Amy Sherman provides 5 principles for successful collaboration between government granting agencies and faith-based organizations (FBOs): ground-floor-up involvement, discerning teachability, sympathetic respect, connected autonomy, and strategic internal organization.

FBO - GOVERNMENT COLLABORATION RESOURCE   Five Keys to Successful Government-Faith Collaboration (Amy L. Sherman, Hudson Institute, 2004) Partnerships between government entities and faith-based organizations (FBOs) delivering social services are becoming more common. Many of the collaborations involve FBOs with no previous history of formal, financial relationships with public agencies. For example, a 2002 study of nearly 400 faith-based contractors in 15 states by the Hudson Institute’s Faith in Communities project found that 56 percent of these leaders had only begun contracting with government since the passage of the charitable choice guidelines.[1] Nonetheless, a remarkable 92 percent reported that their experience with government was “positive” or “very positive” and that they would be willing to hold a government contract again in the future.[2] Many FBOs, in short, have learned how to craft healthy partnerships with government agencies. The effective collaborations I have witnessed are marked by several common characteristics. Not every collaboration may include every one of these elements, but the five listed below appear to be key stepping stones for workable, positive cooperation. (1) Ground-floor-up involvement: This first is “ground-floor-up-involvement.” This describes a collaboration that is mutually designed by the government agency and the FBO. Together they craft the contours of their partnership, rather than that government agency imposing a pre-designed program upon the faith community. (2) Discerning teachability: Second, it is important for the faith partner to display a respectful and teachable attitude toward the government partner. FBO leaders may well be critical of the ways of the “old welfare system.” And, agreement exists across the board that the old system was deficient in numerous respects; hence the fundamental reforms of 1996. But the FBO must avoid a smug attitude that secretly thinks: “Government has certainly made a lot of mistakes in the past. It’s a good thing they are finally looking to the faith community to supply them with some better answers.” The plain reality that many of the government’s ways under the old welfare system did not work does not mean that government officials and case managers are bereft of good ideas, compassion, or wisdom. Many public officials and caseworkers have a wealth of experience and keen insights about working with low-income families—wisdom and experience from which faith community leaders can learn. FBOs should be humble and teachable. But this posture needs to be one of discerning teachability. This is because, in some instances, the worldviews of the government officials and the faith leaders will be different. Specific case managers may or may not hold the same presuppositions or values as do the staff or leaders of the FBO. These differences should be acknowledged and talked through candidly. (3) Sympathetic respect: For their part, government officials must eschew an elitist perspective that holds that only highly educated professionals are equipped to help poor people. Instead, agency staff should acknowledge that lay volunteers can provide crucial emotional support and moral guidance to needy families—things that government, by its nature, does not offer well. The government partner should allow FBO service deliverers the flexibility and creativity to meet the needs of the families they are serving under the government contract, even when ministries rely on strategies remarkably different from those employed by government agencies. (4) Connected Autonomy: In most current FBO-government relationships, the FBO is willing to do a lot, but does not want full responsibility for the disadvantaged families it is assisting. FBOs want assurances that the individuals they serve will also be linked to government-sponsored programs that address needs the FBOs themselves cannot meet. At the same time, FBOs want to help poor people without excessive governmental interference that would totally squelch the spiritual character of their outreach. FBOs want, in short, “connected autonomy.” That is, they want to be a part of a team that surrounds the family in need—a team on which they play a significant, largely unfettered, and unique role—but a team nonetheless. I call this “connected autonomy.” (5) Strategic Internal Organization:Government is looking to the faith community for help in part because FBOs are often marked by a flexibility and informality that enables them to interact with families in a way that feels more personal and individually-tailored than “dealing with government bureaucracy.” And that is good. But the faith organizations must also maintain a sufficient level of organization and administrative sophistication that permits them to interact effectively with government. FBOs need to be excellent record-keepers; they must have financial accounting systems and procedures that are well-organized and above reproach; and they need to be able to document what they have done with the public funds--how staff has been spent, what goals have been achieved with the families served, and so forth.     [1] Amy L. Sherman and John Green, Fruitful Collaborations: A Survey of Government-Funded Faith-Based Programs in 15 States (Hudson Institute, 2002). [2] Ibid.

Related Articles Fruitful Collaborations: Survey of Government-Funded Faith-Based Programs in 15 States (Exec Sum) Q&A on Legal Issues Involved in FBO-Government Partnerships Due Diligence Tips News Conference Calendar Forum Find Others Ask a Specialist

Join the Team, Be a Player

Belonging to community boards and organizations is an essential first step to getting a place at the table for your library. But becoming an active member, or even leader can really pay off.

By Steve DelVecchio

Being active in the community can take a lot of extra time and hard work, but it will pay off in the long run.
-- Mary Brown, Director of the Union County (FL) Public Library

While being there is an essential first step to building community partnerships in a way that gets your library "a place at the table," it isn't enough. To really turn your presence on community boards, councils, and organizations into an effective platform you need to become a key part of the team.

Often this means that you have to take on roles and tasks that may seem tiresome, but will gain you, and your library, big points in the appreciation of others in the community. Serving as an organization's secretary may seem like a thankless job, but folks will notice and appreciate your contribution.

This is just what Beverly Obert, Executive Director of the Rolling Prairie (IL) Library System did:

In the past the library I was at was a member of the local Chamber of Commerce.  I talked about the library at their monthly meetings, and even served as Secretary.  The profile of the library increased with this exposure.

One way to be a team player is to host these meetings. Debbie Daugherty, Director of the Wynnewood (OK) Public Library does this whenever possible:

In response to your other question about participation in planning sessions with the community, I have noticed over the years that if we don't invite ourselves to these planning sessions of different types, we are not included.  You have to step up and be aware of what is in the works.  Ask to be included.  Offer to host, whenever possible.  You have to be your own advocate.

Chris Moede, Director of the Brillion (WI) Public Library, shares how being part of the city management team made the difference:

When I came to the Brillion Public Library some 20 years ago, the budget was dismal and we received little support from our City.  I sought to first grow the library by writing and receiving a number of grants that added materials and services.  I had little success with the city until I began attending City Council meetings and reporting on the Library.  I became visible to the funding body and they became more interested in the library. A planning process helped our budget grow.  A new city administrator began including me as part of the city management team.  As part of the team, we worked together to provide the best service to the people of the city.  Other departments provided strengths that we could use. We also looked at ways of sharing things such as purchasing and building personnel.  Our city developed a website that included the library.  The community development director takes care of the website, which has saved the library time.  We also use an individual who works for the city and has a computer background to help us with computer problems and hooking up computer printers.  As a part of the city management team, I attend regular department head meetings, attend city council planning meetings as well as the regular council meetings.  This exposure has given the Library a position of credibility with the City and we have not had a problem with the City since.

And as James LaRue, Director of the Douglas County (CO) Libraries, points out, it won't work to show up just to "take":

We let them know we're not there to TAKE from them, but to bring real assets to the table.

Mary Brown, Director of the Union County (FL) Public Library, knows that this takes "a lot of extra time and hard work, but it will pay off in the long run:"

Union County Public Library has a reputation for building strong community partnerships and acting as a vital entity in many aspects within the community. I have found that the best way to build bridges within a community is to become an active member in the many areas that benefit the community at large. For instance, a library director can and should be a member of various civic organizations like rotary, lion's club, etc. In addition, libraries can easily get involved in various charitable drives such as toy and food drives. These efforts will show that the library staff care about the community they serve. Being active in the community can take a lot of extra time and hard work, but it will pay off in the long run. Our library has only to ask for something and the various community organizations are right there to help, because the community knows that we are helping at every turn. It is imperative to encourage the entire library staff to take an active role in community events. Here is a list of activities/groups that I am involved in, as well as our library staff: Rotary member, high school and elementary school advisory council member, recreation board member, toys for kids chairperson, extension/4-H advisory council member, Florida Council on Crime and Delinquency member, Union County Community Council member. The benefits of being involved in your community are endless. When you show how much you care, community members are easy to approach and always willing to help. It becomes easy to present very large programs where many community organizations get involved. In addition, involvement within the community keeps you aware of what is going on and enables you to help your customers. Finally, the best way to create goodwill within your community is to provide exemplary customer service.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 License.

Why do email newsletters?

By Sue Fidler

Many small not for profit organisations have yet to take advantage of email communications for a variety of reasons – some genuine and some which are out of date excuses. This article sets out to explain why almost everyone has the audience, the content and the capability of using email to communicate.

E-News

Email newsletters have been buzzing around the third sector for many years (in web terms), and the majority of large organisations use them to communicate with donors, supporters, campaigners and other special interest groups.