 at DCC. On both those days this week, I followed Mike Cassidy, the executive director of DCC. I listened to and took notes on his "state of union", which briefly summarized the current state of DCC as well his responsibilities as executive director of DCC. I followed him around and sat in on his meetings. I also followed Lord Garcillano, DCC's GED instructor, to a meeting and presentation DCC held for West Side Head Start. The meeting focused on introducing people to the financial coaching DCC offers. As a significant portion of the people who the presentation addressed spoke Spanish better than English, Susie Ratley, DCC's Adult Education Director, was present to speak in Spanish.
Both Lord and Mike have responsibilities outside what their job titles suggest. They run DCC's Teens Arts and Action Program, which provides artistic resources to local teens. They both also handle applying for grants to fund DCC's programs as well as other fundraising.
On Wednesdays, I interned from 12 to 4 at DCC. This past Wednesday, I worked with Lord to find grants to help fund the GED program. We used grants search engines such as grantsalert.com and fundsnetservices.com, to find potential grants. As Lord is in charge of the GED program, we focused on finding grants which could fund the GED program. I spent about 3 hours searching for grants and found about 10 potential sources of funding. Despite the majority of the GED program participants being adults, several of the grants I found to be promising were aimed towards helping low income youth. The next most common source of grants were those that sought to help human services nonprofits, which makes sense considering that the focus of the GED program is to provide adults with a degree that can help stabilize their income. After helping Lord search for grants, I reviewed what grants were the most promising. He then stated he wanted me to write a rough draft of a grant proposal.
On Thursday, I came from 10 to 11:30 and 6 to 8. I helped out with the GED programs this day, tutoring in math. The ages of the adults I helped ranged from teenage to middle aged.
Overall, it was a promising first week. I observed several areas of which my research covered, such as the relationship between DCC and the government and other nonprofits, the political advocacy DCC engages in and how DCC operates its programs. Furthermore, its rewarding to work with an organization that has such a direct contact with the community it serves and is so incredibly dedicated to helping and empowering the community.
First, I would like to provide some information about DCC, which I feel I left out of my last post. DCC is a nonprofit located in old town El Mirage. Named after what was then the nearest road, it was founded 1962 to provide health and human services to the residents of El Mirage, who were mostly agricultural migrant workers. It is a very small nonprofit, with a full time staff of about 4 people, with a part time staff of 2. Despite its smallness, DCC provides a wide range of services to the community of El Mirage, such as but not limited to ESL courses, after school programs, GED courses, and financial coaching.
On Mondays and Tuesdays, I intern from 10 to 2 at DCC. On both those days this week, I followed Mike Cassidy, the executive director of DCC. I listened to and took notes on his "state of union", which briefly summarized the current state of DCC as well his responsibilities as executive director of DCC. I followed him around and sat in on his meetings. I also followed Lord Garcillano, DCC's GED instructor, to a meeting and presentation DCC held for West Side Head Start. The meeting focused on introducing people to the financial coaching DCC offers. As a significant portion of the people who the presentation addressed spoke Spanish better than English, Susie Ratley, DCC's Adult Education Director, was present to speak in Spanish.
Both Lord and Mike have responsibilities outside what their job titles suggest. They run DCC's Teens Arts and Action Program, which provides artistic resources to local teens. They both also handle applying for grants to fund DCC's programs as well as other fundraising.
On Wednesdays, I interned from 12 to 4 at DCC. This past Wednesday, I worked with Lord to find grants to help fund the GED program. We used grants search engines such as grantsalert.com and fundsnetservices.com, to find potential grants. As Lord is in charge of the GED program, we focused on finding grants which could fund the GED program. I spent about 3 hours searching for grants and found about 10 potential sources of funding. Despite the majority of the GED program participants being adults, several of the grants I found to be promising were aimed towards helping low income youth. The next most common source of grants were those that sought to help human services nonprofits, which makes sense considering that the focus of the GED program is to provide adults with a degree that can help stabilize their income. After helping Lord search for grants, I reviewed what grants were the most promising. He then stated he wanted me to write a rough draft of a grant proposal.
On Thursday, I came from 10 to 11:30 and 6 to 8. I helped out with the GED programs this day, tutoring in math. The ages of the adults I helped ranged from teenage to middle aged.
Overall, it was a promising first week. I observed several areas of which my research covered, such as the relationship between DCC and the government and other nonprofits, the political advocacy DCC engages in and how DCC operates its programs. Furthermore, its rewarding to work with an organization that has such a direct contact with the community it serves and is so incredibly dedicated to helping and empowering the community.
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Hello!
Hello, my name is Jacob McGill and this will be my blog for my Senior Research Project. My project will study the roles and methods of nonprofits, specifically in helping low income communities. I will be interning with Dysart Community Center, a small nonprofit located in El Mirage. I will shadow the employees of Dysart Community Center, as well as participate in some of the services they offer, such as GED tutoring. I will also design and administer a survey for the people who use the services of Dysart Community Center. This survey will hopefully allow me and Dysart Community Center to gain a better understanding of the demographics of the community they serve as well as what that community thinks of them. Outside of the survey, I will also study the relationship between Dysart Community Center and other nonprofits and the government(local, state, and federal), as well as how Dysart Community Center obtains its funding, such as through grants and fundraising.
I will update this blog regularly to document my experience at Dysart Community Center, along with any updates on my research. I hope that it will be fascinating experience and I a, excited to see what the next couple of month hold for me.
I will update this blog regularly to document my experience at Dysart Community Center, along with any updates on my research. I hope that it will be fascinating experience and I a, excited to see what the next couple of month hold for me.
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