Organizational Histories of Nonprofit Human Service Organizations

This book is based on an important but complicated question: How have nonprofit human service organizations sustained themselves over time? It documents the organizational histories of pioneering nonprofits that have unique missions and significant longevity – in one case, 157 years. This volume provides one of the few documented histories of nonprofit human service organizations and includes a cross-case analysis of the major themes that help to expand our understanding of organizational lifecycles with respect to organizational growth and resilience. The major themes appear in the form of clusters of organizations that are exemplars of: leadership (experiences of either founding or long-term executive directors); internal operations (capacity to respond to changing community needs); and external relations (capacity to develop unique and/or sustained relationships with funding sources and/or donor populations). These cases also provide students of nonprofit management with opportunities for case-based learning that complements the more time-limited and episodic teaching cases which rarely provide learners with a longitudinal perspective of nonprofit organizations. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work.

1. Introduction 2. Growth and Resilience of Pioneering Nonprofit Human Service Organizations: A Cross-Case Analysis of Organizational Histories Part I: Organizational Exemplars of Sustained Leadership 3. BANANAS: Providing Child Care Services to a Multi-Ethnic Community 4. The Unity Council at 40: A Pioneering Community Development and Service Organization (1967–2007) 5. Girls Incorporated of Alameda County at 50: A Voice for Girls (1958–2008) 6. Coleman Advocates for Children and Youth: A Pioneering Child Advocacy Organization (1974–2008) Part II: Organizational Exemplars of Re-Inventing Internal Operations 7. Larkin Street Youth Services: Helping Kids Get Off the Street for Good (1982–2007) 8. Asian Community Mental Health Services at 35: A Pioneering Ethnic Organization (1973–2008) 9. CompassPoint Nonprofit Services: Strengthening the Capacities of Nonprofits (1971–2008) 10. Black Adoption Placement and Research Center at 25: Placing African-American Children in Permanent Homes (1983–2008) Part III: Organizational Exemplars of Substantial External Relations 11. Shelter Network: Serving Homeless Families and Individuals (1987–2007) 12. Jewish Family and Children’s Services: A Pioneering Human Service Organization (1850–2008) 13. On Lok: A Pioneering Long-Term Care Organization for the Elderly (1971–2008) 14. The Bayview Hunters Point Foundation for Community Improvement: A Pioneering Multi-Ethnic Human Service Organization (1971–2008) 15. Conclusion: Assessing the Organizational Capacity of Nonprofit Human Service Agencies: Self-Assessment Tools for Practice

Michael J. Austin is the Milton and Florence Krenz Mack Distinguished Professor of Nonprofit Management in the School of Social Welfare at the University of California, Berkeley, USA. He has authored or co-authored 18 books and over 100 articles. He is the Associate Editor of Administration in Social Work.