1 October 2015
Dear Nonprofit,
VCG BOARD OF DIRECTORS
CHAIR
David S. Birdsell
Dean of the School of Public Affairs (SPA)
Baruch College
Joseph Del Toro
Financial Advisor & Consultant
Daniel M. Flax
Vice President, Engineering
Capital Access Network
Yulitza Franklin
Urban Analyst, NYS Department of
Financial Services
Jane B. O’Connell
President, Altman Foundation
Michael S. Sirkin
Partner
Proskauer Rose LLP
Lynn Videka
Dean, NYU School of Social Work
Tai Chang Terry
Assistant General Counsel (ret.)
Time Warner Inc
.
___________________________________
LEADERSHIP COUNCIL
Francis Carling, Esq.
Collazo Carling & Mish LLP
T.J. Dermot Dunphy*
Kildare Enterprises, LLC
Thomas P. Ference
Graduate School of Business
Columbia University
David Furer
McKinsey & Co.
James G. Greilsheimer, Esq.
Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, LLP
Daniel L. Kurtz, Esq.
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom
Lois Leatherman
Financial Services Market Researcher
William T. Merritt
National Black United Fund
Frederick B. Putney
The Riverside Group
Peter G. Scotese
Springs Industries
Kim St. Bernard
Girl Scouts of the USA
Harold Tanner*
Tanner & Co.
Arthur H. White
Yankelovich Partners
John C. Whitehead*
Former Co-Chairman, Goldman Sachs & Co.
& Former Deputy Secretary of State
Byron R. Wien*
Blackstone Group L.P.
*Founding Trustees
STAFF
David M. LaGreca
Brenda Baker
Ayesha Mahmooda
It is time again to invite nominations for this year’s Brooke W.
Mahoney Award for Outstanding Board Leadership.
In its 6th year, The Brooke Award was established in 2010 to honor the
memory of Brooke W. Mahoney. For thirty-eight years, Brooke served as
Executive Director and Innovator-in-Chief of VCG. Long before “good
governance” became a discussion topic for the nonprofit sector, Brooke
set out to bring diverse, strong individuals into nonprofit board rooms with
the goal of creating a “brain trust” to help organizations achieve their
mission. This award allows us to recognize the outstanding work done by
a Board of directors as it dedicates time and resources to achieving its
organization’s unique mission.
We encourage you to apply so that we may continue to showcase the
best governance practices providing opportunities for other Boards to
learn and be inspired!
Last year, we recognized Transportation Alternatives for the quality of
their Board leadership. Is this the year for your Board to be
recognized?
If you believe your Board is among the best, apply for this year’s award
and compete to win a $5,000 prize for your organization. We are grateful
to The Rauch Foundation for underwriting this award and their support of
all of our work!
Congratulations to the over 350,000 nonprofit Board members in the TriState metro community particularly in the Hudson Valley, Long Island,
New Jersey, Westchester, Western Connecticut and New York City and
to the dedicated staffs that provide an amazing array of services and
programs to our communities. Your dedication makes our communities
better places to live and work!
With best regards,
David M. LaGreca
www.vcg.org
www.boardnetUSA.org
Call for Nominations
An Executive Director and/or Board Chair may nominate the Board for its outstanding leadership
efforts during the past calendar year.
The nomination includes three sections:

Three Essay questions

Information about your Board and its Practices

Submission of additional documents
A good Board of Directors is invaluable to an organization. We want to learn about and to
showcase how your Board provided the kind of outstanding leadership that allowed your
organization to further its mission and vision.
The competition is open to any 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization located within the Tri-State
(NY/NJ/CT) area including the Hudson Valley and Long Island. There is no entry fee.
Nonprofits of any size, structure, and program service area (regardless of mission, religious
affiliation, ethnicity, socio-economic grouping, ideological perspective, or sexual orientation) are
encouraged to apply. Organizations DO NOT need to be a client of VCG Governance Matters,
registered on boardnetUSA or be a member to apply.
PLEASE NOTE: Previous winners must wait five years to reapply, and previous finalists must
wait three years to reapply.
Application content will remain confidential and becomes the property of VCG Governance
Matters, which may aggregate and use the materials for research purposes. No data will be
attributed to individual respondents.
Applications can only be returned via email. Please return this form and other requested
documents attached in an email to INFO@vcg.org.
APPLICATIONS ARE DUE NO LATER THAN 5:00 p.m. on Friday, December 4, 2015.
PLEASE NOTE: All applications will be reviewed by a panel of nonprofit and foundation leaders
who will select the finalists in early January 2016. The Board Chair and the Executive
Director of all finalist organizations will meet with the panel on Tuesday, February
2, 2016. Finalists may be required to support their application by providing additional
supplemental information.
The winner will receive an award and a $5,000 gift which will be presented on Tuesday
evening, March 8, 2016. All finalists will receive an award and be highlighted in our
communications during 2016.
If you have any questions about the award process, please submit them to dlagreca@vcg.org.
www.vcg.org
www.boardnetUSA.org
4 WEST 104th STREET, #LB, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10025 TEL: (212) 447-1236 EMAIL: boardinfo@vcg.org
Defining Good Governance – and Your Board’s
Performance
1.
Good governance is not defined in a vacuum, but rather in response to what an
organization needs at a particular point in its development. Please define good governance
for your organization at this point in its life stage. (500 word maximum.)
Insert text here - 500 word maximum
2.
In the past year, you believe your Board has provided exemplary oversight to your
organization. Using the definition above, Please describe several concrete examples of
good governance in action for your organization during the past year. (500 word
maximum.)
Insert text here - 500 word maximum
3. When an individual joins a nonprofit Board, he/she enters into a "social contract" (explicitly
or implicitly) that defines what the individual will do for the organization and what the
organization will do for the individual.
What do you expect of your Board members, individually and collectively? Have those
expectations evolved or changed in the past year?
Finally, how do you assess the performance of your Board and your Board members? (500
word maximum.)
Insert text here - 500 word maximum
4.
Additional (Optional): Please describe in detail any other ways that your Board helped your
organization this past year. (500 word maximum.)
Insert text here - 500 word maximum
Organizational Information
1. Name of Organization:
Name of Organization
2. Please provide organization's contact information below:
Address:
Address
Address 2:
Address 2
City/Town:
City/Town
State:
State
ZIP/Postal Code:
ZIP/Postal Code
Phone Number:
Phone Number
3. Organization's website(s):
Organization's website(s)
4. Organization's Mission Statement (Please limit to 1-2 sentences):
Mission Statement
5. Most recent annual operating budget size:
Annual Operating Budget Size
6. What percentage of your budget comes from
(please total to 100%):
Source
Percentage
Your Board Members?
%
Private & Corporate Contributions?
%
Foundations and Individual Donors?
%
Public Sources (city, state, federal government grants or contracts)?
%
Earned Revenue (program or membership fees, tuition, investment
income, events, etc.)?
%
7. Does your organization meet all the Better Business Bureau of NY Philanthropic
Advisory Service Standards for Charity Accountability
(www.newyork.bbb.org)?
Yes
No
Did not apply
Information about Your Board & Its Practices
1. Current number of Board members:
#
2. Maximum Board members allowed by current bylaws:
#
3. How many full Board meetings are held annually?
#
4. What is the average attendance over a period of one year (%)?
#
5.
Does your Board have:
Yes
No
Terms of Office
Term Limits
Give/Get Policy
Committee Structure
A Governance Committee
A Board Development Plan
Annual Board Self-Assessment
An Emergency Succession Plan
6. Percentage of your Board members that contributed financially to your
organization in your most recently completed fiscal year:
#%
7. How many Board members served on your Board at the beginning of
2015?
#
8. How many members have left the Board during 2015?
#
9. Projected number of Board members at the beginning of 2016?
#
10. Your Board includes how many:
Men: #
Women: #
11. How many of your Board members identify as:
African American: #
Asian: #
Hispanic: #
Other: #
Caucasian: #
12. Concerning the age of your Board members, how many do you identify as:
Under 20 Years of Age?
#
20 – 29
#
30 – 39
#
40 – 49
#
50 – 59
#
60+
#
13. During 2014, did your Board have (check all that apply):
A separately scheduled planning retreat?
An extended meeting on one topic?
An emergency meeting to deal with outside challenges?
Regularly scheduled Executive Sessions (Board Members Only)
A strategic planning process underway?
Other (please specify)
14. Does your organization have a Board adopted strategic plan?
Yes
No
If yes, what year was it adopted:
Year
15. How were you introduced to the person most recently elected to your Board?
Introduction
16. Have you identified a person to become the NEXT Chair of your Board?
Yes
No
Please attach:

Latest 990 Filing

Board list with their business and professional affiliations
Contact Information
1. Contact information for Person Submitting This Nomination
Name:
Name
Title:
Title
Address:
Address
Address 2:
Address 2
City/Town:
City/Town
State:
State
ZIP/Postal Code:
ZIP/Postal Code
Country:
Country
Email Address:
Email Address
Phone Number:
Phone Number
Executive Director
Name
Email Address
Name
Email Address
Board Chair
For information about the award, the application process and the March 2016 event,
please contact dlagreca@vcg.org.