November 3, 2004
Institute helps out nonprofit agencies
Great Lakes Nonprofit Institute assists groups with funding, resources
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Partnership, synergy, expertise and outreach - the new Great Lakes Nonprofit Institute has it all.
Formed this September and launched this week, the new institute's mission is to assist nonprofits in a five-county area in areas of resources, services, tools, funding and strategy. The institute is a collaboration between Rotary Charities and Northwestern Michigan College and officially opened on November 1. The counties included are Antrim, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska and Leelanau.
The institute will take a long-term view of improving the sustainable quality of life in the region instead of focusing on isolated initiatives. They plan to help nonprofits with everything from staffing, benefits, operational needs and recruitment to creating and sustaining a vision and translating that into action.
"This allows us to avail ourselves of resources statewide as well as nationally and internationally," said Tim Ervin of the Great Lakes Water Studies Institute
A $50,000 grant from Rotary Charities is underwriting a first-phase pilot project that will work with 14 area nonprofits related to the environment. These nonprofits include the Boardman River Project, the Conservation Resource Alliance, Inland Seas Educational Association and the Grand Traverse Bay Watershed Center.
"The pilot project really provides a good focus on a limited number of nonprofits," Ervin said. "We can test the tools and resources to develop models to work with other nonprofits."
The roots of the institute date back to 2002, when Rotary Charities celebrated its 25th anniversary. The organization began scrutinizing its grants, grant history and their impact on the community; at the same time, Rotary Charities funded research into the Quality of Life index.
"What became real obvious to us is that the nonprofit sector was absolutely crucial, from the environment to the arts to education - across the board," said Marsha Smith, executive director of Rotary Charities. "They were providing a lot of services we were trained to expect and there were some real common issues: their ability to sustain themselves and collaborate and innovate."
In February, Rotary Charities also provided a million dollar grant for the creation of the Great Lakes Water Institute and, according to Smith, "the two lines intersected."
This laid the foundation for the Great Lakes Nonprofit Institute and Rotary Charities board voted the funding in late September.
"We want to design a program that is comprehensive and at the same time apply and learn things across the nonprofit sector," Smith noted.
The institute tapped two consultants, Anne Glendon and Laura Heintzelman, to lead this effort.
"These two people bring such capability to the region," Ervin said. "They both bring just a wonderful different set of skills and experience that is just where we want to go."
With three decades and counting of experience in the nonprofit sector, Glendon is well versed in funding and building these organizations. Currently a lead consultant with the Flint Funders Collaborative, Glendon is also deeply committed to Great Lakes environmental issues. She also knows nonprofits from many perspectives: board member, staff member and volunteer.
"I continue to play all those roles because I believe that nonprofits are an absolutely essential part of what makes democracies work," Glendon said. "Our country could not function without non-profits."
Heintzelman, a Cadillac resident, is a biologist who has worked with the Conservation Resource Alliance. She has worked on watershed restoration and also helped develop nonprofit partnerships.
Ervin jokes that he twisted Glendon's arm to uproot her from Ann Arbor and her other work to come to Traverse City. However, both admit that the opportunity of the Great Lakes Nonprofit Institute is unique and challenging - one Glendon could not pass up.
"I've seen how incredibly challenged nonprofit environmental groups are and yet they are the most passionate and also at-risk nonprofits there are," said Glendon. "To be able to take what I've learned in other parts of the country and state and bring it to the Traverse City area, an area that is growing and changing so much, I couldn't turn it down."