Nonprofit Resources
Explore our database of funding sources, local expertise, and more.
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Featured Posts:
Embracing Disruption 3 – Meet the cohort
Published September, 2024 The Gifford Foundation has selected five organizations to be part of its 2024 cohort for the third installment of its Embracing Disruption program. Leadership teams from the Erie Canal Museum, Redhouse Arts Center, Salt City Harvest Farm,...
2024 Board Development Workshop Series
Creating more inclusive and engaged boards takes intentional and consistent effort. To help guide these efforts, The Gifford Foundation is partnering with The Central New York Community Foundation to offer a free two-part workshop series that will provide a roadmap...
Maithreyee Dubé On Nourishing Tomorrow’s Leaders
Maithreyee Dubé, Manager of Enrollment Services at the D’Aniello Institute of Veterans and Military Families, is a valued Gifford Foundation board member and a graduate of the NTL program. Like the four other Gifford board members who have completed the program, it left a lasting impression. She spoke with us about the experience and what she hopes future participants will gain from it.
Find Your Next Board Member
Explore this directory to connect with graduates of our Nourishing Tomorrow’s Leaders program. NTL is designed to bring inclusiveness and diversity to non-profit boards, increase and enhance the pool of effective board members and new leaders, educate and inspire those who participate and provide quality training to individuals in the community.
Program participants have completed a nine week training course covering subjects including fiscal responsibility, conflict resolution, the Nonprofit Lifecycles model, and more. Check back soon because new graduates are being added regularly!
Local Consultant Directory
Our directory of regional consultants includes a wide array of specializations, expertise, and experience. Please keep in mind that inclusion in this list does not necessary reflect an endorsement from The Gifford Foundation; the list is meant to help organizations who are doing their own research find a consultant that best fits their needs.
To assist in your search, each consultant profile includes their area(s) of expertise, contact information, and website.
Board Templates and Tools
The following documents are presented as a starting point to help your organization create or update internal resources and processes. Because the regulations and requirements governing the nonprofit sector are regularly changing, please be sure to consult with a qualified expert before implementing any new legal policies for your organization.
Sample Templates:
Sample Tools:
Nonprofit Lifecycles
In 2007 we began to explore more sustainable and long-term ways to support the important work of nonprofits in our community and we were delighted to discover the work of Dr. Susan Kenny Stevens and the Nonprofit Lifecycles methodology though her book “Nonprofit Lifecycles: Staged Based Wisdom for Nonprofit Capacity”. This framework shows the importance of growing strong, durable organizations. The theory behind Lifecycles is that all organizations go through developmental stages – those that have the most impact, and are sustainable in the long run, understand their specific stage and consciously strive to progress. Developmental stages are also seen in nonprofit structural components, especially the “table legs” that must be strong and in alignment in order for programs and missions (table top) to succeed. The table legs are governance, management, resources and administrative systems.
To learn more about Nonprofit Lifecycles and this framework, please check out the Nonprofit Lifecycles Institute.
Nonprofit Webinar & Information Sources
- Firespring: Specializing in nonprofit website design and development, Firespring offers frequent free webinars on fundraising and digital marketing.
- NonprofitHub: Offering a collection of guidebooks, webinars, and other resources, NonprofitHub is a great source of information and ideas about how to build your organization’s capacity.
- The Nonprofit Finance Fund: Managing your organization’s finances can be a complex and difficult task. With this in mind, the NFF provides a wealth of information about nonprofit financial management.
- The Nonprofit Quarterly: “NPQ uses a range of media channels to help advance critical conversations that can refine nonprofit and social movement policy and practice.”
- The Nonprofit Times: Updated regularly with new articles and resources, The Nonprofit Times is a publication loaded with tips, news, and best practices for mission driven organizations.
- Nonprofit Technology Network: This nonprofit resource hub is dedicated to teaching organizations how to better utilize technology to boost their impact.
- Sprout Social’s Guide to Social Media for Nonprofits: A recognized hub of social media information and tips, Sprout Social has compiled a guide for nonprofits who are learning how to leverage social media to advance their cause.
Marketing & Communications Tools
- Canva: This design tool allows for the easy creation of graphics for use with social media, email marketing, website content, printed materials, and more. Best of all, their Pro level features are available for free to registered nonprofits, including a comprehensive stock photo database, advanced photo editing tools, and multiple AI integrated services and third-party apps. It is surprisingly easy to use and a tutorial guiding you through how to use their software can be found here.
- MailChimp: One of the most widely used email marketing services, MailChimp offers a free version that matches the needs of most small to medium sized organizations. Users can send up to 10,000 monthly emails to up to 2,000 contacts without paying a cent.
- Campaign Monitor: This email marketing service provides lots of great features and templates with adjustable pricing that changes based on your audience size.
- Pixabay: Finding copyright-free stock images can be difficult. Fortunately, Pixabay offers a library of nearly 2 million high quality images and videos that can be used without attribution or cost.
- Bitly: Sharing links is a major part of posting on social media, but some web addresses are long and awkward. Bitly allows you to shorten your links and most importantly – track how many clicks you received. This is a free, easy, and helpful way to analyze whether people are clicking on what you post, whether it’s on social media, in an email, or on your website.
- Link Scrapers: You’ve just created a new page on your website and are excited to share it on social media for the first time. The only problem is that you don’t yet know how the link preview will look. Will the page title display correctly? Will the featured image look the way you want it to? Rather than guessing, you can use link scraping tools to help you detect problems before the post goes public. You can find them here for Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
- Photoscape: Using Adobe Photoshop requires an investment of both time and money. Fortunately, there are free alternatives that can accomplish many of the same basic functions. Photoscape is a stripped-down photo editing program that allows you to easily perform most of the image editing that you might require, including resizing, cropping, cloning, blurring, and much more.
Fundraising Tools
- DonorBox: If you looking for a way to accept donations directly through your website, Donorbox offers free, customizable software to do just that with special discounts for registered nonprofits. Their donation module can be easily embedded in to your website and altered to fit your precise needs, color scheme, and other preferences.
- Sales Force: With free options available to nonprofits, Sales Force is a customer relations management (CRM) service that allows you to track your donors, program participants, and other groups to better maximize engagement and improve communication.
- Guide to Ethical Fundraising: Compiled by the National Council of Nonprofits, this guide explores the standards by which nonprofit organizations are expected to approach the fundraising process.
- Giving Tuesday: This annual fundraising event is celebrated internationally and should be on the radar of every nonprofit.
- ZipBooks: Keeping track of donors, fundraising, and financial reports can be overwhelming which is why many organizations rely on specialized software to help manage those tasks. Zipbooks provides their service free to nonprofits, allowing participating organizations to more efficiently manage their finances.
- Eventbrite: Planning an event can quickly become a logistical nightmare when you suddenly have to track ticket sales, seating, and other organizational elements. Eventbrite is one of the leading platforms for ticket sales – helping you track attendees, collect payments, gather contact info, and more.
- Candid: A leading nonprofit directory, Candid (formerly Guidestar) helps nonprofits build transparency and share information about their operations with donors and grant givers.
Misc. Digital Resources
- G Suite for Nonprofits: Google’s collections of top tier applications like Calendar, Drive, Analytics, Gmail, and others are available for free or at low costs for nonprofits. Google also has a grant available through their Ads service that awards select nonprofits +$100,000 per year in advertising credits to promote their services. Finally, their Google Meet platform allows for free video conferencing – even for participants without a Google account.
- Google Analytics: Tracking your website traffic and understanding user behavior is essential for building a digital following and maximizing your website’s impact. Google Analytics is a free and highly sophisticated service that allows you to see how many people visit your website, where they come from, what they do there, and much, much more.
- Google Alerts: It is essential that you keep track and are notified of every time your organization is mentioned in the news. Not only that, but there are going to be certain topics that you want to track mentions of. Google allows you to set an alert any time a specific keyword is used in a new article, blog, etc. Start by setting up an alert for your organization’s name as well as any related subjects that you want to monitor.
- Trello: Planning workflow and organizing your team can be challenging, especially when people are working remotely. Trello is a free service that helps you plan out projects and share projects as a team.
Local Funding Sources
Tips for Planning a “What If…” Mini Grant
Need more information? Explore the program page for instructions about eligibility and how to apply.
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