8.15.2010 - Why "Know Your Sector"

For the last five years, I have taught a graduate course on Nonprofit Management at IslandWood in conjunction with the University of Washington. My students are often surprised to learn about the significant role that nonprofit organizations play in our world. One out of ten U.S. workers are employed by charities, and the sector accounts for one of every 13 GDP dollars. Know Your Sector is intended as a resource for nonprofit employees, volunteers, and donors to better know our sector.

08.14.2010 - Bibliography for "Know Your Sector"

"Know Your Sector" was produced by Ben Klasky. It was designed by Kevin Michael Martin using Motion software.

• "In the United States, 1 in 244 workers are lawyers; 1 in 57 wait tables; 1 in 10 work for a nonprofit." Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Waitress Photo Credit: "Marge" by Tommy Gooch
• "The majority of these work in health care and education." Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
• "There are almost 2 million nonprofits in the U.S. This number has roughly doubled in the last 15 years." Source: Independent Sector
• "Each year in the U.S. $300 billion is donated to charities." Source: Giving USA 2010
• "83% of all donations are made by individuals. Source: Giving USA 2010
• "70% of US households make at least one donation each year. The average giving is $2,333 per household." Source: Independent Sector
• "Nearly half of all donations support religion and education. 4% goes toward the arts and 2% goes toward the environment and animals." Source: Giving USA 2010
• "Donations represent only 27% of income for nonprofits. 73% of nonprofit income is earned from such sources as tuition, hospital patient fees, and ticket sales." Source: US Dept of Commerce: Bureau of Economic Analysis
• "Nonprofits in the U.S. generate $1.1 trillion every year." Source: Urban Institute, National Center for Charitable Statistics
• "That's more than the entire economies of Saudi Arabia and Sweden combined." Source: World Bank
• "The United Way, the World's largest charity, brought in over $4 billion last year." Source: Forbes - America's 200 Largest Charities
• "6.5% of Americans volunteer for nonprofits every day, averaging 2.3 hours a day. That equals 7.6 million employees." Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
• "There are over 70,000 foundations in the U.S." Source: Foundation Center
• "Five of the ten largest are on the West Coast. None of these existed fifty years ago." Source: Foundation Center - Top 100 U.S. Foundations
• "The Gates Foundation, the world's largest foundation, is worth about $30 billion." Source: Foundation Center - Top 100 U.S. Foundations
• "It must give away $5.8 million per workday." Source: IRS Code IRC 4942e (requires that a foundation must typically pay 5% of the fair market value of its assets annually)
• "Nonprofits have developed medications and technologies." Source: www.ipadvocate.org - University Inventions That Changed the World
• Homeless Photo: "Homeless anonymity - The other side of Venice" by Anabadili