Aug 29, 2016
A favorite service of southwest nonprofits, Curbside Consulting is now available in rural and frontier counties throughout New Mexico thanks to the generous support of the McCune Charitable Foundation. Curbside Consulting is a service of the Nonprofit Resource Group (NRG), a program of the National Center of Frontier Communities, that provides comprehensive, expert capacity building services to the nonprofit sector, particularly in underserved and under-represented rural and frontier communities. Curbside Consulting offers free, brief consultation to rural and frontier nonprofit leaders and staff on any nonprofit management topic.
This service connects great ideas to existing nonprofits, while also ensuring that needed start-ups begin with a solid foundation in compliance with state and federal charitable law. Rural and frontier nonprofits offer crucial services while making due with three times less funding than their urban counterparts, according to study conducted by the Bridgespan Group.
This funding gap leaves many nonprofits unable to access quality resources and guidance to keep their organization healthy and vibrant. Curbside consulting can provide guidance to and answer questions of rural nonprofit leaders throughout New Mexico.
-Susan Wilger, Associate Director of the National Center for Frontier Communities
Dr. Cynthia Ann Bettison, Director of the Western New Mexico University Museum, uses the service to review funding proposals.
Curbside Consulting is an excellent resource for anyone writing a grant. I find that an external appraisal of my grant drafts helps clarify phrasing, place emphasis on particular facts presented, and ensure that all the tiny, or big, editing mistakes are caught and fixed—all of which are critical to submitting a well-written proposal.
The program also offers affordable, professional strategic consulting services to address capacity gaps, as identified by a comprehensive capacity assessment tool that is exclusive to NRG. The NRG model is based on solid research that demonstrates what makes nonprofits effective, as well as more than 10 years of experience working specifically with rural and frontier nonprofits.
Our nonprofit and community coalition assessments are facilitated, whereas most assessments are online and costly. This 90-minute process brings key staff and board members together to reflect on the organization and see where they need to improve capacity for long-term sustainability. And we offer assessments for free to Grant County nonprofits.
-Lisa Jimenez, consultant to NRG
Curbside Consulting is available every Wednesday and Friday from 9am-12pm, or by appointment. Services are available in-person in Silver City at 301 W. College Ave., Suite 5, and by phone or video conference.
Other NRG services include:
- Workshops and trainings based on our annual nonprofit survey
- Advocacy on behalf of nonprofits
- Sector networking opportunities
- Foundation Directory Online
- Free, online capacity building resources and a physical lending library
- Community coalition capacity assessments and capacity building
Curbside Consulting is made possible by the generous support of the McCune Charitable Foundation, the Town of Silver City New Mexico, Grant County New Mexico and Freeport McMoRan, Inc.
Contact us to today or visit us online for more information or to schedule your appointment.
Lisa Jimenez at (575) 574-5473, [email protected]
Susan Wilger at (575) 313-4720, [email protected]