How do you pick a charity to support? How do you determine its worth?
Is it the urgency of its mission? Its relevancy to your life, and the lives of those you love? Do you look for a way to measure the real-world impact it’s having? Or do you make your decision based on how swiftly and efficiently a charity is making progress towards its goals?
When it comes to choosing charities to support, you’re faced with many such questions. And over the last decade, it’s become increasingly clear that you won’t find all of the answers in an annual report, or a Form 990.
The results a charity gets, the impact it makes upon the world, can’t be found in financial ratios and overhead costs alone. Those numbers are important, but they tell only a fraction of the whole story.
Let’s take a look at some groups that rate charities like the American Institute for Cancer Research.
The Better Business Bureau (BBB Wise Giving Alliance)
AICR is proud to hold the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance National Charity Seal. There are 20 standards which comprise the BBB Wise Giving Alliance Standards for Charity Accountability and a charity must meet each and every standard in order to be awarded the National Charity Seal. These Standards for Charity Accountability go beyond the requirements of local, state and federal laws and regulations.
The BBB evaluates and rates a charity based on four key areas: board governance, a charity’s effectiveness in achieving its mission, financial accountability, and transparent and accurate donor communications. In order to ensure a charity remains compliant with the Standards for Charity Accountability, a charity must undergo a review every two years.
Guidestar
GuideStar gathers, organizes, and distributes information about U.S nonprofits that advances transparency, enables users to make better decisions, and encourages charitable giving.
AICR holds a Gold Seal of Transparency, providing key information about the work we do, so funders can make educated decisions about supporting our cause.
Our Commitment
Here at AICR, we are committed to transparency, accountability and efficiency. We adhere to the Donor Bill of Rights and accepted best practice standards. We work hard to ensure that we continue to meet each of the 20 BBB Wise Giving Alliance Standards for Charity Accountability.
- ANA Nonprofit Federation – Principles & Best Practices for Accountability in Fundraising
- Donor Bill of Rights developed by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, Council for Advancement and Support of Education and the Giving Institute: Leading Consultants to Non-Profits
Thank You
We appreciate that you are taking the time to learn more about the American Institute for Cancer Research than a simple and potentially misleading rating can reveal.
