Nonprofit News From Elsewhere Online
An outside investigation of the Giving Back Fund sports philanthropy has cleared its embattled CEO and resulted in a whistleblower’s ouster. CEO Marc Pollick had been the target of complaints dating back years. The unnamed whistle-blower, along with other current and former employees and board members, variously cited Pollick’s “erratic and unprofessional behavior” and breakdowns in the basic functions of the organization, which acts as the fiscal sponsor for professional athletes’ charities. Some board members had resigned, with one calling the nonprofit “broken.” An outside law firm conducted a probe into “allegations made by a single complainant, Pollick’s one-time executive assistant” and found “no illegal, unethical or improper action with regard to the issues raised,” according to the lawyer leading the investigation. Board chair Prashanth Palakurthi attributed many of the complaints to Pollick’s having made “tough, unpopular decisions.” Pollick said in a statement, “The leadership of the Giving Back Fund has always operated ethically, appropriately, and legally, and any allegations to the contrary are simply not true.” (Sportico)
Museums and prosecutors are getting serious about deterring increasingly frequent attacks on artworks by climate protesters. Two people who smeared paint on the base and case of an Edgar Degas sculpture in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., face federal charges that carry a maximum five-year prison sentence and $250,000 in fines. In Austria, prosecutors dropped a case against protesters after the activists paid for the damages and cleanup costs from an action last year at Vienna’s Leopold Museum. And in Sweden, the government is preparing to charge activists who staged an attack at the National Museum. Behind the tougher approach is the mounting cost for museums in restoration, increased security — including more guards and glass shields — cleanup, and insurance. Per Hedstrom, interim director of Sweden’s National Museum, said the institutions must weigh public access against protecting its collection. “Activists are using the principles of an open society as a vulnerability,” he said. One of those charged in the Washington, D.C., attack, Joanna Smith, said, “It was a call for people to look deeply and think about what they cherish on Earth and what they can do to protect those things.” (New York Times)
More News
- N.Y. Committing $51 Million to Protect Nonprofits From Hate Crimes, Gov. Hochul Announces (CBS News)
- As Nonprofit Hospitals Reap Big Tax Breaks, States Scrutinize Their Required Charity Spending (Kaiser Health News)
- Why the Weak Office Market Is a Boon for N.Y.’s Nonprofits (Crain’s New York Business)
- Daffy for Work Is a Type of ‘Charitable 401(K)’ That Could Unlock Billions for U.S. Charities (Fast Company)
- A Birmingham, Ala., Nonprofit Rejected Money From a Lawmaker. Then He Accused Them of Corruption. (AL.com)
- Director of Nonprofit Think Tank Charged With Arms Trafficking, Conspiring With China (UPI)
- With Pending Newspaper Sales, Nonprofits Set to Take a Bigger Role in Maine Journalism (Maine Public)
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