But even though the United Way of Greater Dayton operated with deficits in 2006, 2007 and 2008, the agency chose not to merge with the larger and more financially stable United Way of Greater Cincinnati. The Dayton nonprofit broke off negotiations last August because the group’s 78 partner agencies feared they would lose funds under the merger’s allocation formula.
Local United Way officials blame the agency’s budget woes on the economic body slam suffered by the region in recent years. The departure of jobs means lost workplace donations to United Way — $500,000 this year alone from NCR’s move to Georgia.
“We asked (NCR) for a parting gift, but we didn’t get anything out of them,” said Vince Corrado, this year’s United Way volunteer campaign chairman.
After cutting its full-time staff by more than 25 percent since October 2008, the United Way is concentrating on mobilizing its volunteers to reach businesses and major organizations that have not contributed to the campaign in the past, officials said. It also is exploring ways of using the Internet, including the social networking sites Facebook and Twitter, to increase individual donations.
Corrado says he has been meeting with the area’s business and community leaders stressing the urgency of their support. “What we’re trying to do is simply get more people involved, especially at the highest levels,” he said. “The need is greater than ever.”
Chief Executive Allen Elijah said the agency expects donations for this year’s campaign “to be flat” after last year’s donations fell $2.5 million short of the $12 million goal. Gary Auman, chairman of United Way board, said after an aggressive budget-cutting effort he expects the agency to come close to eliminating the deficit this year..
United Way’s total revenues have been slipping since 2000, when it pulled in $18.7 million in donations and grants. By 2008, that number had fallen 25 percent to $14.2 million.
But until the fall of 2008, when Elijah took over from former chief executive Marc Levy, administrative expenses at the agency had been climbing steadily, including Levy’s compensation. Charity Navigator, a nonprofit watchdog, reported that the agency’s management and general expenses grew 53 percent between 2005 and 2007 while total revenues declined 11 percent. Levy’s total compensation rose 22 percent from 2005 to 2008, reaching $223,000 by the time he departed for the same position in Portland, Ore.
John North, chief executive of the Miami Valley Better Business Bureau, said United Way passed all 20 of its standards for charitable organizations, including guidelines for fundraising expenses and the percentage of revenues devoted to its mission, in a review of the agency in 2006. The bureau is in the process of reviewing United Way’s 2008 operation, he said.
But Charity Navigator gave the United Way its lowest overall rating — one star out of five — three years in a row from 2005 to 2007 during Levy’s tenure. The low ratings were due primarily to the agency’s deficits and lack of operational reserves, said Charity Navigator spokeswoman Sandra Miniutti. According to its own IRS 990 filings, the United Way of Greater Dayton ran deficits of more than $600,000 in 2005 and 2006 and more than $1 million in 2007.
Charity Navigator’s 2008 rating isn’t out yet.
Levy said United Way never had a true budget deficit under his tenure and that the figures on the 990 forms reflect changes in the agency’s fiscal calender and a devalued appraisal of its main building at 184 Salem Ave.
He said United Way’s partner agencies were always its “number one priority” and that increases in administrative expenses were always lower than the increase in allocations to its partners. He confirmed that his own compensation had been increased by the United Way board during the time the agency’s revenues were dropping.
Peter Luongo, who was head of the United Way board at the time, defended the pay increases. “We decided we were going to compensate people for their level of leadership and talent to maintain and run this organization the best we can. It was not just some arbitrary decision.”
Levy took charge of Dayton’s United Way in 2002 after holding the same position in Fort Wayne, Ind. He has 25 years of experience as a United Way administrator.
Elijah became interim chief executive in October 2008 and was confirmed by the board as permanent chief in May of 2009. He was previously the projects director for Wright Dunbar Inc. and has worked for Computer Science Corp., Fifth Third Bank and Monsanto Research Corp.
Elijah said his total compensation is $118,000, or a little more than half of what Levy was earning before his departure to Oregon.
In a statement released Friday, Elijah said the organization is focused on “an immediate and sustained turnaround.”
“Our board along with several top regional leaders from well-respected organizations like The Dayton Foundation and the Dayton Business Committee are collaborating with us on re-engineering to further reduce overhead and raise more money,” he wrote.
“Contributors to the United Way campaign can be assured that every dollar they invest in the United Way and its partner agencies goes to help the people who need it most in this community through programs that demonstrate they achieve real results.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2437 or jdebrosse@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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