Lessons from a goose on leadership

Who knew that geese could tell us so much about leadership?

Geese fly in a V formation to create uplift. They fly 71% farther when flying together than if they flew alone.
Application for homeschool leaders: Don’t run your group alone. Gather other people to help you and you’ll go farther and avoid burnout.

When the lead bird gets tired, he drops out of the head spot and flies in the back to recover and take advantage of the lift from the other birds.
Application for homeschool leaders: Rotate leadership. Bring in fresh, new people. Set term limits for board members.

Geese honk to offer encouragement to each other, sort of an “Atta boy!” or “You can do it! Keep going!” to each other and their leader.
Application for homeschool leaders: Encourage your leaders. Offer appreciation gifts and thank you cards.

Thanks to :

http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/apjinternational/apj-s/2007/4tri07/popeeng.htm

Carol Topp, CPA

The benefits of a board to avoid burn out

My friends Kristen & Denise at Homeschool Group Leader have been running an interview they did with me as a blog series on leader burn out.

There are lots of times when a leader may have to step down. Maybe because she is burned out, but also it could be that her family moves out of town. We’ve had that happen. Or maybe she becomes ill or someone in the house becomes ill, and she has to step down from her responsibilities for a while. Every group out there and every leader out there ought to be saying, “If one of us had to leave, could we keep going?” Who could step in—always have that in the back of your mind.

What are the legal responsibilities of homeschool leaders?

Carol,

We are hesitant about linking personal Social Security Numbers to the group EIN. What legal ramifications does putting personal SSN info on the group form have for that individual?

Tasha

Tasha,

The IRS form SS-4 Application for Employer Identification Number asks for the name of a responsible party and either a SSN, ITIN (tax ID for aliens) or EIN (for businesses). You asked what are the legal ramifications of putting a name and SSN on the EIN application for a nonprofit organization.

The answer lies in the responsibility of leadership. All leaders, officers or directors of a nonprofit has some responsibilities. Each board member has a fiduciary (i.e. legal) duty of care and loyalty to manage the organization and its funds within the purpose/mission of the organization and not for private gain or benefit. The board’s job is to govern the organization, be responsible for the management of funds, and be responsible for its programs. Those are the “legal ramifications” of leadership.

Specifically, the duty of care includes:

• Be aware of the nonprofit’s mission, plans and policies
• Be sure that all activities are in accordance with the mission, plans and policies
• Fully participate in Board meetings, deliberations and decisions.
• Read, evaluate and ensure the accuracy of all reports, including minutes and financial statements.
• Ensure the organization has sufficient people, funding and other assets to meet its purpose.

The duty of loyalty includes clearly making a reasonable and good-faith effort, when acting as a Board member, to:

• Always be thinking about, and focusing on, the priorities of the nonprofit, and not that of yourself or another organization.
• Share ideas, opinions and advice to forward the progress of the nonprofit.
• Represent the nonprofit in a favorable light.

These definitions and examples come from an excellent article on board responsibilities found at Managementhelp.org, a great website with lots of articles on running a nonprofit.

http://managementhelp.org/misc/Fiduciary-Responsibilities-of-NP-Board.pdf

Most of these fiduciary (legal) responsibilities are not too heavy for any loyal board member. I think they are very reasonable. It might be a good idea to share them with new and old board members.

So next time someone asks, “What are my responsibilities as a board member?” or “What are the legal ramifications of putting my name on an IRS form?” you have an answer to give.

Carol Topp, CPA

Should you compensate board members?

I know that the board members of a homeschool groups are hard-working people.  They not only homeschool their own children, but they organize support groups and co-ops to help other homeschool families.  Sometimes a homeschool group would like to “reward” these generous individuals.

Is it OK to compensate your board members?

A homeschool co-op in the Midwest contacted me recently to apply for 501c3 tax exempt status.  The Treasurer told me that her co-op had been paying their leaders anywhere from $200-$1,200 a year for their service on the board.  I discussed why paying board members was not a typical practice.  Here is some of what we discussed:

• Payments to board members can create a conflict of interest. Does the loyalty of the leader lie in herself or in the best interests of the group?
• Paying board members can call into question the duty of loyalty of the board member.  Is she acting in the best interest of the group rather than a personal , financial interest?
• Payment could compromise the leader’s duty of care. A leader should act in good faith, with the care an ordinary, prudent person would exercise and with the best interest of the group in mind.
• Payments on nonprofit boards is not a typical practice.  Charities do not usually compensate their board members. Their funds usually go back into the program. Board members serve because they have a passion for the mission and a concern for the members.
• Board payments can undermine the volunteer spirit of other members. Why should a member volunteer her time when others are paid for their efforts?
• Can cause dissension and a sense of injustice or imbalance in the group.
• Payments did not have member approval. In this particular case, the board voted themselves compensation, but never put the idea to a member vote.

This group has wisely decided to stop payments to board members. I think the group will be better served by an all-volunteer board and healthier in the long run.

Carol Topp, CPA

EINs and individual information

Usually HomeschoolCPA is asked questions by homeschool organizations, but this question comes from a school-related organization like a PTA.

I am a member of a school organization in PA.  We are being told by our district that in order to operate in the school we must have our own EIN number.  Previously we had been using the district’s.  Obtaining the EIN number seems easy enough.  There is only one problem.  We are apprehensive about using anyone of our personal social security numbers in order to obtain it.  What about when the group’s president changes, do we then need to refile for a new EIN with a different social security number?  Is the person who requests the EIN number with their social security number under any obligation to the IRS?

Schannon in PA

Schannon,
These two blog entries should answer your question:

Will Getting an EIN Put Us on the IRS Radar?
New EIN for New Officers?

I hope that helps!

Carol Topp, CPA

Should a co-op be a separate organization?

Carol,

We have one entity (group) that works outside of our association, this is our Co-op group. This group does take in money – I believe it’s run out of a separate bank account. I know our Co-op group has a board, and bylaws but not an EIN number, which I know is very easy to get. What are they benefits of us staying as one group? My question is: should our Co-op group run their funds separately like this?

Sandy in TX

Sandy,

Your co-op could be organized as under your association or as a separate group. It’s really up to you. Since they have their own separate board and bylaws, perhaps they are really operating as a separate unincorporated association already. You could be officially separate if they obtain their own Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS.

There might be advantages to staying as one group. There are fewer volunteers for the board positions, consolidated financial reports, and shared workload. The co-op could remain a part of your organization, but with a separate checking account and its own budget. It could be self-sustaining financially, but still part of your association. Many church-run schools operate like this, financially self-sufficient, but still under the umbrella of the church.

Carol Topp, CPA

Using Quickbooks for reports

Hi Carol,

Our Board of directors for our homeschool group of 100 families just received your 2 books (Money Management for Homeschool Organizations and Tax Exempt 510c3 Status for Homeschool Organizations).  I have read them.  It has reassured me that we are on the right track and that we have instituted many of the things that you mentioned.

We have purchased Quickbooks and our treasurer is working hard to learn  the software.

What financial reports do we need to generate monthly?  We need these reports to be a simple process.The Balance Sheet and P&L (Profit and Loss) statement in Quickbooks looks are overwhelming.

We are not accountants and double entry lines are confusing.We have reconciled our checkbook successfully.  YEAH!

Any advise would be helpful,

Hilary S

Hilary,

I’m glad that my books were helpful.  Your organization sounds as if they are getting things set up well.  I hope you’ll be serving homeschool families for a long time to come.

I think Quickbooks (QB) can be as simple or as complicated as it needs to be. The reports your treasurer generates is dependent on what the board wants to see. When I was treasurer, I gave my board a P&L (Profit and Loss) statement.  They really liked to see the budget in one column and actual P&L in another column.  Then they could see how we were doing compared to our budget. This report can be generated in QB as a Budget Report.
I also created a mini balance sheet at the bottom of the P&L.  I took the amount in the checking account and then listed payments to be made.  This gave the board an idea of how much cash we had on hand and where it was planned to go.

If the P&L statements in QB are too overwhelming, then perhaps you’re not using QB correctly.  I frequently see QB users make their Chart of Accounts too long.  Then the P&L becomes 2-3 pages long.  I recommend that a P&L be condensed into one page or less.

If your treasurer would like my help in setting up QB, I’d be happy to help.  She can e-mail me with what needs to be done and I’ll give you an estimated cost.  I also do QB training over the phone. I keep things as simple as possible.

I hope that helps.  I wish you the best of success! (Congrats on balancing the checkbook!)

Carol Topp, CPA

Off to Home Educators Assoc of Virginia (HEAV) Convention

For the next few days I will be at the Home Educators Assoc of Virginia (HEAV) Convention in Richmond, VA.

They have a pretty busy schedule for me. I’ll be giving workshops on:

• Budget Is a Dirty Word: Money Management for Those Who Hate to Manage Money
• Wanna Be a WAHM? The Pitfalls and Possibilities of Being a Work at Home Mom
• Small Business for Teenagers
• Is Your Homeschool Group Ready for the Next Step? Becoming a 501c3 Tax-Exempt Organization
• How to Start and Manage a Homeschool Organization: Boards, Budgets, and Bylaws

(see full descriptions of the workshops here and get the handouts here)

I’ll also be attending the homeschool leaders lunch and I am serving on a Q&A panel for leaders. I hope to meet some of you.

If you’ll be at HEAV, come by my booth #237 or to a workshop and say hello!

Carol Topp, CPA

Ten Ways to Torture a Tired Leader

My friends Kristen and Denise of Homeschool Group Leader have a sense of humor.

You have to be able to laugh at human weaknesses if you are a homeschool leader.

Here are their 10 Ways to Torture a Tired Leader:

1. Don’t Listen ~ Talk all during the announcements, the meeting discussions and while your leader shares important information.
2. Be Clueless ~ Ask your leader repeated questions about the information that you didn’t just listen to. Send them one-line questions in individual emails spread out over time.
3. Fill Other Members’ E-mail In Boxes ~ Send your repeated questions and comments to everyone on the list, filling all in-boxes, instead of only the in-box of the leader to whom you’re writing.
4. Quit at the Last Second ~ Volunteer to help with, or better yet–lead–an activity, then back out at the very end, leaving it all for the leader to complete.
5. Gossip ~ Discuss the leader’s clothes, kids, home life, homeschool, and leadership style –openly and with great fervor.
6. Complain ~ Never be happy with the place, the decisions, the agenda, the trips, the teachers, or the way the leader looks at you.
7. Show Up Late ~ Choose carefully the events that need to start at a specific time and strategically and systematically show up 15 or 30 minutes late.
8. Never Help Clean Up ~ Don’t stay after any event and help clean up. After all, isn’t that what the leader is there for??
9. Don’t Watch Your Kids ~ Let them run wild or talk while someone else is talking. Then get offended when someone asks them to be quiet or to sit down.
10. Be Demanding ~ Always express your opinion as fact. Be sure you speak every time someone else does, making sure that your frustrations and wants are very clear each time.

Recognize anyone?  Maybe you at times? Some of these are too close to the truth to be truly funny!

Carol Topp, CPA

Observations from the Midwest Homeschool Convention

On April 16-18, 2009 , I attended the Midwest Homeschool Convention here in my hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio.

I did two workshops, one on Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out (named after my book of the same title) and the other on Micro Business for Teenagers (my upcoming book).

Here are a few of my observations:

Homeschool leaders from across the country all have similar problems:

• No one wants to work or join the board
• Older, experienced hoemschool mothes are not coming to meetings
• There is a need for a clear vision and purpose. Leaders want to be everything to everyone.
• Policies and bylaws are sorely needed to elect new board members, deal with conflict, and to prevent burnout

Meeting and talking to attorney David Gibbs of the Homeschool Legal Advantage was a highlight.  We look forward to a wonderful working partnership helping homeschool organizations. Individual families have long had access to legal advice, but now there is a need for homeschool groups to have access to legal advice also.

Some homeschool leaders lack business sense. I heard about fund raising disasters, mistakes with charging fees and offering discounts, etc.

Meeting some of my virtual friends in person was fun.  And I’m so sorry that I missed some of you! I was stuck in my booth (I shared a booth with Mary Hood, the Relaxed Homeschooler) and didn’t get out much.

Here were some of the questions that were asked during the Homeschool Co-ops workshop:

• What does your co-op charge? Is it by student or by family?
• How often does your co-op meet? How long each time?
• Do you interview potential members?
• How do we ensure everyone is like minded?
• How can we encourage members to help out more?
• Do you group grades/ages in your co-op?
• What classes do you offer?
• Ho do you “fire” a volunteer?
• How do you elect a new baord?
• Can a co-op keep the same director/leader forever?
• Why collect a registration fee?
• Where do you meet for co-op classes?
• What is a typical rental fee?

Aren’t those great questions? I’ll work on answering them on this blog in the future.

I will also be presenting this workshop and several others at the Home Educators Association of Virginia convention  June 11-13.  Stop by my booth and say hello if you attend the convention!

Carol Topp, CPA

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