We first
visited Catholic Charities where we were able to talk with Valerie, the
executive administrator. Although she was able to answer most of our questions,
I don’t think that she was able to fully answer all the questions we had. For
example, when asked about the budget deficit, she said that she was unsure and
would have to ask someone else to fully have our question answered. I
understand that her position does not require her to know about the budget but
I do feel as if the other person should have been around in order to answer our
questions since the budget of the organization has to do with our
decision-making process. Another reason that I am hesitant to donate our money
to Catholic Charities is because there is a long wait list for the program. According
to Peter Singer, if we wanted to do the most good with our money, we should
pick somewhere that could help children as they need it instead of being put on
a wait list. Although I have other concerns about Catholic Charities, space
permits only these few flags.
After
visiting the YMCA, I feel as if I better understand the program that they
applied for funding. However, the way Dan, the fund development officer,
answered our questions were much different than the way Valerie did. For
example, it was questioned why they chose to apply for funding for this program
rather than another. Dan responded that it was the program that he was most
passionate about. Although it is good to see that members of the staff are
passionate about what they do, I feel as if that still did not answer the
question. Another thing that I found fishy was that when asked about the
operating grant, we were told that the CEO did not want to apply for that
grant. I believe that the YMCA does great work, especially after talking to
Dan, and feel as if they could benefit from that grant as well as well as the
program grant and they would both be put to good use.
Based on
these 2 organizations alone, I feel as if the YMCA would best use our money. I
think that Dan was more passionate and excited about the difference that his
program could make. It would help more than 360 children in the Binghamton
School District, impact the families of these children, and could also have a
lasting impact on the children because the things they learn through this
program could be applied throughout life. Best of all, the program is free to
students and it takes place at the school, which is a concern I know that many
people had. Based on the results that Dan talked about, there was an increase
in demand for healthier food options at school, a better understanding of
healthy lifestyles, and more communication at home about healthy food.
Based off
these site visits, where do you think our money would be best used? What still
raises concerns for you? Are there any other questions that you still feel are
unanswered? After the site visit, do you feel as if Valerie and Dan made the
best case for their programs?
Although I presented on Catholic Charities, I have to agree with you Kaitlyn, and say that I believe that the YMCA deserves our program grant (based off of what we've seen so far).
ReplyDeleteThis is mostly due to the fact, as you've stated, that Dan seemed more passionate about his position. I liked his personal stories, and while at times it seemed as though he might use them on other potential donors, they did allow me to see how connected he is to the community and the YMCA. While I know that one employee does not reflect the entire organization, the fact that he is so passionate about the specific program that we want to fund makes me feel as though the money will be in good hands.
Something that still raises a concern for me is that fact that both Catholic Charities and the YMCA decided not to apply for the operating grant. Dan's answer seemed very suspicious, which leads me to believe that there is something in the operating grant request that is off-putting to potential recipients. I hope that we can discuss this as a class, and hopefully come to a consensus about why this keeps occurring. As for unanswered questions, my main questions pertained to the location of the program and the effectiveness of healthy food education, both of which Dan answered. I especially loved the cook book idea, I think that this is a great way for students to teach their parents, and show them that they value healthy living.
Based off their positions, and their knowledge about the programs that they want us to fund, I feel as though both Dan and Valerie made the best cases for their programs. While Dan seemed a little more passionate (adding in personal stories and his own ties to the program), Valerie had a professional detachment that I respected. I look forward to visiting two more sites this week, and comparing them to what we have seen thus far.
Interesting points you raise about both organizations and our visits to them. I felt as if the YMCA was much more prepared for our visit--however I'm not sure if Catholic Charities is anymore to blame for that than we are.
ReplyDeleteI personal favor giving to the YMCA over Catholic Charities. Dan talked about how they would use the money in great detail. He explained the YMCA's successful history of implementing after school programs within districts and elucidated that with the funding we would supply, they would be able to open an additional program. To hear that with our money they will be able to go off in a new district and do something that already has seen sustained success in other, similar districts is huge. With this, we almost are guaranteed to be giving to a successful cause--and, if not more important, giving to a charity and program that are arduously and effectively working within our chosen focus.
The fact that Dan was able to specifically quantify how many children our donation would enable them to help was a huge plus for the YMCA with me. 360 children is a very large amount of children and his ability to rattle that off makes me feel as if they have a clear system in place that they fully understand and are able to masterfully operate within. This makes me feel very comfortable about giving to the YMCA.
With Catholic Charities, I found the pitch less prepared, the answers less specific, and the projected effects of our donation to be much less impressive than the YMCA's.
I am still pretty undecided about whether I would want us to give to Catholic Charities or the YMCA. I really like both of the programs but I wonder if the Community Connections Center provides a service that is more urgently needed. I appreciate the value of nutrition education and remember learning things in my youth that have stayed with me. It is also impressive that our money would allow the program to expand to 360 children. However, with the Community Connections Center, counseling would be provided to at-risk youth from low-income families that might really have nowhere else to turn to. From what Valerie said, it seems that some kids are taking the initiative to receive help, and I think this says a lot about the importance of the program. It is a necessary resource for troubled kids that might not be able to talk to their families or receive other professional help.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Julie’s comment in another blog that the groups should follow up for more information. I think when we have visited all the sites we will need to weigh many factors against each other and determine which we, as a whole, care about most: how deep is the impact, how many people does the program serve, what will our money do, etc. Also, a note about the site visits. I do agree that Dan was visibly more passionate, but I could still tell that Valerie was genuine and cared about the program. She did mention she had a cold that day, so perhaps she was a bit run down and not as energetic. I recall her personal anecdote about getting a phone call from a woman the program had served many years before, and she said hearing things like that makes it all worth it. So I do think she is very passionate as well.
I think it’s important to remember that through our decision-making process, we are taking resources of the organizations we are evaluating. Our RFP, communications, and site visits all use up the time of the employees who give it to us. Yes, one or two of the organizations will receive a pretty good return-on-investment on their time. But, that also means three or four of the organizations will receive nothing in return for a few hours of staff work. For that reason, I think it is important to take our site visits with a grain of salt. Employees may already be stretched thin and may not have time to prepare thorough presentations for these smaller programs.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I favor Catholic Charities over YMCA. I think that the waiting list is not a cause for concern, instead it is a reason we should donate. The program clearly is in high demand and without it, many kids will not receive much-needed therapy. Our donation may not affect as many kids as the YMCA’s program, but I think it will affect a sizeable number more deeply. As for someone not being there to answer our budget questions, as explained above, I don’t think it’s fair of us to expect the charities to give even more of their resources to us, especially when we only have $7500 to offer and they have a $20 million budget.
I highly respect the work that the YMCA does (I work for a YMCA summer program) and I think their program would do a great deal of good. Yet, I was not completely sold by the site visit, partially because it focused mainly on the facilities and other YMCA programs that we are not considering. Also, it is Dan’s job to fundraise, so he spends a lot of time trying to win over potential donors. Naturally, his presentation seemed better prepared.
However, I thought that Catholic Charities program came off as sincere, and would be able to provide professional care to kids at a low cost. It is the difference between paying $12 an hour for a licensed social worker to make lasting difference on many kids or paying $12.50 an hour to college students or other unlicensed workers to play sports and teach kids nutrition for four weeks. Both have merit and will do a lot of good. I personally see a greater impact in the former. But these are only 2 organizations out of 5.
This is going to be tough.
I've been thinking about this a lot, Kaitlyn. I might have a bias leaning towards YMCA because I did the presentation on it and I was the person who kept in contact with the program coordinator. However, I still believe if we are deciding between the two organizations, we should still go for YMCA.
ReplyDeleteThey seem to have a better functioning organizational operation going on. They have many different programs specifically designed to help those who are unable to help themselves. While Catholic Charities does the same thing, I still believe the YMCA is better organized and more highly attended.
Plus, the program they want to implement has already worked before in practice. They have proof of success and I believe that's an excellent indicator (if not the best indicator) of future success as well.
Its a difficult decision, I would not be thoroughly opposed to donating to Catholic Charities, but I really do believe donating to the YMCA would maximize the most good we can do.
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ReplyDeleteGreat post Kaitlyn, it is really important to start comparing the organizations as we come closer to the end of the decision making process. As a class, we are focused on making a meaningful donation. That being said, we really need to take note of who really NEEDS our donation. Yes, the YMCA came across as a better functioning, more expansive organization (and by all means it probably is), but even Dan himself said that if we ultimately don't decide on the YMCA, there are other ways to get that money for their program. That statement made it seem like he only WANTS our donation in order to progress the program, and if he doesn't get it from us, he will move on give the same spiel to other potential donors. On the other hand at Catholic Charities, Valerie said that the organization is really hoping for their annual donors to still give to their program (as we saw today in class with Urban League, that donors can unexpectedly chose to stop donating to a cause). What this means to me, is that with our money, we can save a program which would otherwise have to decrease their funding and expanse without our interaction. One thing that stuck out to me with the Children's Home is that Valerie proved the passion of the organization by saying that there are always ways to have a small program, but with our donation we would be making a substantial impact on the program and thus children's lives. To me, that is a meaningful donation and for these reasons, I believe that Catholic Charities would be a better organization to give to than the YMCA. In the end, I think it all comes down to whether we think a wide or deep impact fits our definition of meaningful when comparing these two organizations, and even our final decision as a class. This will by no means be an easy task to conquer!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I wasn't able to attend the site visit to Catholic Charities, but I have heard a lot about it from the class. Overall, I think the general consensus is that our class would rather donate to the YMCA than to Catholic Charities. I did attend the site visit to the Y and I really was moved and as soon as we walked out of there I was practically convinced that we should donate to them or that it would at least be a top contender. I felt that the YMCA visit was really personal and Dan did a great job at trying to show us how much good this program can do for the community. On the other hand, apparently Catholic Charities was very pessimistic and didn't do such a great job at convincing the class. I think that this is a really good indicator that we probably shouldn't donate to Catholic Charities. I did't get to see their presentation but I did get to hear everyones reactions, which were mostly negative or neutral. One thing that everyone seemed concerned with was that Dan gave a shady answer as to why they didn't apply for the operating grant. I didn't really put to much thought into this and I just figured that they wanted to put more emphasis on the program that they really want to start. Overall I think that the better choice of the two would have to be the YMCA.
ReplyDeleteOf all the site visits we've done so far, I was most impressed with the case made by Dan at the YMCA. However the site visit is not going to be the main basis for how I cast my vote. It is an important part, but there are other factors important too. The merit of the program itself needs to be considered, and both of these programs are deserving in merit. This is where it comes to a personal decision for each of us about the program itself. The YMCA and Catholic Charities programs effect youth in very different ways. I personally like the Y's program more because of the impact a similar program had on me when I was young, but that does not mean I hate Catholic Charities' program. If possible, I would want to support both these programs, and all the ones we are considering in class for that matter, but that is not possible. This is going to be a very difficult decision for us because all these programs and organizations are deserving and all impact youth in different and substantial ways.
ReplyDeleteWhen considering our decisions, I would argue we need to consider more than just the site visit. We must look over the RFP's, see what places like the United Way say about all these groups, and consume as much information as we can so we can make the most educated decision. The choice we make as a class is likely to impact many young lives, and it is our duty to make the best assessment of all the information we gain in the coming weeks.
After the site visits we have done thus far, I would say that Dan gave the best presentation at the YMCA, but that is also his job to "Wow" us as potential donors. I agree with what Caleb said, that he did not really focus on the program we were there to learn about, which did not help us get much information. However, his personal testimony at the end of the visit really pulled me into his corner thus far. All the organizations have hosted us impressively and have provided much more information than we would have otherwise gotten. All made good cases for us to support them, but as of right now I would say that the YMCA made the best case for their organization and program thus far.
Hey Kaitlyn, thanks for the post. Both site visits have given us a lot to think about as a class. Personally, after both visits and discussions, I support giving money to the YMCA. I will attempt to explain why.
ReplyDeletePertaining to the sites themselves, I think the YMCA blew Catholic Charities out of the water. Although I thought that Catholic Charities had a well kept facility, we only saw one room. That one room wasn't even the room where the program takes place. I'll grant the fact that this is not the fault of Catholic Charities, yet it still impacts my view on them. The YMCA on the other hand had a considerably larger and nicer site. I truly enjoyed the site, and I felt that the tour was excellent. Seeing the gym where the kids played as well as where they were taking a nap time definitely influenced my opinion of the organization.
Now onto the presentations from each organization. I thought that both Valerie and Dan did well in explaining their organizations as well as the programs that we would be funding. Although Valerie did a well presenting, I feel as if Dan did better. His knowledge of the organization as well as his personal ties to it really made me want to donate to the YMCA on the spot. His emotion as well as his to anecdotes were very effective selling points in my opinion.
I know that Catholic Charities is not to be blamed, seeing that we could only visit the site where the program is not held. Still, I really enjoyed the YMCA visit. I am hoping that the two remaining site visits are similar to the one we had at the YMCA.