The Tennessean has a story today on the question of English-only’s potential impact on the nonprofit community:

Just how far a proposed English-only amendment could reach into schools, nonprofits and Metro Nashville agencies is a question even the city’s legal department isn’t sure how to answer.

Would the health department be allowed to speak Arabic to a patient? Could schools still send reports home in Somali? Could a city-contracted counselor offer services in Spanish?

The amendment’s main supporter, Councilman Eric Crafton, says the answer is clearly yes, but the measure’s ambiguous wording is leaving groups that get financial support from the city fearing the worst.

The proposed charter amendment, which goes to voters Jan. 22, forces all Metro Nashville government business to be done in English, with the council given power to grant exceptions. Early voting ends Jan. 17.

Hal Cato, executive director of the Oasis Center, said the city contracts his agency for counseling services. The center employs a counselor whose entire caseload is composed of Hispanic families, many having trouble adjusting to life in the U.S.

Cato fears the new measure would jeopardize funding for that counselor.

“I do think that people will misunderstand it and that people will be will be negatively impacted by it,” he said.

Continue reading ‘Potential Impact of English-Only Amendment is Unknown’

The Tennessean has a story today on how the nonprofit community is preparing for a possible drop in donations. CNM’s Lewis Lavine, Meg Nugent of Nashville Adult Literacy Council, and Hal Cato of Oasis Center, among others, are cited:

Charities expect drop in donations next year

By Bob Smietana
THE TENNESSEAN

Lewis Lavine has some good news and some bad news for local charities.

The good news is that most of them will make it through the end of the year without much trouble. The bad news? Next year is going to be a bear.

“We believe 2009 will be a very difficult year,” said Lavine, director of the Center for Nonprofit Management in Nashville.

Despite the economic turmoil, local charities say they are holding their own right now. While demand for their services is up, donations have yet to drop dramatically. But some charities fear that donations may fall next year while the need for help grows.

Jaynee Day, of Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, says requests for food boxes are up almost 10 percent over last year, and most of those requests have come from people who have not needed help until now.

“It’s a tough time for families, who are having to decide between putting food on the table or paying the light bills or the health insurance,” Day said.

Second Harvest, which distributes food in 46 counties, is in the middle of its biggest fundraising campaign of the year.

Now’s the time to prepare for the gathering storm of need, experts say.

Continue reading ‘Tennessean Examines Area Nonprofit Challenges’