2010 Diversity Index

In 2008 IUPUI announced the appointment of Dr. Kenneth Durgan as Chancellor for Diversity, followed by the creation of the IUPUI Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.  One of the responsibilities of the office is to measure and report how historically underrepresented groups fare in the faculty and student communities. This push by the university is an example of how the issue of diversity is increasing in priority on many levels of public life.  More people are catching on to the ideas of making direct efforts to include diverse groups in a place or organization and celebrating the different voices represented.

When measuring racial/ethnic diversity of a population, we usually use a demographic snapshot such as a pie chart showing proportions of each group represented.  Our new report, the first in a series on demographics, offers a few more ways to look at diversity and how it has changed over the past two decades.  Focusing on Marion County, Indiana, we drill down to the neighborhood level so we have a clear picture of how the numbers vary across the area.  We use the Diversity Index to easily visualize where the balance between racial and ethnic groups is more even or uneven.  We also use historical snapshots over a 20-year period showing how the footprint of high minority areas has changed and how diversity (using the index) has changed.  For those of you with connections to Marion County, we think the report will help you get to know the city.  Everyone interested in diversity should check it out, especially if you’re looking for new ways to think about demographic changes in your community.  Let us know if our report includes your ideas of diversity, and if not, how you would describe the subject?

Have you registered for the Indiana Nonprofit Capacity Building Conference yet? Have you already registered but have some questions?

If you answered yes to either of these or maybe don’t even know what the conference is about, we’ll answer all of your questions in a live Twitter chat on Monday, September 19 at noon EDT. Simply log in to Twitter and follow the hash tag #INNPC11. The chat will be moderated by our own Sharon Kandris.

Whether you need to be pointed to the sessions that best serve you, want to tell us about your experience in the past or have any questions, we’ll answer them all for you, in real-time. And if you still haven’t registered for the conference, Monday’s your last chance. (Don’t worry, we’ll send you the link!)

Hope to see you on Twitter!

By Jessica White, president, Jessica White Associates

We hear a lot about sustainability these days. Some nonprofits are ramping up their earned revenue options to ensure sustainability. Others are being asked by funders to assess their potential to remain sustainable. Still others have already determined they can’t be sustainable and are looking for ways to merge before having to close their doors. Wherever your organization is in the “sustainability spectrum,” you need good solid information to help you make those decisions.

That’s where evaluation comes into play.

All of us have been asked to evaluate our programs. Some funders even require formal evaluations to determine impact. We know the terms “inputs” and “outcomes.” We’ve developed matrices to evaluate each program.

But how often do we use the same type of thinking on our agency as a whole? How often do we measure the profitability or the impact of our organization? General operating dollars are exceedingly hard to find, so finding the best allocation of time and resources to accomplish your organization’s mission is fundamental. Programmatic impact and financial viability are what make nonprofits sustainable.

So how does this apply to you? Come to the Nonprofit Evaluation Workshop,  Septmeber 28 at 3:10 p.m. at the 2011 Indiana Nonprofit Capacity Building Conference to learn the basic components you should consider when evaluating your organization and how local nonprofits have used these techniques to improve their organization’s sustainability.

For the next few weeks we’ll be talking about the Indiana Nonprofit Capacity Building Conference, which we are pleased to be co-hosting with the IUPUI Solution Center. The conference takes place on September 28 from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at the IUPUI Campus Center.

In addition to useful sessions, covering topics from legal advice to grant writing and social media, Tarik Glenn, will deliver the keynote address. Glenn is a three time Pro-bowl offensive Lineman retired from the Indianapolis Colts and co-founder and chair of the advisory council of D.R.E.A.M. Alive, Inc.

We’ll be posting guest blogs from sponsors, partners, presenters, and attendees from the previous years. If you’re interested in guest blogging, contact me at skandris@iupui.edu and we’ll send you some guest blog guidelines.

Hope to see you at the conference.

Welcome to the SAVI Blog!  In these blog posts, we share stories about how others have benefited from SAVI’s community data, highlight interesting findings from our data analysis, provide tips for how to use the website or data, and discuss the impact of information technologies on communities.

We are excited about the new generation website recently launched at www.savi.org and plan to use this blog to help you find ways to benefit from it.

Please contribute your thoughts.  We look forward to an interesting dialogue about important issues impacting our communities.

Sharon Kandris, SAVI Director