Children’s Heart Foundation: Statement of Values
Introduction
As a matter of fundamental principle, Children’s Heart Foundation’s (CHF) should adhere to the highest ethical standards while striving to accomplish its mission to improve the care and quality life for children in Nevada who are born with or develop heart problems. CHF is supported by individuals, corporations, and foundations through charitable contributions and volunteer effort, by agencies through grants and private contributions.
Children’s Heart Foundation must earn this public trust every day and in every possible way. Organizations are, at their core, people, and it’s up to the people of CHF – board members, executive leaders, employees, and volunteers – to demonstrate their ongoing commitment to the core values of integrity, honesty, fairness, openness, respect, responsibility, and accountability.
Adherence to the law is the minimum standard of expected behavior. As a nonprofit and a philanthropic organization, CHF must not merely embrace the spirit of the law, but go beyond legal requirements to make certain that what it does is matched by what the public understands about what it does. Transparency, openness, and responsiveness to public concerns must be integral to its behavior.
Statement of Values
An effective organization is built on a foundation of widely shared values. The values of CHF include:
- Commitment to the children in Nevada who are born with or develop heart problems
- Accountability to the public
- Commitment to the spirit as well as the letter of all applicable laws and regulations
- Respect for the worth and dignity of our staff, board, and volunteers
- Inclusiveness
- Transparency, integrity, and honesty
- Responsible for stewardship of all resources
- Commitment to excellence and maintaining public trust
Standards for Excellence and Guiding Principles
Mission
Children’s Heart Foundation maintains a clearly stated mission and purpose, approved by the Board of Trustees, in pursuit of the public good. All of its programs are evaluated to assure they effectively and efficiently support that mission. All who work for or on behalf of CHF understand and are loyal to that mission and purpose. The mission is responsive to the constituencies and communities served by CHF and of value to society at large.
Governance
Children’s Heart Foundation has an active governing body, the Board of Trustees, responsible for setting the mission and strategic direction of the organization and oversight of the finances, operations, and policies of the organization. The governing body:
- Ensures that its trustees are personally committed to the mission
- Ensures that its trustees have the requisite skills and experience to carry out their duties and that they understand and fulfill their governance duties acting for the benefit of CHF and its public purpose
- Maintains a conflict of interest policy that ensures that any conflicts of interest or the appearance thereof are avoided or appropriately managed through disclosure, refusal, or other means
- Is responsible for the engagement, regular performance, review, and termination of all employees and ensure that the compensation is reasonable and appropriate
- Ensures that appropriate employees provide the Board of Trustees with timely and appropriate information so that the board can effectively carry out its duties
- Ensures that CHF conducts all transactions and dealings with integrity and honesty
- Ensures that CHF promotes working relationships among board members, staff, volunteers, and program beneficiaries that are based on mutual respect, fairness, and openness
- Ensures that CHF is open and inclusive in its hiring and promotion policies and practices for employees and in its recruitment and appointment of board members and volunteers
- Ensures that policies of CHF are in writing, clearly articulated, and officially adopted
- Ensures that the resources of CHF are responsibly and prudently managed
- Ensures that CHF has the capacity to carry out its programs effectively
- Ensures written minutes of board and board committees are executed, distributed, and archived
- Ensures that Trustees practice self evaluation on an annual basis
Responsible Stewardship
Children’s Heart Foundation manages its funds responsibly and prudently.
- Spends reasonable percentage of its annual budget on programs in pursuit of its mission
- Spends an adequate amount on administrative expenses to ensure effective accounting systems, internal control, competent staffing, and other expenditures critical to professional management
- Compensates employees and any other who may receive compensation reasonably and appropriately
- Has reasonable fundraising costs, recognizing the variety of factors that affect fundraising costs
- Does not accumulate operating funds excessively
- Prudently draws from endowment funds consistent with donor intent and to support the public purpose of the organization
- Ensures that all spending practices and policies are fair, reasonable, and appropriate to fulfill the mission of the organization
- Ensures that all financial reports are factually accurate and complete in all material respects
Financial and Legal
Children’s Heart Foundation practices sound financial management and complies with generally accepted accounting principles. Children’s Heart Foundation is knowledgeable of and complies with all laws, regulations, and applicable international conventions. Accurate financial records are kept and the financial resources are used in the furtherance of the mission of CHF. Further, CHF:
- Operates in accordance with an annual budget which has been approved by the Board of Trustees
- Files a Form 990 and is subject to an audit by an independent Certified Public Accountant
- Prepares internal financial statements monthly, that are provided to the Board of Trustees, identifying and explaining any material variation between actual and budgeted revenues and expenses
- Provide employees a means to report suspected financial impropriety or misuse of CHF funds
Openness and Disclosure
Children’s Heart Foundation operates for public purposes with public support. As such, it provides comprehensive and timely information to the public, the media, and all stakeholders and is responsive in a timely manner to reasonable requests for information. All information about CHF will fully and honestly reflect its policies and practices.
Basic informational data about CHF, such as Form 990, review and compilations, mission, program activities, names of members of Board of Trustees, names of administrative staff and, financial statements is posted on CHF’s website or is otherwise available to the public. All solicitation materials accurately represent CHF policies and practices and respect the dignity of program beneficiaries. All financial, organizational, and program reports are complete and accurate in all material aspects.
Children’s Heart Foundation will provide members of the public who express an interest in its affairs with a meaningful opportunity to communicate with an appropriate representative of CHF. At least one staff member is responsible to assure that CHF is complying with both the letter and spirit of federal, state, and municipal laws, which require disclosure of information to members of the public.
Program Evaluation
Children’s Heart Foundation regularly reviews programs effectiveness and has mechanisms to incorporate lessons learned into future programs. Children’s Heart Foundation is committed to improving program and organizational effectiveness and develops mechanisms to promote learning from its activities and the field. Children’s Heart Foundation is responsive to changes in its field of activity and is responsive to the needs of its constituencies.
Fundraising
Children’s Heart Foundation is maintained on a foundation of honesty and responsible stewardship, and as such is truthful in its solicitation materials and keeps fundraising practices consistent with its mission, compatible with its organizational capacity, and respectful of the interests of donors and prospective donors. Children’s Heart Foundation’s Board of Trustees has voted to adopt the attached Code of Ethical Principles and Standards of Professional Practice promulgated by the Association of Fundraising Professionals. A copy of these documents is hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of these Statement of Values and Standards for Excellence. Children’s Heart Foundation respects the privacy concerns of individual donors and expends funds consistent with donor intent. It discloses important and relevant information to potential donors.
In raising funds from the public, CHF will respect the right of donors, as follows:
- To be informed of the mission of CHF, the way the resources will be used and the CHF capacity to use donations effectively for its intended purposes
- To be informed of the identity of those serving on CHF’s Board of Trustees and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibility
- To be assured their gifts will be used for the purpose for which they are given
- To receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition
- To be assured that information about their donation is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law
- To expect that all relationships with individuals representing CHF will be professional in nature
- To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees, or hired solicitors of CHF
- To regularly be offered the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that CHF may intend to share
- To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful, and forthright answers
