Judith R. Saidel

Dimensions of Interdependence: The State and Voluntary-Sector Relationship

The relationship between state government, executive branch agen cies, and nonprofit organizations with government contracts is best understood as one of dynamic interdependence. There are at least three overlapping dimensions of interdependence: (1) resource exchange, (2) political, and (3) administrative. Data collected from state agencies and nonprofits and the literature of bureaucratic poli tics and organization theory, especially that on power dependence and resource dependence, make important contributions to this theo retical framework.

Expanding the Governance Construct: Functions and Contributions of Nonprofit Advisory Groups

Despite continuing interest in nonprofit governance issues, little debate has occurred about the identity of participants in governance other than trustees and executive staff. This article finds, however, that advisory groups are also a critical instrument of governance in many public benefit organizations with government grants or contracts. Advisory group members perform numerous primary organizational activities, link nonprofits to key stakeholder groups in the environment, and strengthen ties of cooperation and shared purpose with other community actors. They supplement governance activities carried out by nonprofit boards of directors. In addition, some groups establish new ties to various elites; others connect or reconnect nonprofits to grassroots community constituencies. Nonprofit governance theory should take into account the functions and contributions to governance of advisory groups.

Information Technology and the Voluntary Sector Workplace

There is little debate over whether technological change affects work processes and tasks. Yet, exactly how this happens is not at all clear. This study asks the question: How have information technologies changed the nature and distribution of work and workplace relationships in voluntary sector organizations? The authors conducted in-depth, semistructured interviews with 23 respondents in three nonprofit agencies in the capital region of New York State that had an extensive history of involvement in contracting relationships with multiple government bureaucracies. The results indicate that the autonomy and flexibility associated with much of the work performed by the nonprofit labor force influence how information technology affects workplace processes and relationships. Employees with widely varying backgrounds fill newly defined IT jobs. Job satisfaction, workload, and the distribution of power have been altered in a number of complex ways. Responses regarding technology and the relationship between nonprofits and government are also explored.

Toward Doctoral Education in Nonprofit and Philanthropic Studies

This article provides an overview of the current nature and state of doctoral education in nonprofit and philanthropic studies. Data regarding student interests and demand for courses was gathered using surveys of faculty members and PhD students. A systematic journal database search was conducted to better understand what disciplines engage in research on nonprofit organizations and voluntary action. Arguing that theory-based, doctoral-level education in the field of nonprofit and philanthropic studies is needed by academia and sought after by doctoral students, a framework for meeting the educational needs of the fields future scholars is proposed.

Nonprofit Management Education in Schools with Public Affairs Curricula: An Analysis of the Trend Toward Curriculum Integration

For almost 20 years, scholars interested in public affairs education have called for innovation in master’s-level curricula to respond to shifts, begun in the 1960s, in how public services are delivered. The integral role of nonprofit organizations as implementers of publicly funded programs and as participants in the larger policy process is a key feature of the new public governance. This article examines recent trends in nonprofit management education in universities that offer master’s-level graduate programs in public affairs. Based on data from 43 schools collected in two waves, first in 2011 and again in 2014, we elaborate a four-level curriculum integration model and document trends in curriculum development. We find that just over half of the sample schools remain in a pre-integration stage of curriculum development. Simultaneously, analysis across the 43 schools reveals that significant movement has occurred among schools in the later stages of curriculum change.