Posted on April 16, 2009

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Massachusetts Nonprofits Turn to Mergers to Survive

Nonprofit mergers, which have been growing in number in the past decade, are now becoming even more common in Massachusetts as organizations face drops in donations and cuts in funding due to the recession, the Boston Globe reports.

While nonprofits typically are concerned about sacrificing autonomy or losing their identity in a merger, an increasing number of groups are teaming up to ensure that their work continues. For example, family development organizations Dorchester CARES and the Family Nurturing Center of Massachusetts merged last July, the Arts and Business Council of Greater Boston merged with Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts in August, and earlier this month Centro Latino de Chelsea and Concilio Hispano became one group.

The number of organizations seeking mergers could grow even higher in the coming months, since many groups are still operating with funds from last year and anticipate feeling the full brunt of the economic downturn between now and 2010.

According to a Boston Foundation report released last summer, the number of nonprofits in Massachusetts has risen by 88 percent in the past two decades. Indeed, some experts have warned that there may be too many independent organizations operating in the state for all of them to survive — especially given the economic downturn.

"In an expansive, booming economy, this kind of growth might be welcome or at least sustainable," said Boston Foundation president and CEO Paul S. Grogan in an introduction to the report, "but in an economy that is shrinking, it is cause for serious concern."

Ailworth, Erin. “More Nonprofits Engage in Mergers for Survival.” Boston Globe 4/15/09.

Primary Subject: Philanthropy and Voluntarism
Secondary Subject(s): Economic Crisis
Location(s): Massachusetts

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