What is a non profit organization?
A nonprofit is a tax-exempt organization that serves the public interest. In general, the purpose of this type of organization must be charitable, educational, scientific, religious or literary. In this case, the non profit we are focusing on fits many of these categories, such as educational and scientific. Legally, a nonprofit organization is one that does not declare a profit and instead utilizes all revenue available after normal operating expenses in service to the public interest. A nonprofit organization can have clients, can offer products and services, will need revenue, should market itself, and must be concerned about customer satisfaction whether in those assisted or those who contribute donations in support of operations, programs or services. It is a business that must serve the public interest and it will succeed or fail as any business will, depending on how well it is operated. |
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Questions I asked Rob Stewart, my mentor.
1. What is Elachee nature center's purpose?
Elachee's motto is "Educating for Today... Preserving for Tomorrow." We really strive to teach people to appreciate, understand, and be concerned for the natural world, and to be personally invested in preserving the earth for future generations.
My reflection: I really like how Elachee is a place for local people to see the environment in its natural form. People read “nature preserve” and think of places like Yellowstone, when really there doesn’t have to be special places for nature to be marveled at.
2. When did you first start here?
I (Rob) first started here back in October 2013, so I am very new. Most of the staff has been here for years and years.
My reflection: I think it is good to get a fresh face at Elachee, which is mainly old people who have been here since around the time the place opened.
3. What do you do here?
I am the new manager of the place as of past October. I am still learning all the specifics of my job, as the weather gets warmer and more visitors come. Mostly, I make sure everything is running the way it should. If there is a problem with the trails, like a fallen tree branch, I will take care of it. If an employee needs help with their work, I usually evaluate the problem and organize a way for it to get done. I do a little bit of everything.
My reflection: It is a good idea not to come into a place with ideas for change out the wazoo, but instead (being in a place with traditional values), see how things are done first and then change something if it is not working well. Younger people coming into the place also makes the place look more desirable.
4. What kind of activities are available here?
We have walking and hiking trails for all level hikers. There are also biking trails for the more extreme. During warmer weather we have many elementary schools come on field trips. On the first Saturday of each month we have a "First Saturday Hike" where a naturalist here at Elachee will take hikers through the trails and teach a lesson about nature. During the summer we have week long camps with different themes each week for pre-k up to middle school. In April we will have our annual trillium trek, which is a run through our trails with distances for all ages. There are other miscellaneous things that happen throughout the year, but those are the main things.
My reflection: Elachee is a place that most people know about in Hall COunty, but not many people besides children visit there for fun. I think more activities and involvement in the community would be good for Elachee.
5. What other services does Elachee provide?
We have a pre-k school here at Elachee that runs year long that focuses on nature and being healthy. We have a museum about the geographical history of Georgia. We have an animal room with turtles, snakes, lizards, and a few large insects. We usually take these animals on classroom outreaches and when younger kids visit. We do birthday parties and other private events as well.
My reflection: I really like the nature focused preschool. If I was a parent in the area I would most definitely prefer this preschool to teach my kids to love the outdoors. It is great that Elachee has animals for children to see and interact with. I am in high school, and I still enjoy going in on fridays and mondays and feeding those animals. I see parents and adults all the time that enjoy it as much, if not more, than the children.
6. Who is Elachee's main focus for marketing?
Elachee is mainly focused on kids. We are a very popular spot for field trips, but, as I said earlier, we do outreaches to classrooms all the time. We have a pre-k, summer camps, people-friendly animals, and we make sure all of our public events are available to children as well as adults.
My reflection: It is good that the kids are the main focus, because children, with their natural rambunctiousness and excitement, will motivate their parents and grandparents to come to Elachee too. I wish I lived in Hall County when I was in elementary school to go on a field trip here!
7. Do you think Elachee is a vital part of Hall County? Why?
I believe it plays a very important role in preserving the natural habitat of the wildlife of the area, especially with this becoming a popular area. Not only does it educate the community, it provides culture too. Elachee is one of the most popular nature centers in the southeast, which makes us unique.
My reflection: I think what Elachee represents, protecting and enjoying nature, is a very important part of Hall County. Whenever I tell people “I intern at Elachee Nature Center,” everyone has heard of it and what it does, and it sparks a temporary interest in them to come by and check it out. I think that is a great thing, but also a downside. Most everyone knows of Elachee, but most people haven’t actually been here more that once or twice.
8. Where does Elachee get it's funding/money?
Elachee is a private non-profit organization so we raise all of our money through donations, fundraising, sponsorships, grants, and earned income, such as memberships and renting out our facilities.
My reflection: I like this part of Elachee, even if there ever is a tightness of money. It being a non profit means it is truly about nature and people, and it gets the community involved on a business and personal level.
9. In what ways does Elachee preserve the environment?
We have multiple compost and recycle bins, so we use those as much as possible. Part of us being a nature preserve means that whatever is growing in the nature preserve must stay. For example, we cannot use fallen trees as firewood to burn or sell, so we just move them out of the paths or use the stumps as benches. We are here to protect the environment, so there is a lot going on around here.
My reflection: I love how everything is recycled! Especially the part about how what is at Elachee must stay at Elachee. I’ve been on a couple hikes to clear trees from paths, and I didn’t understand at first why they don’t just get rid of the fallen trees, but now I love how everything is a part of Elachee.
10. What do you plan on doing now that Elachee is under new management?
I don't really plan on changing much of how Elachee runs. Many of the people who work here have been a part of Elachee for a long time, so they know what works well her. Right now I am trying to promote Elachee though, and get more people to visit and volunteer.
My reflection: I think that is the best way to join something. If I was to go into a place with ideas of change running out the wazoo, the people who know the routine here may not like me very much.
1. What is Elachee nature center's purpose?
Elachee's motto is "Educating for Today... Preserving for Tomorrow." We really strive to teach people to appreciate, understand, and be concerned for the natural world, and to be personally invested in preserving the earth for future generations.
My reflection: I really like how Elachee is a place for local people to see the environment in its natural form. People read “nature preserve” and think of places like Yellowstone, when really there doesn’t have to be special places for nature to be marveled at.
2. When did you first start here?
I (Rob) first started here back in October 2013, so I am very new. Most of the staff has been here for years and years.
My reflection: I think it is good to get a fresh face at Elachee, which is mainly old people who have been here since around the time the place opened.
3. What do you do here?
I am the new manager of the place as of past October. I am still learning all the specifics of my job, as the weather gets warmer and more visitors come. Mostly, I make sure everything is running the way it should. If there is a problem with the trails, like a fallen tree branch, I will take care of it. If an employee needs help with their work, I usually evaluate the problem and organize a way for it to get done. I do a little bit of everything.
My reflection: It is a good idea not to come into a place with ideas for change out the wazoo, but instead (being in a place with traditional values), see how things are done first and then change something if it is not working well. Younger people coming into the place also makes the place look more desirable.
4. What kind of activities are available here?
We have walking and hiking trails for all level hikers. There are also biking trails for the more extreme. During warmer weather we have many elementary schools come on field trips. On the first Saturday of each month we have a "First Saturday Hike" where a naturalist here at Elachee will take hikers through the trails and teach a lesson about nature. During the summer we have week long camps with different themes each week for pre-k up to middle school. In April we will have our annual trillium trek, which is a run through our trails with distances for all ages. There are other miscellaneous things that happen throughout the year, but those are the main things.
My reflection: Elachee is a place that most people know about in Hall COunty, but not many people besides children visit there for fun. I think more activities and involvement in the community would be good for Elachee.
5. What other services does Elachee provide?
We have a pre-k school here at Elachee that runs year long that focuses on nature and being healthy. We have a museum about the geographical history of Georgia. We have an animal room with turtles, snakes, lizards, and a few large insects. We usually take these animals on classroom outreaches and when younger kids visit. We do birthday parties and other private events as well.
My reflection: I really like the nature focused preschool. If I was a parent in the area I would most definitely prefer this preschool to teach my kids to love the outdoors. It is great that Elachee has animals for children to see and interact with. I am in high school, and I still enjoy going in on fridays and mondays and feeding those animals. I see parents and adults all the time that enjoy it as much, if not more, than the children.
6. Who is Elachee's main focus for marketing?
Elachee is mainly focused on kids. We are a very popular spot for field trips, but, as I said earlier, we do outreaches to classrooms all the time. We have a pre-k, summer camps, people-friendly animals, and we make sure all of our public events are available to children as well as adults.
My reflection: It is good that the kids are the main focus, because children, with their natural rambunctiousness and excitement, will motivate their parents and grandparents to come to Elachee too. I wish I lived in Hall County when I was in elementary school to go on a field trip here!
7. Do you think Elachee is a vital part of Hall County? Why?
I believe it plays a very important role in preserving the natural habitat of the wildlife of the area, especially with this becoming a popular area. Not only does it educate the community, it provides culture too. Elachee is one of the most popular nature centers in the southeast, which makes us unique.
My reflection: I think what Elachee represents, protecting and enjoying nature, is a very important part of Hall County. Whenever I tell people “I intern at Elachee Nature Center,” everyone has heard of it and what it does, and it sparks a temporary interest in them to come by and check it out. I think that is a great thing, but also a downside. Most everyone knows of Elachee, but most people haven’t actually been here more that once or twice.
8. Where does Elachee get it's funding/money?
Elachee is a private non-profit organization so we raise all of our money through donations, fundraising, sponsorships, grants, and earned income, such as memberships and renting out our facilities.
My reflection: I like this part of Elachee, even if there ever is a tightness of money. It being a non profit means it is truly about nature and people, and it gets the community involved on a business and personal level.
9. In what ways does Elachee preserve the environment?
We have multiple compost and recycle bins, so we use those as much as possible. Part of us being a nature preserve means that whatever is growing in the nature preserve must stay. For example, we cannot use fallen trees as firewood to burn or sell, so we just move them out of the paths or use the stumps as benches. We are here to protect the environment, so there is a lot going on around here.
My reflection: I love how everything is recycled! Especially the part about how what is at Elachee must stay at Elachee. I’ve been on a couple hikes to clear trees from paths, and I didn’t understand at first why they don’t just get rid of the fallen trees, but now I love how everything is a part of Elachee.
10. What do you plan on doing now that Elachee is under new management?
I don't really plan on changing much of how Elachee runs. Many of the people who work here have been a part of Elachee for a long time, so they know what works well her. Right now I am trying to promote Elachee though, and get more people to visit and volunteer.
My reflection: I think that is the best way to join something. If I was to go into a place with ideas of change running out the wazoo, the people who know the routine here may not like me very much.
Annotated Bibliography 1
Alexis Gerdts J. Killingsworth Honors Mentorship Program 17 November 2013 Social Media in the Business World Maria, Jess M. "The Social CIO." Public CIO Summer 2012: 12-16. Print. The article, “The Social CIO” by Jess Maria, is about social media such as facebook, twitter, and other websites, and how they have had an immensely positive effect on the business and governmental world of communication, information, and publicity. It focuses on how social media has assisted CIO (Chief Information Officers) in finding a good vantage point in the media, building a brand in the corporate world, and connecting directly with people. It concludes by discussing how social media is the “next big thing” in business communications and that it is becoming “a lifeline to the world.” (Hovet p16) Some quotes I have derived from this article that would be useful are “Smartphone users now spend an average of 24 minutes each day using social networking apps, according to app services company Flurry. There are more than 1.2 billion active social media users worldwide.” on page 13; “Strategic social media adoption led Utah to increase traffic to its websites and services by close to 100 percent over the past five and a half years (from 650,000 unique visitors to 1.3 million)” on page 15; “‘Whether or not Facebook is great is not the point,... The point is, there are hundreds of millions of people there. Why not spend time where they are? You may not like social media, but hundreds of millions of other people do.’ -Bill Greeves” on page 15; “In government, where there can be a tendency to hold meetings and want to do everything face-to-face, social media also opens up inexpensive communication channels to much broader groups of people, internally and publicly. ‘It is a great way to get to know people across the country, without ever meeting them face to face,’ -Michele Hovet” on page 16; and “‘I truly believe that social media for any CIO, public or private sector, is a lifeline to the world,... I think those leaders in a CIO role that don’t participate in social media are missing the boat. The world will move on in this social new way, without them.’ -Michele Hovet” The article is biased in favor of social media. It gives the positives of social media without addressing the potential of the negative side. Having it been written in a magazine for Chief Information Officers, naturally the readers are more likely to appeal to the good side of social media rather than the bad. This source is credible because it was found through Galileo, a website by UGA for finding credible publications. It was posted during the summer of 2012, so it is relatively recent, not even two years old. The article quotes many government officials, giving support to the credibility of the article. The author, Jess M Maria has written for many publications, both online and print, throughout the US, New Zealand, and Australia. Also, the article cites the photographers of the pictures it uses as well as the government officials it acquires information from. This article gives me great information on one side of the concept I plan on discussing in my research paper. I plan on addressing the effects of social media on society. This article discusses one way social media can be positive, which I agree with. It directly quotes and cites government officials and it also gives numerical statistics, which greatly contributes to the legitimacy of the article. Social media directly connects the governmental/corporate world with the people. I plan on doing further research on both sides of the topic. |
Annotated Bibliography 2
Alexis Gerdts J. Killingsworth Honors Mentorship Program 24 February 2014 Renewable Energy Gremberg, Allen, "Renewables: A charge in Colo. economy." Northern Colorado Business Report. 2/22/2013, Vol. 18 Issue 12, p38-39. This source, which contains two articles from a Colorado newspaper, addresses the use of renewable energy in both the private and public sector. It states multiple statistics and info about how renewable energy such as solar and wind energy are used very little, but it is “an industry in its infancy and, with large political support, could develop into a common source of energy” (Gremberg pg 38). The articles advocate for the continued and growing use of efficient energy, they explain their claim, and then propose ideas as to how it could be done. Some quotes I have derived from this article that would be useful are “The United States is the second largest energy consumer in the world (China is the first), and our demand only continues to grow.” on page 38; “The federal government is the nation's No. 1 energy consumer, so it's a good place to start looking for efficiencies” on page 38; “In 2011, President Obama urged federal department and agency heads to enter into significantly more contracts by the end of 2013 and while we commend the president for this initial step, the progress on this goal is not as far along as it could be.” on page 38; "Solar is the fastest growing and most affordable, accessible and reliable clean energy technology available today.” on page 39; “America's solar industry now employs more than 119,000 workers at 5,600 companies - most of which are small businesses spread across every state in the union.” on page 39; “The goal: to generate enough solar energy to power 1 million Colorado homes and businesses by 2030. Get- ting there will require installing about 10 times as much solar equipment as now exists in the state.” on page 39; “Though it's been around for decades, solar is still very much in its infancy. Panel prices have been plunging but they're still too high for many, and the return on investment still takes too long for some” on page 39; and “Ending the tax breaks that Exxon Mobil, BP and other Big Oil companies enjoy would put $24 billion in the federal government's accounts over the next decade.” on page 39. This source is credible because it gives numerical statistics, quotes important and generally trusted people as sources, and mentions specific companies in the energy industry that would support the article's claim. The newspaper this is from is not a national newspaper, which means that it it is somewhat biased to the region it covers, but the article stays very factual. This article hits very close to what my paper will be about. I am analyzing the use of green energy and energy efficiency in both the public and private sectors, and this article supports my views. This will greatly assist me in outlining how my ideas should flow when writing my paper and also will help me in identifying specific topics I will address. |
Sources:
Maria, Jess M. "The Social CIO." Public CIO Summer 2012: 12-16. Print.
Gremberg, Allen, "Renewables: A charge in Colo. economy." Northern Colorado Business Report. 2/22/2013, Vol. 18 Issue 12, p38-39.
Shahan, Zachary A. "18 Fun Renewable Energy Charts From NREL Director Dan Arvizu & Ren21′s Renewables 2013 Global Status Report." CleanTechnica. CleanTechnica, 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
DeMartinis, Robert "What Is a Nonprofit Organization?" What Is a Nonprofit Organization?Nonprofit & Fundraising Resources, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
"10 Amazing Facts about Renewable Energy." JustGreen Lifestyle. JustGreen, n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. website
Maria, Jess M. "The Social CIO." Public CIO Summer 2012: 12-16. Print.
Gremberg, Allen, "Renewables: A charge in Colo. economy." Northern Colorado Business Report. 2/22/2013, Vol. 18 Issue 12, p38-39.
Shahan, Zachary A. "18 Fun Renewable Energy Charts From NREL Director Dan Arvizu & Ren21′s Renewables 2013 Global Status Report." CleanTechnica. CleanTechnica, 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
DeMartinis, Robert "What Is a Nonprofit Organization?" What Is a Nonprofit Organization?Nonprofit & Fundraising Resources, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
"10 Amazing Facts about Renewable Energy." JustGreen Lifestyle. JustGreen, n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014. website
"Elachee Nature Science Center." Elachee Nature Science Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014. website