| GOVERNANCE AND OVERSIGHT Our governing board of Elders has the ultimate oversight authority for New Hope Homeschool and Resource Center as a non-profit charitable organization. This home school program section of the standards seeks to ensure that the volunteer board is active, independent and free of self-dealing. To meet these standards, the home school ministry shall have:
- A board of elders with a minimum of three voting members. If the board has
an executive committee, the committee also shall have a minimum of three
voting members.
- A minimum of three evenly spaced meetings per year of the full governing
body with a majority in attendance, in-person. An in-person meeting of the
board's executive committee or a conference call of the full board can
substitute for one of the three meetings of the governing body. For all
meetings, alternative modes of participation are acceptable for those with
physical disabilities. (The elder board currently meets on the first Tuesday
of every month)
- Not more than one directly compensated (e.g., a paid staff member) or
indirectly compensated (e.g., spouse or family relation of paid staff
member) person serving as a voting member of the board. Compensated members
shall not serve as the board's chair or treasurer. Note: A publicly
soliciting charity that is also a church and whose governing body includes
ordained clergy who receive a salary, support or sustenance from the church,
is exempted from this standard. This exemption does not apply to religious
organizations that are not churches.
- No transaction(s) in which any board or staff members have material
conflicting interests with the home school resulting from any relationship or
business affiliation. Factors that will be considered when concluding
whether or not a related party transaction constitutes a conflict of
interest and if such a conflict is material, include, but are not limited
to: any arm's length procedures established by the charity; the size of the
transaction relative to like expenses of the charity; whether the interested
party participated in the board vote on the transaction; if competitive bids
were sought and whether the transaction is one-time, recurring or ongoing.
- A board of elders that provides adequate oversight of the charity's
program operations and its staff. Indication of adequate oversight includes, but is
not limited to, regularly scheduled appraisals of the CEO's performance,
evidence of disbursement controls such as board approval and monitoring of
the budget and fund raising practices, and establishment of accounting
procedures sufficient to safeguard charity finances.
MEASURING PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS
An organization should regularly assess its effectiveness
in achieving its mission. This section seeks to ensure that an
organization has a defined process in place to evaluate the
success and impact of its program(s) in fulfilling the goals
of the organization and that also identifies ways to address
any deficiencies. To meet these standards, a charitable
organization shall;
- Have a board policy of assessing, no less than every two years, the
organization's performance and of determining future actions required to
achieve its mission.
- Submit to the organization's governing body, for its approval, a written
report that outlines the results of the aforementioned effectiveness
assessment and recommendations for future actions.
FINANCES
This section of the standards seeks to ensure that the
charity spends its funds honestly, prudently and in accordance
with statements made in fund raising appeals. To meet these
standards, the charitable organization shall;
- Spend funds in accordance with donor intentions. To meet this standard, a
charity should be able to substantiate, on request, that the timing and
nature of its expenditures are in accordance with donor restrictions,
designations and expectations.
- Spend at least 65% of its total expenses on program activities.
- Spend no more than 35% of related contributions on fund raising. Related contributions are donations received as a result of fund raising efforts.
- Avoid accumulating funds that could be used for current program activities. To meet this standard, the charity's net assets available for use should not exceed twice the total expenses budgeted for the current year.
An organization that does not meet Standards 9, 10 and/or 11 may provide evidence to demonstrate that its use of funds is reasonable. The higher fund raising and administrative costs of a newly created organization, donor restrictions on the use of funds, exceptional bequests, a stigma associated with a cause, and environmental or political events beyond an organization's control are among factors which may result in expenditures that are reasonable although they do not meet the financial measures cited in these standards.
- Make available, on request to all, complete annual financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. When total annual gross income exceeds $250,000, these statements should be audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards. For charities whose annual gross income is less than $250,000, a review by a certified public accountant is sufficient to meet this standard. For charities whose annual gross income is less than $100,000, an internally produced, complete financial statement is sufficient to meet this standard.
- Include in the financial statements a breakdown of expenses (e.g., salaries, travel, postage, etc.) that shows what portion of these expenses was allocated to program, fund raising, and administrative activities. If the charity has more than one major program category, the schedule should provide a breakdown for each category. (Finances are currently review by the elders monthly at the elders board meeting)
- Accurately report the charity's expenses in its financial statements. For example, audited or unaudited statements which inaccurately claim zero fund raising expenses or otherwise understate the amount a charity spends on fund raising, and/or overstate the amount it spends on programs will not meet this standard. In determining if a charity meets this standard, the Alliance will check the accuracy of any joint cost allocations.
- Provide, on request to all, a board-approved annual budget for its current fiscal year, outlining projected expenses for major program activities, fund raising, and administration.
FUND RAISING AND INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS
A fund raising appeal is often the only direct contact a donor has with a charity and may be the sole impetus for giving. This section of the standards seeks to ensure that a charity's representations to the public are accurate, complete and respectful. To meet these standards, the charitable organization
shall;
- Have solicitations and informational materials, distributed by any means, that are accurate, truthful and not misleading, both in whole and in part. Appeals that omit a clear description of
program(s) for which contributions are sought will not meet this standard.
- Have an annual report, available on request to all, that
includes;
(a) the home school programs organization's mission statement,
(b) a summary of the past year's program service accomplishments,
(c) a roster of the officers and members of the board of directors, with professional affiliations,
(d) financial information that
includes;
(e) total income in the past fiscal year,
(f) expenses in the same home school program, fund raising and administrative categories as in the financial statements, and
(g) ending net assets.
- Include on any charity websites that solicit contributions, the same information that is recommended for annual reports, as well as the mailing address of the charity and electronic access to its most recent IRS Form 990.
- Address privacy concerns of donors by;
(a) providing, preferably in all written appeals to first time donors but not less than annually, a means (e.g., such as a check off box) for both new and continuing donors to inform the charity if they do not want their name and address shared outside the organization, and
(b) providing a clear, prominent, and easily accessible privacy policy on any of its websites that tells visitors
(c) what information, if any, is being collected about them by the charity and how this information will be used,
(d) how to contact the charity to review personal information collected and request corrections,
(e) how to inform the charity (e.g., a check off box) that the visitor does not wish his/her personal information to be shared outside the organization, and
(f) what security measures the charity has in place to protect personal information.
- Clearly disclose how the charity benefits from the sale of products or services (i.e., cause-related marketing) that state or imply that a charity will benefit from a consumer sale or transaction. Such promotions should disclose, at the point of
solicitation;
(a) the actual or anticipated portion of the purchase price that will benefit the charity (e.g., 5 cents will be contributed to abc charity for every xyz company product sold),
(b) the duration of the campaign (e.g., the month of October),
(c) any maximum or guaranteed minimum contribution amount (e.g., up to a maximum of $200,000).
- Respond promptly to and act on complaints brought to its attention by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance and/or local Better Business Bureaus about fund raising practices, privacy policy violations and/or other issues.
(This document was derived from and at the recommendation of the BBB Wise Giving Alliance and/or local Better Business Bureaus.)
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