The Ranks of the Ultrawealthy Grow

About 47,000 people had a net worth of $20 million or more in 2004, the latest available year, according to new estimates by the Internal Revenue Service. While that was up only slightly from 46,000 in 2001, it was up 62% from 29,000 in 1998.

The IRS also reported increases in the number of people with a net worth between $10 million and $20 million: 79,000 people qualified for this group in 2004, up from 77,000 in 2001 and 51,000 in 1998.

Full-text article by Tom Herman is available via the Wall Street Journal, 8.28.08.

Disney Children's Hospital at Florida Hospital will be Model for Pediatric Care Nationwide

Officials from Florida Hospital revealed new details about their visionary plans to shape the 'Children's Hospital of the Future,' which will make a significant impact on children's health throughout Central Florida and be a model for pediatric hospitals beyond the region.

Full-text press release is available via MarketWatch / Disney Children's Hospital at Florida Hospital, 8.27.08.

10 Things Millionaires Won't Tell You

They may not buy the 99-cent paper towels, but millionaires know what it is to be frugal. About 80 percent say they spend with a middle-class mind-set, according to a 2007 survey of high-net-worth individuals, published by American Express and the Harrison Group.

Full-text article by Daren Fonda is available via SmartMoney, 8.29.08.

Where the Money Is: America’s Top Wealth Centers

A new study by Bizjournals identified 10 wealth centers — communities that manage to blend substantial size (populations above 100,000) with considerable affluence.

Full-text article by G. Scott Thomas is available via San Antonio Business Journal, 8.22.08.

Charity Buoyed by Resilience of Wealthy Donors

The economic slump is already causing financially stretched middle-income Americans to curtail their charitable donations, but philanthropic giving by the wealthy is likely to remain strong – if not quite as generous – throughout the rest of the year.

The timing of big gifts could be affected, too, as most large donations tend to be driven by events such as the selling of a piece of appreciated real estate, or liquidating a family business – occasions that could be delayed by volatility in the stock market.

Full-text article by Rebecca Knight is available via the Financial Times, 8.19.08.

US News Sees Drop in Participation

This year’s 46% participation rate in the annual US News and World Report college ranking is down from 51% last year, 58% the year before that, and 67% a few years prior. The drop this year was particularly steep for liberal arts colleges -- to 44% from 55%.

Full-text article by Scott Jaschik via Inside HigherEd, 8.22.08.

Philanthropy Thrives: Queenslanders Give Millions

In tough economic times, state's wealthiest people are proving they have deep pockets as well as impressive bank balances.

Philanthropy is alive and thriving in the Sunshine State as The Sunday Mail Queensland Top 100 Rich List, to be published next week, reveals.

Full-text article by Daryl Passmore is available via The Sunday Mail, 8.24.08.

Thousands of California Children In Danger of Losing Health Insurance

Increased premiums for low-income families are expected to put the program out of reach for many. A new Medi-Cal policy is also expected to cut enrollees, further weakening the healthcare system.

Full-text article by Jordan Rau is available via the Los Angeles Times, 8.24.08.

The Chronicle of Higher Education's Almanac, 2008-09

The Almanac of Higher Education features national and state-by-state data on colleges and universities, and their students, faculty and staff members, and finances, as well as regional profiles of the issues facing academe across the country.

Access the Chronicle's Almanac via their Web site.

Giving by the Rich to Remain Strong in 2008

Despite the weak economy, charitable giving by the rich could increase this year compared to 2007.

Full-text article by Robert Frank is available via the Wall Street Journal, 8.20.08.

On Rodeo Drive, the Economy's Booming

Gas and grocery prices may be more than many working-class families can bear, home foreclosures may be soaring, but life is just fine at the loftiest heights of the economy.

Full-text article by David Lazarus is available via the Los Angeles Times, 8.20.08.

The Rabbi, the Do-Gooder, the Lost $100 Million

The Securities and Exchange Commission, in a civil lawsuit filed along with the criminal case, says that WexTrust diverted $100 million to run the company, cover personal expenses and pay off previous investors.

Rabbi Silver and a number of Orthodox Jews were shocked by Monday's arrest of Mr. Shereshevsky and a business partner at WexTrust Capital, a Chicago-based private-equity firm. Federal prosecutors in New York charged them with raising more than $250 million through a Ponzi scheme -- mainly from Orthodox Jews.

Full-text article by Ianthe Jeanne Dugan is available via the Wall Street Journal, 8.15.08.

More Green for Green?

Ask 700 executives which social or political issue will have the biggest impact on their companies in the next five years, and the environment tops the list. Yet an analysis of 155 large U.S. companies, including 69 of the Fortune 100, shows they gave only 4% of their philanthropic donations to environmental causes last year.

Full-text article by Emily Stone is available via Crain's Chicago Business, 8.18.08.

The Evolution of Philanthropy

What does corporate giving look like these days? Melissa Brown, associate director of research at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, has spent eight years studying the trends. Crain's Chicago Business asked Ms. Brown what has changed.

Full-text article by Emily Stone is available via Crain's Chicago Business, 8.18.08.

The Real Planned Giving: Part Two

This piece is a follow-up to my previous article on bequests and their dominance in planned giving revenue.

Full-text article by Jonathan H. Gudema, Esq. via OnPhilanthropy, 8.14.08.

Steve Goldstein Named CEO of University of Minnesota Foundation

Steve Goldstein has been named CEO and president of the University of Minnesota Foundation.

He replaces Gerald Fischer, who ran the U’s primary fundraising arm for 18 years.

Full-text article by Sam Black is available via the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, 8.14.08.

U.S. to Grow Grayer, More Diverse

The nation's population will look dramatically different by mid-century, becoming more racially and ethnically diverse and a good deal older as it increases from about 302 million to 439 million by 2050, according to projections released today by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Full-text article by N.C. Aizenman is available via the Washington Post, 8.14.08.

New Guide Helps Organizations Understand HIPAA and Fundraising

A new downloadable guide aims to assist healthcare organizations thinking about the ramifications of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) in fundraising. The HIPAA Effect: Considerations for Fundraising After the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, created by Changing Our World, Inc. and Convio, examines how HIPAA laws have affected fundraising for nonprofit hospitals, foundations, and health organizations.

Receive a free copy of The HIPAA Effect by visiting Changing Our World's Web site.

New Survey: Most Americans Think Health System Needs Major Overhaul

Dissatisfaction with the U.S. health care system is running high, and 82 percent of Americans think it should be fundamentally changed or completely rebuilt, according to a new survey released by The Commonwealth Fund.

Full-text report: Public Views on U.S. Health Care System Organization: A Call for New Directions.

Americans Made Over 1 Billion Hospital and Doctor Visits in 2006

Patients in the United States made an estimated 1.1 billion visits to physician offices and hospital outpatient and emergency departments (EDs) in 2006--an average of four visits per person per year, according to new healthcare statistics released Aug. 6 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The data come from various components of CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics National Health Care Survey and are featured in a series of new national health statistics reports.

More information is available via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 8.6.08.

Arizona Hospitals Paying Out More in Charitable Care

Valley hospital executives are bracing for a spike in charity care, as patients who can't afford to pay their mortgages also are having trouble paying their medical bills.

Full-text article by Angela Gonzales is available via the Phoenix Business Journal, 8.8.08.

Medical University of South Carolina Sets Record

Medical University of South Carolina raised a record amount in gifts and pledges over the 2007-08 fiscal year, amounting to more than $67.4 million. The largest portion came from gifts and matching funds from foundations and nonprofits, while individual benefactors contributed more than a third.

Full-text article is available via the Post and Courier, 8.5.08.

A Big Surprise On Gas

You may not believe it, but fuel is more affordable than it was during the
early'60s.

Barack Obama thinks the government should intervene on gas prices to "give families some relief," and last week called for releasing 70 million barrels of crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. John McCain proposes an end to the ban on offshore drilling and has pushed for a gas-tax holiday because "we need it, we need it very badly."

Full-text article by Indur M. Gorklany and Jerry Taylor is available via the Los Angeles Times, 8.11.08.

How to Get More Students and Young Alumni to Give

The University of Chicago announced the completion of its $2-billion-plus campaign Monday, and its vice president for development is crediting the university’s peer-to-peer programs with boosting both student and young alumni giving during the campaign.

Full-text posting by Kathryn Masterson is available via the Chronicle's Prospecting Blog, 8.11.08.

A Giving Circle With a Deep Center

A group of about two dozen black women is becoming a significant philanthropic force in Washington.

The African American Women’s Giving Circle was started two years ago and is administered by the Washington Area Women’s Foundation. The group is made up mostly of professional women who each give from $1,000 to $10,000 a year. They mainly support health-care efforts.

Full-text article by Philip Rucker is available via the Washington Post, 7.31.08.

Instant-Messagers Really Are About Six Degrees from Kevin Bacon

Turns out, it is a small world. The "small world theory," embodied in the old saw that there are just "six degrees of separation" between any two strangers on Earth, has been largely corroborated by a massive study of electronic communication.

Full-text article by Peter Whoriskey is available via the Washington Post, 8.2.08.

Not Many Speak Their Mind to Gates Foundation

With a $38 billion endowment that exceeds the gross domestic product (GDP) of most countries it helps — and another $30 billion pledged by investor Warren Buffett — the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has come to dominate the philanthropic world in the same way Microsoft towered over the software landscape.

But philanthropy experts and even some foundation leaders are uneasy with all the adulation.

Full-text article by Sandi Doughton is available via the Seattle Times, 8.3.08.

$225-Million Bequest Made to Florida Foundation

The Patterson Foundation, in Sarasota, Fla., has received a bequest of $225-million from the estate of Dorothy Clarke Patterson, who died last year. Ms. Patterson established the foundation in 1997 with a donation of $3-million. Ms. Patterson did not specify how the money should be used, nor did she leave any instructions.

Full-text article by Anne W. Howard and Caroline Preston is available via the Chronicle of Philanthropy, 8.7.08. [Subscription]