Our Mission

To strengthen, promote and represent nonprofit organizations, empowering them to meet the diverse, changing needs of our communities.

Our Members

Our member organizations touch the lives of countless adults, children and families throughout our region, and in some cases, throughout the nation and the world.

Our members protect our environment, help the homeless, support the arts, feed the hungry, advance education, provide employment assistance, nurture the sick, champion the underserved, and so much more. Their dedication and hard work have a direct, life-changing impact on our communities.

Member Highlight: Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press

A Center member since 2019, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press provides a variety of legal resources to protect First Amendment freedoms and the newsgathering rights of journalists.

The Reporters Committee was created in 1970 when the nation’s news media was facing a surge of government subpoenas asking reporters to name confidential sources. When New York Times reporter Earl Caldwell was ordered to reveal his sources from the Black Panther organization, the threat to his independence as a news gatherer spurred the formation of a committee that would provide legal assistance to journalists when their First Amendment rights were jeopardized.

In the last four decades, the Reporters Committee has contributed its efforts toward the most consequential press freedom cases that have come before the Supreme Court. From the very beginning, no reporter has ever paid for their help in defending First Amendment rights.

Kirsten Poole, the Director of Business Operations, is a strong advocate for membership in the Center for Nonprofit Advancement. “The Reporters Committee has come to rely on the Center as a resource to improve our operations over the past several years. There are many opportunities for learning — like the DEI webinars and nonprofit financial bootcamps — that have helped our staff. In addition, participating in the COO cohort has provided a safe space to discuss challenges any nonprofit COO might face.”

Our Team 

Created in 1979, the Center for Nonprofit Advancement is the nation’s first state association for nonprofit organizations. For more than four decades, the Center has continued to grow and advance, thanks to the efforts of a dedicated group:

Board of Directors

Staff

Supporters

Our Impact

The Center’s primary service region includes Washington, DC, Prince George’s and Montgomery Counties in Maryland and the state of Virginia. However, the Center welcomes any 501(c)(3) nonprofit that wishes to join.

Identifying, monitoring and sharing new and shifting trends within the nonprofit sector, the Center works collaboratively with local experts to develop custom programs and solutions. Through our training, resources and relationships with the corporate, philanthropic and government community, we help our member nonprofits save more … do more … and succeed more—ultimately achieving a more sustainable future.

The Center serves thousands of nonprofit staff, volunteers and board members, making it easier for nonprofits to fulfill their missions by helping them:

Strengthen capacity through training opportunities

1,500+ participants a year

Reallocate more funds to programs with operational savings

10%-50% discounts through group purchasing opportunities

Gain expert insights, market exposure and cash awards through competitions

$29,000 cash grants awarded each year

Network with nonprofit colleagues, industry experts and leaders in the foundation and government sectors

Countless invaluable connections

 

Our Values

We believe that…

Nonprofits are an essential ingredient in the health of our communities and our democracy. Strong nonprofits lead to better communities, better quality of life and a better democracy.

Nonprofits are stewards of public trust. Transparency and accountability are the foundation of that trust.

Diversity in all forms — organizations, people, religions, and culture — is part of our vitality. Promoting diversity and practicing inclusiveness makes us stronger.

The vibrancy and effectiveness of nonprofits hinge on information, education, celebration, collaboration, and representation. Nonprofits deserve a strong voice in the affairs that affect them. Together, we shape the future.

Intention, commitment, optimism, and a belief in a better tomorrow are vital ingredients in our growth and development and our service philosophy. Every day we strive to do better, be better, serve better.

Social Impact Vision

Effective nonprofits, thriving communities.