How Nonprofit Donations Are Used, and What to Ask Before You Give

Donors are trained to ask one question, which is what percentage goes to programmes. It is close to the least informative question available, and the sector has spent years optimising the answer.

The number is flexible by definition. Whether a coordinator's salary is programme cost or overhead is a judgment call, and organizations that want a high figure make that call accordingly. Meanwhile a charity that genuinely spends nothing on administration is usually one that cannot track whether its work is doing anything.

Better questions exist.

Who gets paid, and how much. Not as a gotcha. A nonprofit with no paid staff is running on volunteer availability, which has real limits. One with well-paid executives might be worth it. Either way you learn more from the answer than from a ratio. JEPF's officers serve as volunteers and report no compensation, which tells you what kind of organization this currently is.

What specifically does the money buy. An organization that can only answer in categories rather than items usually has not thought hard about it. We can tell you: books, school supplies, backpacks, computers, printers, exam fees, scholarships, mentoring coordination.

What is the long-term plan, and what stage is it actually at. This is where organizations quietly mislead, describing a future project in a way that implies it is underway. Ours is a leadership training center in Jamaica and it has not been built.

Can you verify the entity. Legal name, registration, EIN. Jamaica Education for the Poor Foundation, Inc., Maryland 501(c)(3), EIN 30-0207531. If an organization is vague on this, that is your answer.

Restricted gifts are worth mentioning. Earmarking your donation for a specific campaign is reasonable and we will honour it. Just be aware that heavily restricted funding can leave an organization unable to pay for the unglamorous things that make the funded work possible.