Yet Funding is the #1 Concern for Grant County Non-Profits

Silver City, NM

The nonprofit sector is a major economic driver in Grant County, employing nearly 10 percent of the local labor force and contributing more than $24 million to the local economy in 2014 , according to results of the 2014¹ annual nonprofit survey conducted by The Non-Profit Resource Group, a program of The National Center for Frontier Communities, headquartered in Silver City.

"This data confirms that the nonprofit sector is a major economic force here in Grant County and must be part of any discussion of economic development," said Lisa Jimenez, manager of The Non-Profit Resource Group (NRG), a program dedicated to strengthening nonprofits and community coalitions. "Not only do nonprofits bring significant funds into the community from outside sources, they also provide many important services that support government and private business, allowing them to focus on other aspects of economic development. Nonprofits contribute in many important ways to the overall quality of life that we enjoy in Grant County, making it an attractive place to live, work and relocate to."

According to a study conducted by The University of New Mexico, the nonprofit sector is also a major economic force throughout the state, employing more than 1 out of 20 paid workers - more than twice as many as the New Mexico state government; more than in manufacturing; more than in agriculture; more than in the mining, oil-and-gas and utilities industries combined; and almost four times the number in the State's real estate industry.²

Jimenez noted that when asked what their top concerns are this year, nonprofit leaders said they worry most about funding. "This reflects what we see on a day-to-basis, working with our local nonprofits," she said. "Nonprofits, particularly those in rural and frontier communities, are struggling to meet increased demand for services, while reimbursements from public contracts and private donations remain flat or are decreasing. This points to a larger question: What are we willing to do collectively to ensure that our nonprofit sector is able to continue contributing to the health, well-being and vitality of Grant County?"

After funding, nonprofit leaders say their second greatest concern is board leadership and governance. Many nonprofits here in Grant County struggle to maintain the minimum state requirement of three board members, added Jimenez. In rural and frontier communities, the executive director of a nonprofit needs to be a "generalist" and have knowledge of all aspects of managing the organization, compared to nonprofits in more resource-rich areas, which may be able to afford dedicated marketing or fundraising staff, for example.

"This means that board members must step in to fill those knowledge gaps so that the nonprofit can succeed in realizing its mission," she said. "In addition to capacity building, informed, hard-working board members are absolutely essential to nonprofit sustainability over time."

Other key findings from the Grant County survey: