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MILANO, THE NEW SCHOOL as of 8-25-14 Fall 2014

Syllabus

Theory & Practice of Nonprofit Management CRN 6093

Mondays, August 25 – December 8, 2014 6:00 - 7:50 p.m. Room 465 – Eugene Lang College, 65 West 11th Street

Instructor: Bonnie McEwan Office Hours: By appointment mcewanb@newschool.edu Course Summary

This course provides an overview of the principal theories, management practices and challenges of nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations. Through readings, case studies and first-hand accounts, students explore the role of nonprofits in society, public affairs and facilitating social change.

Particular attention is paid to helping students hone communication skills that will be needed throughout their time in the master’s program, including self-expression (through class participation), group work (through analysis of a case study), academic writing (by completing two papers) and public speaking (case study presentation).

Assignments

1) A paper of 5 to 7 pages analyzing a public policy issue that impacts nonprofit organizations. Due week 6, October 6. (See topic suggestions at the end of this syllabus.)

2) A term paper of 10 to 12 pages on a topic of the student’s choice, as suggested by the course content. Due week 14, December 1. A one-page statement outlining your planned term paper topic is due no later than 10:00 p.m. on week 8, October 20. (Topic suggestions are at the end of syllabus.)

3) A small group analysis of an assigned case study with your recommendations presented in class. Due weeks 12, 13 and 14, November 17 through December 1.

4) Each week students should come to class prepared to discuss three key ideas or questions related to the assigned reading for that week.

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• Assignments should be written in MS Word, Google Docs or Apple Pages using APA style and submitted by 10:00 p.m. on the due date via email to mcewanb@newschool.edu. Please do not submit assignments in PDF or any other format not listed above.

• Please label your files thusly: YourLastName_TypeOfAssignment_TP2014, e.g., McEwan_PolicyPaper_TP2014.

• Detailed directions for each assignment will be discussed in class.

Grading

This course is highly participative. Students are expected to complete the assigned readings on schedule, attend class, follow through on small group commitments and offer original contributions to class discussions. Grades are computed as follows:

Class participation: 30% of final grade Policy paper: 20% of final grade Term paper: 30% of final grade Group case analysis and presentation: 20% of final grade

Late Assignments will be penalized by one-half grade. Assignments more than one week late will be penalized a whole grade.

Be Advised: Incompletes are granted only in cases of medical emergency or bereavement.

Required Text

Introduction to Nonprofit Management, Text and Cases Rowe, W. Glenn and Dato-on, Mary Conway, eds. Los Angeles: Sage, 2013. New copies of the text are available at Barnes & Noble in Union Square. You can also rent or purchase new and used texts online.

Additional required readings are posted in Canvas. All reading assignments listed below are from the required text unless otherwise noted.

Class Schedule

Session 1 – August 25 Introductions, Syllabus Review, Overview of the Sector Readings: Chapters 1, 2, 13

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Session 2 — September 8 Nonprofit Governance and Leadership Readings: Chapters 3 and 4, plus Ganz (2010). Leading Change: Leadership, Organization and Social Movements in The Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice. Boston: Harvard Business School Publications. (Canvas)

Session 3 – September 15 Nonprofits and Public Policy Readings: Chapter 12, plus Teles and Schmitt, The Elusive Craft of Evaluating Advocacy in Stanford Social Innovation Review, Summer 2011 and Srinivas, Against NGOs? A Critical Perspective on Nongovernmental Action in Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 2009. (Canvas)

Guest Speaker: Shelby Chestnut, NPM 2012. Co-director, Community Organizing and Public Policy, The Anti-Violence Project (AVP)

Session 4 – September 22 Measuring Performance Readings: Chapter 5, plus Lim (2010). Measuring the Value of Corporate Philanthropy. New York: Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy. (Canvas)

Guest Speaker: Suzi Epstein, Managing Director, Jobs & Economic Security, Robin Hood Foundation Assignment Due: Deadline for approval of your policy topic is 10 p.m. tonight.

Session 5 – September 29 Strategy and Change Readings: Chapter 6, plus Sciacchitano, Eco-Consult: A Feasibility Study and Landscape Assessment. Best NPM Advanced Seminar Paper Award, 2013. (Canvas)

Guest Speaker: Doug Gould, President, Douglas Gould & Co., “Communications for Change.”

Session 6 – October 6 Finding and Keeping the Right People Readings: Chapter 8

Guest Speaker: Debbie Douglas, HRM 2012. Senior Recruiter, Talent Acquisition, Viacom Media Networks Assignment Due: Policy Paper - Submit via email by 10:00 p.m. tonight.

Session 7 – October 13 Resource Generation

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Readings: Chapters 10 and 14, plus Chasan, Sweet Generation: Cupcakes for a Cause. NPM Advanced Seminar Paper, 2013. (Canvas)

Guest Speaker: Amy Chasan, NPM 2013. Founder, Sweet Generation [Winner of TNS’s New Challenge Social Innovation Award in 2013 and the Village Voice’s Best Cupcake in NYC Award in 2013.]

Session 8 — October 20 Financial Management Reading: Chapter 11

Guest Instructor: John T. Green, Milano faculty and former assistant dean Assignment Due: One-page outline of term paper topic, due via email by 10:00 p.m. tonight.

Session 9 — October 27 Management Skills (No reading for this week) Case Study Group Assignments Case Study Analysis Techniques Stick It To Your Audience — presentation tips

Session 10 – November 3 Nonprofit Marketing Reading: Chapter 9, plus Foster and Bradach, Should Nonprofits Seek Profits? in Harvard Business Review, February 2005. (Canvas)

Session 11 – November 10 Nonprofits and Technology Readings (All in Canvas): 1) MacKinnon (2012). Preface in Consent of the Networked (pp. xi - xviii). New York: Basic Books. 2) Shirky (2008). Collective Action and Institutional Challenges in Here Comes Everybody (pp. 143 - 160). New York: Penguin Books. 3) Signorile (1993). Lights, Camera, ACT UP in Queer in America (pp. 3 - 17). New York: Random House.

Guest Speaker: Leah Kopperman, NPM 1997. Director, Digital Platforms, Jewish Education Network

Session 12 – November 17 Case Study Presentations Groups 1 and 2 present; Groups 5 and 6 question

Session 13 – November 24

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Case Study Presentations Groups 3 and 4 present; Groups 1 and 2 question

Session 14 – December 1 Case Study Presentations Groups 5 and 6; Groups 3 and 4 question

Terms Papers Due via email by 10:00 p.m. tonight.

Session 15 — December 8 Course Wrap Up The Two Sentence Take-Away

Ideas for Policy Paper Topics

• Select a global issue such as climate change or the HIV/AIDS epidemic and compare/contrast the way nonprofits in two or more nations address the threat. Which ways are most effective and why? What do the nations’ public policies have to do with the ways their respective nonprofit groups work on this issue?

• Identify a persistent social problem such as poverty. Why do you believe the problem persists, despite the many years that many nonprofits have spent millions of dollars trying to ameliorate it? Present expert evidence and research studies to support your theory.

• Choose a nonprofit that has taken a stand on one side of a controversial issue. Analyze the rationale it gives for taking this stance. Is the nonprofit’s position convincing? Why/why not?

• Policy issues around topics such as reproductive rights, gun violence, police shootings, and marriage laws attract advocacy nonprofits from all points of the political spectrum. Do you think these opposing nonprofits create stalemates on these issues, thus preventing any action from being taken? Would it be better to prohibit nonprofits from policy influencing activities? Defend your point of view with specific examples.

• Should religious organizations have the right to advocate for or against certain public policies? Why or why not? How should conflicts between religious beliefs and public accommodation requirements be handled?

Ideas for Term Paper Topics

• Research the reasons that people give money to nonprofits. Overall, which do you think is more prevalent, donors who give money because they like the people involved with a nonprofit (staff, board, volunteers) or because they like the mission of the nonprofit?

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• Imagine that you want to donate to a nonprofit that is highly effective in influencing public policies on (choose an issue). How would you go about identifying the nonprofits that are the most effective?

• Some nonprofits don’t take government money because they fear government influence on their mission, programs and ways of work. On the other hand, some nonprofits operate almost exclusively on grants from government entities. Research the pros and cons of relying on government funding, decide where you stand on this issue and make the case for your position.

• Some critics charge that large foundations such as Ford and Gates are run by an elite that exerts inappropriate influence on society through grant making, while being largely unaccountable to the public. Research the role of foundations in the US and the laws under which they operate. Based on your findings, do you think foundations are a positive or negative social force?

• These days the boundaries between for-profit and nonprofit enterprise are increasingly blurred. Some for-profit companies such as health clubs and consignment shops claim that YMCAs and nonprofit thrift stores compete with them unfairly, since the nonprofits are tax-exempt and are often run by unpaid volunteers. Do you think these complaints have merit? Should the laws be changed to even the playing field? Explain your position.

• Beyond the question of unfair competition, there are legitimate challenges to the idea that nonprofit organizations should generate revenue through earned income activities. What are the hazards for a nonprofit that prioritizes earned income over donations? Do these hazards outweigh the advantages?

• Research the concept of ‘founder’s syndrome.’ Do you think this is a genuine threat to a nonprofit organization? Explain your position, citing examples to illustrate your points.

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