BoardSource
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
nonprofit organization founded in 1988. Its mission is to build nonprofit boards and encourage board service.
BoardSource offers consulting services, publications and a membership program to increase the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations by strengthening their boards of directors.
History
In the early 1980s, the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and CollegesAssociation of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges
The Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges is an American higher education association committed to the improvement of academic governing boards and boards of institutionally related foundations—those boards that oversee the workings of colleges, universities, and their...
and Independent Sector
Independent Sector
Independent Sector is a coalition of nonprofits, foundations and corporate giving programs. Founded in 1980, it is the first organization to combine the grant seekers and grantees....
conducted a survey and found that 30 percent of respondents believed they were doing a good job of board education and training, with the rest of the respondents reporting little, if any, activity in strengthening governance
Governance
Governance is the act of governing. It relates to decisions that define expectations, grant power, or verify performance. It consists of either a separate process or part of management or leadership processes...
. As a result, the two organizations proposed the creation of a new organization whose mission was to increase the effectiveness of nonprofit boards.
With a lead grant from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation
W. K. Kellogg Foundation
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation was founded in June 1930 as the W.K. Kellogg Child Welfare Foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer Will Keith Kellogg. In 1934, Kellogg donated more than $66 million in Kellogg Company stock and other investments to the W.K. Kellogg Trust...
as well as funding from five other donors, the National Center for Nonprofit Boards opened its doors in 1988 with a staff of three and an operating budget of US$385,000.
The National Center for Nonprofit Boards changed its name to BoardSource in 2002.
Current status
BoardSource is based in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and has an annual budget in fiscal year 2008 of approximately $9 million. It maintains a staff of more than 40 employees. In addition, the organization has an affiliated pool of associates who conduct consulting and training engagements around the country on behalf of the organization.
BoardSource collaborates with organizations such as the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
, the American Association of Museums
American Association of Museums
The American Association of Museums is a non-profit association that has brought museums together since its founding in 1906, helping develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and advocating on issues of concern to the museum community...
, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Habitat for Humanity International
Habitat for Humanity International
Habitat For Humanity International , generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or simply Habitat, is an international, non-governmental, non-profit organization devoted to building "simple, decent, and affordable" housing, a self-described "Christian housing ministry." The international...
, the National Council of La Raza
National Council of La Raza
The National Council of La Raza is a non-profit and non-partisan advocacy group in the United States, focused on improving opportunities for Hispanics. It is sometimes confused with La Raza Unida...
and the United Way of America to provide guidance on what constitutes good governance
Good governance
Good governance is an indeterminate term used in development literature to describe how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources in order to guarantee the realization of human rights. Governance describes "the process of decision-making and the process by which...
and to offer educational opportunities in new approaches to governance.
BoardSources serves more than 75,000 nonprofit leaders yearly through its website, publications, a bimonthly magazine, workshops, consulting and an annual conference.
To date, "Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards", BoardSource's first publication, remains the organization's top-selling publication.