JCC Association
Earns Top Rating in Independent Review of Charitable Groups
NEW YORK, NY, AUGUST 1, 2006
– In a development certain to inspire and strengthen
donor confidence in JCC Association, Charity Navigator, an
independent online service that evaluates charitable organizations,
has announced that the continental umbrella of the JCC Movement
has received a 4-star rating, the service’s highest.
According to information provided on Charity Navigator’s
website (www.charitynavigator.org), the rating indicates that
JCC Association is an “exceptional” fundraiser,
exceeding industry standards and outperforming most other
organizations that raise dollars for similar purposes. Every
year, based on federal tax returns and other objective financial
data it obtains, Charity Navigator evaluates 5,000 charities
to determine how much each spends to raise money and what
percentage of the dollars raised are allocated to programs
and services, versus administration and overhead.
According to an assessment of JCC Association’s organizational
efficiency, nearly eighty-six percent of the revenue is spent
on programs and services, with less than ten percent used
to defray administrative costs and less than five percent
expended on fundraising activities and personnel. In terms
of organizational capacity, primary revenue growth is pegged
at a little over ten percent annually, while program expenses
are only growing by roughly four percent.
These figures were used to determine JCC Association’s
ranking among multipurpose human services organizations, one
of 33 “causes” within nine broad categories that
Charity Navigator has identified for purposes of evaluating
charities. Lobbying groups, family foundations, and charities
largely dependent on private foundations are excluded from
the yearly review, meant to assist individual donors in making
wise philanthropic choices.
Acknowledging the importance of establishing trust with current
and potential donors, JCC Association Chair Alan Solow reacted
to the announcement with pride. “I am delighted that
JCC Association has been appropriately recognized for its
effective management of our donors’ resources. We pride
ourselves on delivering our services efficiently and effectively.
The fact that this has been verified by a well-respected independent
source provides additional assurance to our donors that their
contributions will be spent as intended,” he said.
The news also pleased JCC Association Vice-President of Development
Fani Magnus Monson, who was hired nearly five years ago as
the organization’s first full-time development professional.
“This is wonderful news,” she said. “It’s
a real validation that the funds we raise are not only well-spent,
but also a reflection of the meticulous attention that our
chief financial officer and his entire staff, as well as our
board and lay leadership, gives to accounting and spending
practices.” She added, “We are vigilant about
using dollars wisely, allocating them to the purposes for
which they’ve been donated.”
Magnus Monson attributed JCC Association’s fundraising
success to several factors, not least an agenda set by President
Allan Finkelstein and former chair Edward H. Kaplan. “We
had a chair that made development a priority; he led the way
with his own donations and seeking donations from others.”
Solow is committed to maintaining that legacy, she asserted.
Additionally, an agency culture respects donor wishes and
sensibilities. “Each project for which we seek to raise
funds is very carefully considered.”
###
JCC Association
is the leadership network of, and central agency for the Jewish
Community Center Movement, which is comprised of 350 JCC,
YM-YWHA and camp sites in the U. S. and Canada. JCC Association
offers a wide range of services and resources to strengthen
the capacity of its affiliates to provide educational, cultural,
social, Jewish identity-building, and recreational programs
to enhance the lives of North American Jews of all ages and
backgrounds. Additionally, the movement fosters and strengthens
connections between North American Jews and Israel as well
as with world Jewry. JCC Association is also the U.S. government
accredited agency for serving the religious and social needs
of Jewish military personnel, their families, and patients
in VA hospitals through JWB Jewish Chaplains Council.
Miriam
Rinn
Communications Manager
JCC Association
15 E. 26 St., NY, NY 10010
212-786-5092
fax: 212-481-4174
send an e-mail
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