Community Research Reports
Report #1: Status of the Nonprofit Sector in Mecklenburg County
This report investigates the numbers and types of nonprofit organizations in Mecklenburg County and how the distribution of nonprofits in the county has changed from 2009 to 2010. The analysis in this paper focuses on nonprofit organizations in ten categories: arts and culture, higher education, education, environment, health, human services, international, public and societal benefit, religious, and other. Overall, this report shows that the nonprofit sector in Mecklenburg County has grown. Comparisons of the financial health of the Mecklenburg County nonprofit sector show that nonprofit gross receipts have decreased dramatically across the sector from 2009 to 2010.
Report #2: 2010 NVAC Challenge Assessment
In 2010, NVAC conducted a survey of many of its community partners and liaisons to determine the needs and challenges of the Mecklenburg County nonprofit sector. The challenges reported by local nonprofit workers include donor relations, volunteer management, securing grants, and relationship with the board of directors.
Report #3: Regional Variations in the North Carolina Nonprofit Sector: A 2010 Snapshot
Report #3 compares the health and vitality of the nonprofit sector across seven different regions in North Carolina. Regions are compared based on nonprofit organizations per capita for several different types of nonprofit organizations and the relative financial strength of the nonprofit sector in each region. The Raleigh region has the highest number of nonprofit organizations per capita, with the Charlotte and Asheville regions being tied for second. Although, the ranking of the regions vary dramatically by type of nonprofit organization, and there is some evidence that different regions within North Carolina specialize in a specific type of nonprofit organization.
Report #4: The Nonprofit Arts and Cultural Sector of Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
This report takes a more in-depth look at the overall strength and health of nonprofit arts and cultural organizations in Mecklenburg County. The number of arts and cultural organizations has increased somewhat from 2009 to 2010. However, arts and cultural organizations are suffering from a loss of revenue, especially visual arts organizations, performing arts organizations, historical organizations and organizations pertaining to ethnic and cultural awareness.
Report #5: Poverty-Related Nonprofit Organizations in Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
Report #5 makes an in-depth investigation of the strength and health of nonprofit organizations in Mecklenburg County that deal with poverty-related issues. Overall, the number of poverty-related nonprofit organizations have increased from 2009 to 2010, but their average revenues have not increased. Some poverty-related organizations, such as human services and housing assistance have seen a decrease in average revenues. A few important poverty-relief organizations in Mecklenburg County have had dramatic reductions in revenue or have received signficant additional support from the local community, and these numbers influence the picture of the overall financial health of the sector.
Report #6: Human Services Nonprofit Organizations in Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
Report #6 details the number and types of human service nonprofits in Mecklenburg County and their financial health. The number of human service organizations increased by 16% from 310 in 2009 to 361 in 2010. Much of this growth has been in the area of human service support organizations, which makes sense given the recession. Across the human service sector, average revenues increased by 3%, but many types of organizations saw substantial decreases in average revenue, such as general human services, children and youth services, personal social services and support centers.
Report #7: Youth-Serving Nonprofit Organizations in Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
Report #7 shows the health and status of nonprofit organizations in Mecklenburg County dedicated to serving youth. The number of youth-serving nonprofits in Mecklenburg County increased from 223 in 2009 to 270 in 2010, an increase of 21%. Overall, youth-serving organizations saw a 17% decrease in average revenue. Much of the revenue loss was in violence prevention organizations and youth programs. Over half of the youth-serving nonprofits did not report to the IRS in 2010, which indicates that these organizations are likely quite small with minimal revenues.
Report #8: Senior-Serving Nonprofit Organizations in Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
This report investigates nonprofit organizations in Mecklenburg County that provide services to senior citizens. The number of senior-serving nonprofits increased from 48 in 2009 to 61 in 2010, but the majority of these new organizations are small and report zero revenue in 2010. Overall average revenue for these organizations appears to be fairly stable. It is important to note, however, that half of these organizations do not file with the IRS, which implies that they are very small organizations with minimal budgets.
Report #9: Community Improvement Nonprofit Organizations in Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
Report #9 shows that the number of community improvement nonprofit organizations in Mecklenburg County increased from 129 in 2009 to 149 in 2010, an increase of 16%. However, most of this growth appears to be organizataions that are now filing with the IRS under new tax laws. Community improvement nonprofit organizations have fared pretty well during the recession, seeing a 17% increase in average revenue overall. One reason why these organizations are weathering the recession so far is because a substantial proportion of them are membership organizations that receive much of their revenues from membership dues.
Report #10: Crime and Public Safety Nonprofit Organizations in Mecklenburg County, 2009-2010
This report examines the growth and health of nonprofit crime and public safety organizations in Mecklenburg County. The number of these organizations increased by 23% from 2009 to 2010, but this increase is partly due to changes in tax laws requiring small organizations to file. Overall, crime and public safety organizations realized a 5% increase in average revenue. The largest increases in average revenue were for correctional facilities and rehabilitation centers. Crime prevention organizations saw a 15% decrease in average revenue.