Nonprofits and Grantseekers

WPN is happy to offer nonprofit staff and volunteers a variety of resources to support effective grantseeking.

WPN does not make grants, nor do we direct funding applicants to particular grantmakers or promote grants to specific applicants.

An Essential Resource for Small Nonprofits

Publications

Selecting Financial Management Software for Your Nonprofit

Idealware

Idealware designed this report to give you a landscape view of the current market of accounting and financial management systems and to help you better identify your own needs, which systems can best meet them, and how to decide among those that do. You won’t find a comprehensive review of each and every system that seeks to serve nonprofit organizations’ financial needs, but you will get a clear look at the major accounting and financial management system categories and the criteria to consider as you search for a new system.

Nonprofit Wisconsin in Brief: Size & Scope

Wisconsin Nonprofits Association and Forward Community Investments

This Wisconsin Nonprofit “Size & Scope” report provides an overview of the State’s nonprofit sector. The report is designed to promote an understanding of the importance of Wisconsin’s nonprofit sector to the well-being of Wisconsin’s citizens by providing the following: 1) Background on how nonprofits are defined and classified; 2) Explanation of those nonprofits for which data are easily available—or not—and why; 3) Numbers and growth of Wisconsin’s nonprofit sector; 4) Information about nonprofit revenue -- amounts and sources; 5) Facts about nonprofits that correct common misunderstandings about the sector; 6) Highlights regarding unique and important aspects of the sector.

Online Foundation Directories

Get current information on a number of charities and foundations nationally and internationally. Many of these databases provide contact information and specific funding information about the particular organizations profiled as well as 990 tax returns, exempt organization numbers, IRS tax identifications, grants and asset information.

Foundation Center maintains unique databases of information on more than 120,000 foundations, corporate donors, and grantmaking public charities and over 3 million of their recent grants. Its Foundation Directory Online subscription service is the most popular means for searching these databases.

Guidestar provides searching capability for over 700,000 charity organizations with detailed financial summaries for each organization as well as providing recent and past years 990s and 990-pfs for a number of these organizations.

Local Resources

Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) is a national organization with regional chapters. AFP is a professional membership organization for fundraising professionals which offers a wide spectrum of programs and education opportunities for learning more about fund raising and the grants process. The national organization coordinates member activity and provides national conferences, funding resource centers, and training programs for fund raising across the nation.

ENTECH provides technology consulting and direct service to nonprofit organizations in the Greater Milwaukee area. Since its inception in 1999, they have worked with hundreds of 501c(3) organizations to increase their management effectiveness through the use of technology.

Nonprofit Center of Milwaukee provides tools and training for nonprofit agencies in the greater Milwaukee area. Primarily a membership organization, many of the Center’s services are available to all those interested in improving their knowledge of the nonprofit sector.

State and National Resources

Alliance for Nonprofit Management is a membership association that delivers management and governance support services to nonprofit organizations.

Better Business Bureau (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance reports on nationally soliciting charities that the public has most often asked about as well as charities that request to be evaluated. It also provides charity standards and recommendations for best practices for charitable organizations.

BoardSource focuses on strengthening and enhancing the effectiveness of governing boards of nonprofit organizations by providing ideas, information, resources, and consulting services.

Center for Board Governance's mission is to help directors effectively meet the challenges of their critical roles. This is accomplished by sharing governance leading practices, publishing thought leadership, and offering forums on current issues.

Charity Defense Council strives to change the way people think about changing the world. To let them know that low overhead is not the way the world gets changed. That poor executive compensation is not a strategic plan for ending hunger or poverty or curing disease. That inadequate, donated resources are not the path to global transformation.

Grantsmanship Center provides fundraising training and information for the nonprofit sector. It offers seminars throughout the country and publishes a wide range of publications, including a free magazine on grant-related issues.

Independent Sector increases awareness of the importance of the nonprofit sector through its advocacy for legislation, research, leadership, and technology. This national organization publishes a wide array of reports and research on the nonprofit sector and works to provide a meeting ground between public officials, grantmakers and nonprofit agencies.

National Council of Nonprofits is a network of state and regional nonprofit associations helping small and midsize nonprofits manage and lead more effectively.

MyCharityMap was created to make it easier for both ends of the spectrum. It provides charities everywhere with an opportunity to tell a global audience about the causes they are fighting for and projects they are running. And, it provides the public with an easy-to-navigate information source on charities and the work they do.

Nonprofit Quarterly (NPQ) was launched as a national print journal in the winter of 1999 and was designed to fill a gap by providing credible, research based articles for nonprofits about management and governance.

TechSoup connects nonprofits, foundations, and libraries with tech products, services, and learning resources.

The Wallace Foundation - provides resources for nonprofit financial management. With Fiscal Management Associates, a leading financial management consultant for nonprofits, they've created this library of resources to help your organization become "fiscally fit."

Wisconsin's Common Grant Application

Government Resources

Grants.gov is the source to FIND and APPLY for federal government grants, with over 1,000 grant programs offered by all federal grant making agencies.

IRS - Charities and Nonprofits provides tax information for charities & other non-profits.

For Nonprofits & Grantseekers