<p>I've been an advocate for literacy for a long time. It has been something that I have struggled with and conquered, so it's near and dear to my heart. With all the budget cuts that have been going on in my state, less literacy emphasis is being placed on the individual grade school student, especially in the elementary grade. I go twice a week to the local elementary school and read with children that have reading problems. Still, there is so much that can be done, and I feel what I am doing now is not enough.</p>
<p>That got me thinking. Is there a way I could start an organization that would promote literacy (starting locally first)? It would be volunteer-based, and I would consider starting a non-profit. I know it is a large undertaking, and I don't know where to begin. My goals would be to donate books to underprivileged children in my area and individualized reading sessions. Also, I am looking forward to help ESOL children with reading. Any input and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Am I thinking over my head? Or can this be done?</p>
<p>If there’s a will, there is always, always a way. Dude, it’s so funny. I was just thinking about starting up a literacy project too omg. :') Because I’ve always been an advanced reader. I was reading chapter books at four or five years old and it’s the only thing I credit to any of my academic successes.</p>
<p>But yeah onward, whenever I start up projects I outline things first. I think it’s the nerd in me. </p>
<p>I’d really suggest doing research on how literacy effects child development (reading is fundamental–expansive, expansive literacy program. i’m sure you’ll find stuff there OH I FOUND IT. RIF.ORG). Figure out the nitty gritty scientifically proven details to emphasize how literacy is so important. </p>
<p>There are lots of starting-out resources online for youth advocates–I know generationon has starting grants of five hundred dollars a week, I think? for people to start up their projects. You should check out things like that.</p>
<p>After you’re done with the planning stage, talk to the local district and suggest your plan. And never give up! And I’d be more than happy to help you in any way I can–if you’re gonna go forward with this I’d love to implement a sort of mirror program in my own hometown. It’s fine if you don’t want to, though aha. Bookworms unite? [: </p>
<p>Start fundraising with small bake sales, things like that. Use that money to buy books for kids. I would recommend that you buy notebooks/journals for kids because writing is also important in literacy! :-)</p>
<p>I’m super jealous of your idea. Wish I could help IRL :-)</p>
<p>LOL wut! i really love this idea and I am envious that i never thought of it myself could have been a good senior project too <em>jealous~</em> i want to do something like this in college LOL</p>
<p>i really advocate education and reading books and literacy and all that good jazz snuff. i always force my baby sisters to read books instead of goofing around the house LOL.</p>
<p>Great cause … I would suggest talking to librarians (school and town) and school reading specialists … they should be able to help you understand what is currently available locally, what would be unique and helpful to add to the mix, and hopefully some models/contacts from other efforts in other locations that might be willing to talk to you about that they have done/organized.</p>
<p>Wow! Thank you for all the support guys. The biggest concern I have is with the financial backing of it. I’ve heard that for a non-profit you need to have lawyers and that stuff. Does anyone have any more information about that or in general? If you have started a non-profit before, could you tell me a little bit about your experience?</p>
<p>You don’t have to establish a formal charity in order to start helping people. You can organize as a club and get going today. </p>
<p>If you decide you want to go ahead with registering as a nonprofit the first thing you need to do is write a formal mission statement. This is where you say exactly what your organization’s purpose is and how you expect to go about it. This is harder than it sounds, but it’s important because it’s the first things funders will look at and it will help prevent mission creep.</p>
<p>Next you’ll need a board of trustees (3 people minimum) willing to help you. You’ll need to write up articles of organization and bylaws and file them with your state. I found it useful to get samples of these documents from other organizations and use them as templates. Once you think you have your final versions you should have them reviewed by a lawyer. It’s important that you get these right because they will determine the shape of your organization and whether your group will be eligible for tax deductibility. I was able to find a lawyer willing to do this pro bono (free).</p>
<p>Once you are approved as a charity in your state the next step is to register as a 501(c)(3) organization with the IRS. The advantage to registering with the IRS as a charity is that it makes contributions tax deductible. The disadvantage is that the process is time consuming and expensive. The minimum registration fee alone is $300 and you’ll have to do a fair amount of complicated paperwork, including annual reports and tax returns.</p>
<p>There are many other steps (getting an EIN, bank account, registering the name, etc.) but these are the big ones. As you can see, unless you have a lot of help and plan to continue your group well into the future you’re likely to be better off organizing your group as a community service club without the formal trappings of a 501(c)(3).</p>
<p>(In case this looks familiar, I cut and pasted much of it from a response I gave to someone else in a similar position. No sense in reinventing the wheel!) HobbitTon, feel free to PM me.</p>
<p>So I should just ditch the 501(c)(3) option for now and just start as a basic organization? That sounds like a good idea, so I could just obtain non-profit status when the funds are available. But no one will contribute to an organization that isn’t non-profit (financially most of all). Also, I can’t apply for grants seeing I don’t even pass their organization requirements. It seems like an cycle of lost opportunities lol. What I have on paper sounds modest, but I am totally blank on how to execute it. Any ideas?</p>
<p>You may want to start your work informally in tandem with investigating establishment of a 501(c)(3). You don’t really need funding to do much of what you’re proposing. Start small. Ask the librarian or your principal if you can put out a box for book donations. Ask the bookstore if they’d partner with you. Point out that if they allow you to put out a donation box it may boost their sales. See if you can recruit volunteers to help with your literacy efforts.</p>
<p>Does your community have a community supper or soup kitchen that includes kids? If so, ask the volunteer coordinator if they’d like to have someone read to the kids during dinners.</p>
<p>Once you get some tangible results people are more likely to join in to help. Not having formal status can be a minor stumbling block but people can still donate time and money to your cause. They just won’t get a tax deduction. Another secret-if you can get people to volunteer they can pull in other people who will donate money.</p>
<p>Getting formal 501(c)(3) status takes a while and should not be rushed. Starting your literacy work now will also help you get a clearer idea of whether your organization can sustain itself in the long run. It can also make it easier to form clear objectives. If you do decide to go forward with nonprofit status I’d advise you to do a ton of reading on the internet and ask everyone you know for advice. Help can come from the most unlikely of places.</p>
<p>That really helped clear my thoughts and refocus! Thank you so much. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I feel like this is really going somewhere.</p>
<p>Hey i’ve read your comments on your thoughts on non-profit organization. I was wondering if you had a chance to start it yet, because i’m definitely looking to start one, and i would love to join part of your organizations guys! i’m trying to start my own-but my friends don’t take me serious. so here am i, asking for your help~</p>
could have been a good senior project too <em>jealous~</em> i want to do something like this in college LOL</p>