PROVIDENCE – Among the goals in the United Way of Rhode Island’s five-year, $100 million Live United 2025 plan announced last year, the organization called for a nonprofit center or association to “strengthen professional development and infrastructure capabilities in the sector.”
United Way is now taking its first steps to make such a center a reality in Rhode Island. The organization is now seeking 10 nonprofit leaders to be part of a design team to spend seven months developing how a statewide nonprofit resource center would operate.
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Providence Business News spotlighted in a July 31, 2020, cover story where some local nonprofits felt the sector might benefit when it comes to training and funding by the creation of a singular organized voice or advocacy group.
United Way CEO and President Cortney Nicolato told PBN Tuesday the organization recently looked at how other nonprofit resource center/associations operated in 42 other states in the U.S. She said there is “absolutely a role” for a similar one to be in place in Rhode Island.
Nicolato said her vision of the nonprofit resource center would be “membership driven,” similar to how other businesses are members of local industry associations. Also, the center, Nicolato said, would offer “a wealth” of products and services to assist local organizations across the state.
The United Way’s top executive said the nonprofit resource center’s business model – including leadership structure and how it will be funded – will be discussed by the design team over the next seven months starting in February. Nicolato did say United Way found that in evaluating other such centers/associations’ business models, about 40% of revenue was membership driven and the remaining 60% was from philanthropy.
“It’s anticipated that nonprofits would pay very nominal … membership dues to participate in the center,” Nicolato said. “That’s a big part of this now is to build a business model and design what components will be included in the center. This has to be owned by the nonprofit community and make sure what we create in the center meets the needs of the nonprofit community not only today, but long term.”
United Way has contracted with Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm Community Wealth Partners to work with the design team, Nicolato said. She said the firm has built similar centers in other communities via an “open community feedback-centered model.” It’s anticipated that the team will host feedback sessions to hear from other Rhode Island-based nonprofits on how the center should be shaped, Nicolato said.
Nicolato also said other nonprofit funding organizations, such as the Champlin Foundation and the van Beuren Foundation, support the United Way’s idea of a nonprofit resource center. The center pilot may go live in early 2023, she said.
Rhode Island Foundation CEO and President Neil D. Steinberg told PBN he’s aware of the idea and is taking a wait-and-see approach.
Steinberg on Tuesday said he feels the state still has “sector-related” nonprofit groups that are doing a good job representing various needs and causes for housing, the arts, health care and human services. He’s “still not sure” how a general nonprofit association would improve the landscape, but said the foundation thinks the organizations can benefit from additional professional development from a resource center to help them work more collaboratively and efficiently.
“What we’ve seen is more benefit within the sectors that can express the needs of not only their nonprofit groups, but who they’re serving,” Steinberg said. “We’ll always advocate for nonprofits to be included [in state-related concerns].”
But, Steinberg said he wants to see what the design team comes up with over the next seven months regarding the need in Rhode Island for a nonprofit association.
Each of the 10 design team members will receive a $4,000 stipend for their time. The team, United Way said, will meet in 90-minute biweekly Zoom meetings from February through August. The nonprofit is asking those interested to fill out applications, which can be submitted online until Feb. 11. The United Way will also have Feb. 1 a virtual design team information session about the group.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
