Factores que influyen en la sobrecarga agropecuaria

Overview New Jersey

Through an interview with Nina Stack, the executive director of the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers, I learned the following findings: According to Ms. Stack.

nonprofits in New Jersey by and large are not positioned as well as organizations in larger metropolis areas to succeed in 20 to 30 years time. Capitalization efforts are nearly not existent in the majority of small to mid size nonprofit organizations, according to the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers (Stack, 2016). This is an issue the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance is already working to address with Philly area based nonprofits. In New Jersey, the top foundation, (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation) has assets of $10 billion. It is important to note that this foundation gives out grants nationally.

The second closest foundation to that number does not even come close at only $600 million. There are no foundations with $1 billion to $9 billion in assets. However, with leadership, political will and significant investments (leadership gifts) some nonprofits are able to survive and thrive. NJPAC for instance has been able to grow its endowment and assets significantly over the past twenty years as a result of strong leadership, political will and investment. Proximity to New York may have proven to be another key to its success -- just look at the backgrounds of its staff members (many who have worked in prior

institutions such as Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall or Juilliard).

However, Trenton, unlike Newark, is not as close to a major city, rather it is between both New York and Philadelphia, and due to ongoing political issues, funders have not been as comfortable in making an investment.

Trenton

By and large, nonprofit organizations rarely cross the five figure threshold with major gifts or funding from grants from corporations, foundations or government entities.

There have only been a few exceptions to this, one which was a grant in the amount $1 million from NovoNordisk to the Boys and Girls Club, a national organization with a Trenton chapter. Trenton as a city has had its funding challenges since the time of white flight in the 1970s, however it has had some highs and some lows. During the Palmer administration in the mid to late 1990s into the 2000s, funders began to trust Trenton. They even allowed his proposal for a city hotel to go through when feasibility studies proved it would not be sustainable.

Following the Palmer administration was the Mack administration, which was corrupt to the point that funder trust reached new lows never seen before. Even the federal government was reluctant to provide the Trenton arts nonprofits with funding. During this time however, there was a steady group of funders who would meet to discuss ways funding could be channelled. This group at the time was called, “The Trenton and Mercer County Funders Group” and in its current state has been retitled with some new members to be “Greater Trenton.”

Trenton does not have any foundation of substantial size to support nonprofits in the city. Trenton is also still not a priority on the state level for funder groups. Camden effectively receives the attention at the state level, as there has been significant

investments, even in research. The Council of New Jersey Grantmakers for instance has surveyed the funder field in Camden, mapped out the funders and created a peer network.

This network has been effective in channeling funds and in getting more funds invested in Camden. One can only hope that Greater Trenton in the future will be able to accomplish more or at the very least the same. According to Nina Stacks, it seems Camden was able to position itself well due to its proximity to Philadelphia, especially as it seeked investment for its waterfront development.

The Trenton War Memorial

If the Trenton War Memorial had a non profit running programs and operations, it would need to demonstrate strong leadership, have staff roles well defined, present

programming of artistic quality that is relevant to the audience served, and have strong ties to the community. If funds are to be raised in advance prior to programming, there must be

some incentive and funds would have to be raised from individual private donors. Despite all these issues, the head of the Council of New Jersey Grantmakers notes that Greater Trenton might provide some glimmer of hope for the War Memorial and that timing will be important, as will leadership. According to the current executive director of the State Museum, Margaret O’Reilly, the Trenton War Memorial would need to raise at minimum

$12 million to be able to operate at a sustainable level. A capital campaign for $15 million and $2 million per year for operating expenses would better position the Trenton War Memorial to succeed, as funds would be needed for endowment and cash flows to balance out shows that might not sell as many tickets as other shows, but may be important for the community and in bringing in new audiences for the long-term. The majority of these funds would have to be raised from private individuals -- there simply are not enough foundations willing to give at a significant level to Trenton-based nonprofits, particularly to a nonprofit with a status that has been up and down. Damion Parran, managing director of Passage Theater detailed this funding climate:

“The funding climate in Trenton is challenging for the arts sector. Trenton has no

foundation, no art commission or council to provide grants. Also, corporate entities have more guidelines and regulations that focus on supporting mostly events with high

attendance. Lastly, in terms of individual donations, while there are a few people in the greater Trenton area who make five figure gifts, gifts rarely ever cross the six figure threshold.” (Parran, 2016)

Making the case for adequate support from private individuals effectively will result in those individuals giving more and hopefully will encourage corporate, foundation and government entities to step up their funding levels and leverage their capacity as well in support. In addition to contributed revenue it will be important for the entity of the War

Memorial to manage and create streams of earned revenue. These revenue streams could include catering, concessions, merchandise sales, parking fees, facility fees added to tickets, rentals, and other creative revenue resources.

Funding trends

A report from the National Centre for Arts Research at Southern Methodist University notes the following findings from their recent 2011-2014 assessment of fundraising of arts nonprofits:

“Fundraising efforts remain crucial to the long term sustainability of organizations

(nonprofit organizations by and large cannot rely upon earned revenue alone); individuals continue to provide the highest funding support to the arts nonprofit sector, while corporate funding provides the least; and the only category of support to fall from 2011-2014 was government support.” (Rallo, 2016)

These fundings reflect that a future entity running the War Memorial must successfully balance contributed income with earned revenue, solicit individuals early on and secure leadership gifts of substantial size, and not be overly reliant on government funding. The report further noted the position larger organizations have over organizations of smaller size, by stating that large organizations have the capacity to diversify their portfolio of donations, which makes them less reliant on cash contributions from the five major sources given in the current year for the current year’s activities and the better position they are in to execute multi-year planning and attract funding now for future projects. (Rallo, 2016)

In addition to these trends, nationally the funding environment has seen shifts toward achieving equity on the foundation-giving side, and changes in priorities for the next generation of donors. A generation that values participation and social justice issues

wants to see the arts truly make a difference. While the War Memorial as a facility, is large in scale, the staff and resources reflect that of a small organization. Tremendous growth and investment would need to happen for the War Memorial to gain the needed capacity to reflect the size of the facility and the house. Funding resources will also impact and

influence political will.