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N.C. Zoo Society Board Focuses on More than Bottom Line Directors Elect New Member
BY: Mike McClanahanApr. 28, 2008
ASHEBORO, N.C. — N.C. Zoological Society Board Directors agreed at their April 23 meeting to dedicate resources necessary to secure State funding for N.C. Zoo capital needs in 2008, even though appropriations will have little impact on the Zoo Society’s fiscal bottom line.
Society directors are joining zoo officials to ask the N.C. legislature for $6 million to expand the polar bear exhibit, construct a children’s nature zoo and fund planning for improvements to the African pavilion exhibit. If the State comes through with this funding, the Zoo Society will provide an additional $4 million in private donations.
This emphasis on State capital funding builds on an effort the Society Board made last year which brought $3.4 million in State appropriations to the zoo to construct barns for African plains animals and a storage facility for the horticulture department. While the Society provided personnel, financial resources and grass roots support to keep the zoo’s needs in front of lawmakers, none of the appropriated funds could be counted as Zoo Society revenues since they were transferred directly to the zoo, an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
“As a private nonprofit organization we can be far more energetic in our appeals to legislators than the zoo can be,” said Russ Williams, N.C. Zoo Society executive director, said. “And as a nonprofit dedicated to the N.C. Zoo and conservation, we measure success in far broader terms than simply a financial net of revenues minus expenses. The important thing is that the zoo got the funds to take care of its animals and facilities”
The appeals Williams referred to involved dedicating a full time staff member to educate legislators on the zoo’s needs and importance to North Carolina. The Zoo Society also provided printed materials and other administrative help, and encouraged Board Directors, friends and Zoo Society members to join the effort.
“The fact that more than 1,500 Society members contacted their legislators on behalf of the zoo during one 24-hour period last session demonstrates the broad support this effort enjoys among our membership,” Williams said. “It also demonstrates that we truly are a society of members dedicated to the zoo and the cause of conservation.”
Williams added, however, that Zoo Society Directors remain firmly committed to exemplary stewardship of the direct donations entrusted to them and to strong financial performance and growth. He pointed to the Society’s promise to match State appropriations with $4 million as evidence that responsible private support will always be vital to the future of the N.C. Zoo.
Williams also pointed out that Charity Navigator awarded the Zoo Society a four-star rating for its management of donor funds. Charity Navigator is an independent organization that evaluates the financial health of America’s largest charities. A four-star rating, the highest awarded, means that the Zoo Society’s fiscal management exceeds industry standards and outperforms most charities in its cause.
“One of our primary missions is to support the N.C. Zoo,” Williams said. “Last year we helped secure the first State capital appropriations for the Zoo in more than a decade, and we’ll continue to encourage legislators to stay on track with that renewed support of the State Zoo.”
Also at the April 23 meeting, the Board elected Therence O. Pickett of Greensboro to serve as a new Board Director. Pickett is Chief Legal Officer for Volvo Trucks, North America. He previously served as Deputy General Counsel and Associate General Counsel with Volvo, and was a Senior Attorney with the law firm of McGuire, Woods, Battle & Boothe.
The North Carolina Zoological Society is a private non-profit organization that supports the North Carolina Zoo and conservation. The zoo is an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, William G. Ross Jr., Secretary; Michael F. Easley, Governor.