2007 Nonprofit Sector Research Mini-Grant Program

The Helen Bader Institute for Nonprofit Management at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) recently announced grant awards for four nonprofit research projects. The nonprofit “mini-grant” program is coordinated by the UWM Center for Urban Initiatives and Research.

Grants Awarded

Collaborative Program

Neighborhood-based Conservation: Restoring Natural and Cultural Resources
Nik Heynen, Department of Geography, University of Georgia
Sharon Adams, Walnut Way Conservation Corp

This study will inform how, and with what limitations and advantages, community-based nonprofit efforts can preserve natural and socio-cultural neighborhood resources and unite diverse groups around social justice issues. This knowledge will help other community-based nonprofit efforts in replicating best practices and improving on shortcomings.

Faculty Program

The Process and Outcome of Nonprofit Consolidation in the Hospital Sector
Ann Lennarson Greer, Department of Sociology and Urban Studies Program, UW-Milwaukee College of Letters and Science

The nonprofit hospital sector has experienced radical transformation in the last thirty years. Between 1975 and the present, hospitals in Southeastern Wisconsin have reconstituted their operations financially and organizationally to function as multiple service competitive organizations. In order to understand the process of transformation, this study will 1) document from existing interview data the decisional processes that led to change and 2) collect new data to appraise the outcome of those decisions in financial terms and as reflected in governing board members' retrospective assessments of the changes that resulted from those decisions.

Understanding Organizational Change in the Nonprofit Sector: Implications for Quality Management Practice
Mesut Akdere, Department of Administrative Leadership, UW-Milwaukee School of Education

Healthcare lags behind other high-risk industries in its effort to ensure basic safety. Although many organizations have worked to improve patient safety, the changes are often slow and not coordinated at a system-wide level. The proposed study will examine the process of organizational change in nonprofit healthcare organizations in order to 1) understand the challenges and barriers to organizational change, and 2) develop a model of improvement and transformation to train their leaders on how to overcome those barriers and apply the most effective improvement methodologies. The findings will help provide a change model of change to implement quality management for nonprofit healthcare sector.

Investigating Participation of Inner-City Nonprofit Organizations in Collaborative Governance
Rina Ghose, Department of Geography, UW-Milwaukee College of Letters and Science

In recent years, a number of collaborative planning programs have been introduced in American cities, providing an opportunity for traditionally marginalized citizens to formally participate in inner-city revitalization tasks. This study will explore the complexities of citizen participation through Milwaukee 's Area Plan program and Neighborhood Strategic Planning program. Through fieldwork conducted with five nonprofit organizations, the project will explore the complex nature of citizen participation and the impacts of the planning programs upon the community. It will also explore the increasingly critical role of private sector and philanthropic institutions in collaborative governance. Finally, it will examine how spatial data and GIS are being used by nonprofit organizations as participatory tools.

2006 Nonprofit Sector Research Mini-Grants