We should all be accountants! (at least a little bit)

Peggy M. Jackson, DPA, CPCU and Toni E. Fogarty, Ph.D., MPH, have written a wonderful book for nonprofits. It is called Sarbanes-Oxley for Nonprofits. Now I know that most people involved in nonprofits are “people dedicated.” Most do not spend their time reading accounting rules. This book shows why it is important for the nonprofit’s management and board members to have a basic understanding of financial statements and how to analyze them. This information shows a picture of the financial health of the nonprofit. The healthier the exempt organization, the more people that can be helped. Isn’t that something we all want?

In my next few articles I will give some very basic information about the four financial statements and some financial ratios to help evaluate them. Don’t worry. This will be simple and valuable information. Who knows? You might even find it interesting and fun. Be careful. You might be an accountant in the making.