Rural Nonprofit Development Initiatives
To successfully accomplish its mission in Philanthropic Divide states like Montana, Big Sky Institute develops sustainable infrastructure organizations to help nonprofits build to scale, expand their capacities and increase their effectiveness. The lack of infrastructure organizations in Montana and surrounding states led BSI to pioneer an approach to nonprofit sector infrastructure development in these states that combines research and assessment, constituency and leadership development, seed funding, vision development, interim staffing and incubation services.
BSI's first major initiative in this arena was the highly successful development of the Montana Nonprofit Association (MNA), now independent of BSI. It has a membership of 450 nonprofits, a staff of 4 experienced professionals, and a robust program of professional development opportunities, public policy work, and discounted goods and services that save participating member organizations hundreds of thousands of dollars annually.
BSI's current projects to build nonprofit sector infrastructure in Montana also provide replicable approaches for other Divide and rural states. In addition, BSI is extending and refining these projects to assist with the development of nonprofits in Montana's Indian Country.
Current Initiatives:
- The Montana Indian Philanthropy and Nonprofit Group
- This project is being carried out in conjunction with BSI's involvement in efforts to increase philanthropy for nonprofits in Indian Country (see Rural Philanthropy Initiatives). The participating individuals and organizations are concurrently investigating how existing and emerging infrastructure programs and organizations can be refined and/or expanded to provide capacity building assistance to Indian-led nonprofits on Montana's reservations, as well as in urban Indian communities.
- High Impact Consulting Program
- BSI has begun development of the Montana High Impact Consulting Program for Capacity Building. Its goal is to help Montana nonprofits rapidly, yet systematically, build to scale through a multi-year program of intensive consulting services. BSI is recruiting a highly skilled national practitioner to work with BSI and a cadre of Montana nonprofit organizational development consultants to design and implement this program. The first cohort of participating organizations will be chosen in 2008.
- Enhanced Fiscal Sponsorship and Incubation Services
- BSI is strengthening its capacity to provide fiscal sponsorship and incubation
services for new organizations we create through our primary mission of
infrastructure develoment. In response to increased Internal Revenue Service
scrutiny of nonprofit practices, including the arena of fiscal sponsorship,
BSI has linked with the National Network of Fiscal Sponsors as the first
of several steps to learn about emerging "best practices" for fiscal sponsors.
In addition, BSI is exploring the need for more comprehensive and accessible
sources for fiscal sponsorship services in Montana, as nonprofits providing
these services may be more reticent to do so in light of this increased
scrutiny, potentially leaving worthy projects in limbo.
Future Initiatives:
- Cooperative Development of Nonprofit Sector Infrastructure
- Montana and other Philanthropic Divide states lack many nonprofit infrastructure components that are essential for a vibrant and effective nonprofit sector. BSI will share the results of our national Philanthropic Divide Nonprofit Sector Infrastructure Assessment with Montana's nonprofit community and other priority stakeholder audiences. BSI will then work with this broad community and key partners to determine priorities for infrastructure development, and formulate an action plan to create them.
- Nonprofit Consulting Services
- BSI's staff and our network of key contractors provide strong nonprofit organizational development skills to anchor core programs and projects. As BSI expands its capacity, we will explore ways to make these skills available to Montana's nonprofits through fee-based consultant services. The Foraker Group in Alaska has been immensely successful in this arena, and serves both large and small nonprofits in the largest and most sparsely populated state of all the Divide states. BSI will investigate how Foraker's model could be either replicated or adapted for Montana.
