For Immediate Release: May 12, 2015

Contact: Anat Gerstein or Zac Roy, 718-793-2211

Fifty-Six NYC-Area Nonprofits Enter Program to Improve Management
Practices and Win $60,000
(New York, May 11, 2015) A total of 56 nonprofit groups have applied for the
2015 New York Community Trust Nonprofit Excellence Awards, a program of the
Nonprofit Coordinating Committee of New York (NPCC). The awards program
recognizes outstanding management practices of nonprofits in New York City,
Long Island and Westchester and comes with $60,000 in prizes. NPCC manages
the Awards program to help organizations improve their management practices
and to recognize those that are extremely well run.
This years applicants represent a wide range of nonprofit subsectors, including:
human services; housing and shelter; arts, culture and the humanities; education;
youth development; and civil rights, social action and advocacy. The
organizations vary in size as well, with almost 15 percent reporting budgets of
less than $1 million, and nearly a third reporting budgets of $10-million-plus.
Some two-thirds of this years applicants have previously applied, demonstrating
the recognized value of the Awards program.
Over half (32) of the applications are from Manhattan nonprofits, with almost 15
percent from the suburbs (5 from Long Island and 3 from Westchester). The
Awards this year drew twice as many applicants from the Bronx (6) as last year.
Six applicants are based in Brooklyn, and four are from Queens.
Over the next two months, a committee of 37 experts will review the applications
submitted by these groups and provide detailed feedback to the organizations
about their management strengths and weaknesses. In a survey of past
applicants, 97 percent reported finding the program helpful in improving their
organizations management performance.
The Awards selection committee will announce 10 semifinalists in August. Later
in the year, it will select three winning nonprofits that will receive a total of
$60,000 in prize money and scholarships for the Columbia Business School
Executive Education Programs in Social Enterprise. Winning organizations will
be honored at an Awards presentation in November, 2015.
As New York and its suburbs try to solve a range of critical problems, we all
need nonprofits with smart management, said Lorie Slutsky, president of The
New York Community Trust, one of the regions leading funders of nonprofits.
Our Excellence Awards program not only rewards several organizations with
strong management, but weve learned that it also inspires many other groups to
do better.

Were delighted to have received 56 applications this year from such a wide
variety of organizations, said Michael Clark, president of the Nonprofit
Coordinating Committee (NPCC). By applying for the Awards, these nonprofits
signal that they take management seriously and want to increase benefits for the
people and causes they serve. Our selection panel of seasoned nonprofit
professionals is poised to help them do just that.
Now in its ninth year, the Awards program has attracted more than 685
applicants from across the city and its suburbs. The Awards recognize
outstanding management practices in eight key performance areas identified by
thousands of nonprofit leaders across the country.
The eight areas of excellence are: management focus on results; governance
structure; financial management; diverse and culturally competent organizational
practices; enlightened human resources; model IT practices; model
communications; and, exemplary fundraising and resource development.
Every year this program allows the funder community to see some of the shining
stars of the nonprofit community, said Ronna Brown, President, Philanthropy
New York. Even more importantly, we are excited to see how many
organizations take advantage of the application process to both demonstrate
their commitment to management excellence and learn from the process itself.

In the programs first eight years, 26 organizations have won prizes. A list of past
winners is available at http://npexcellence.fcny.org/npea/winners/. In past years,
one organization each from the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island has won. Three
winning organizations are based in Westchester, six in Brooklyn, and 14 in
Manhattan.
NPCC created the Nonprofit Excellence Awards in 2007 and serves as the
programs tax-exempt manager, in collaboration with The New York Community
Trust and Philanthropy New York. WNYC sponsors the program, which is also
supported by The Clark Foundation, Ford Foundation, McGladrey LLP, and
Columbia Business School Executive Education Programs in Social Enterprise.
More about the Nonprofit Excellence Awards, including the Awards guiding
document, Eight Key Areas of Nonprofit Excellence; past winners; funders; and
Selection Committee members, is available at www.npccny.org/info/awards.htm.
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The Nonprofit Coordinating Committee of New York (NPCC) serves as the
voice and information source for New York nonprofits. An umbrella organization
representing and serving over 1,400 member nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations
throughout New York City, Long Island, and Westchester, NPCC is the largest

such organization in the New York City area. It represents all types of nonprofits
on sector-wide issues. Established in 1984, NPCC informs and connects
nonprofit leaders, saves nonprofits money, helps them manage and govern
themselves better, and protects and strengthens the entire nonprofit communitys
relations with all levels of government. (www.npccny.org)
Since 1924, The New York Community Trust has been the home of charitable
New Yorkers who share a passion for the City and the suburbsand who are
committed to improving them. The Trust supports an array of effective nonprofits
that help make the City a vital and secure place to live, learn, work and play,
while building permanent resources for the future. The New York Community
Trust ended 2014 with assets of $2.6 billion in more than 2,000 charitable funds,
and made grants totaling $165 million. The Trust welcomes new
donors. (www.nycommunitytrust.org)
Philanthropy New York is the primary membership organization for private,
family, corporate, and public foundations based in the tri-state New York area. Its
285 member organizationsincluding some of the leading grantmaking
foundations in the worldrecognize that a vibrant and well-managed nonprofit
sector is fundamental to healthy communities. Collaborating in the Awards
provides Philanthropy New York an important opportunity to celebrate
management excellence among their members nonprofit partners, learn from
their experience, and help build greater capacity in the sector. Philanthropy New
York is the principal professional community of philanthropic foundations based
in the New York City region with a mission of enhancing the ability of
philanthropists to serve the public good. Philanthropy New York members
recognize that without extraordinary grantees, there would be no effective
grantmaking programs. (www.philanthropynewyork.org)