(New York, NY) – Ten nonprofit groups in three New York City boroughs and Westchester have been chosen as semifinalists for the 2015 New York Community Trust Nonprofit Excellence Awards.

The groups are in the running to win $60,000 in prizes as well as tuition scholarships for the Columbia Business School Executive Education Programs in Social Enterprise. The announcement was made by The Nonprofit Coordinating Committee of New York, which created and manages the Awards program.

A selection committee chose the 10 semifinalists from a pool of 56 applicants following an intensive application and vetting process that identifies excellent and replicable management practices among nonprofits in the five boroughs, Long Island and Westchester. Three winning organizations will be announced and honored at an Awards presentation in November, 2015.

“We’re thrilled to announce the 10 semifinalists of the 2015 New York Community Trust Nonprofit Excellence Awards,” said Michael Clark, president of the Nonprofit Coordinating Committee (NPCC). “These organizations, which represent a wide range of nonprofit subsectors, have distinguished themselves and are to be commended for their stellar management practices.”

“Congratulations to the ten semifinalists. They represent the best in nonprofit management and other organizations stand to learn much from them, which is exactly the point of this awards program,” said Lorie Slutsky, president of The New York Community Trust, one of the region’s leading funders of nonprofits.

The semifinalists are:
America Needs You: Based in Manhattan, America Needs You fights for economic mobility for ambitious, first-generation college students by providing transformative mentorship and intensive career development.

Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC): Based in Manhattan, Bowery Residents’ Committee helps people reclaim lives lost by restoring hope and dignity and offering opportunities for health and self-sufficiency.

Cardinal McCloskey Community Services: Based in Westchester, Cardinal McCloskey Community Services protects, empowers and promotes independence through community based services for at-risk children and families and those with developmental disabilities.

Ghetto Film School: Based in The Bronx, Ghetto Film School educates, develops, and celebrates the next generation of great American storytellers.

Girls Write Now, Inc.: Based in Manhattan, Girls Write Now provides guidance, support, and opportunities for at-risk girls from New York City’s public high schools to develop their creative, independent voices, explore careers in professional writing, and learn how to make healthy school, career and life choices.

GO Project: Based in Manhattan, GO Project helps shape the futures of low-income, underperforming New York City public school children by providing critical academic, social and emotional programs starting in the elementary years.

Groundswell: Based in Brooklyn, Groundswell brings together youth, artists, and community partners, to make public art that advances social change, for a more just and equitable world.

New York Common Pantry: Based in Manhattan, New York Common Pantry is dedicated to reducing hunger throughout New York City while promoting dignity and self-sufficiency.

The New York Foundling: Based in Manhattan, The New York Foundling empowers underserved children and families to live healthy, independent and fulfilling lives.

TNTP (formerly known as The New Teacher Project): Based in Brooklyn, TNTP’s mission is to end the injustice of educational inequality by providing excellent teachers to the students who need them most and by advancing policies and practices that ensure effective teaching in every classroom.

“The Nonprofit Excellence Awards are important to the funding community for several reasons,” said Ronna Brown, president of Philanthropy New York, the regional association of grantmakers representing the interests of over 280 of the most prominent private, corporate and community foundations across the region. “Not only does the process itself help many nonprofits improve key areas of functioning, the semifinalists represent models of practice that the foundation community look to as exemplars.”

The Awards program has attracted more than 685 applicants from across the city and its suburbs over its first nine years. The Awards recognize outstanding management practices in eight key performance areas identified by thousands of nonprofit leaders across the country.

The eight areas of excellence are: management focus on results; strong governance; excellent financial management; diverse and culturally competent organizational practices; enlightened human resources; model IT practices; effective communications; and, exemplary fundraising and resource development.

NPCC created the Nonprofit Excellence Awards in 2007 and serves as the program’s tax-exempt manager, in collaboration with The New York Community Trust and Philanthropy New York. WNYC sponsors the program, which is also supported by The Clark Foundation, Ford Foundation, McGladrey LLP, and Columbia Business School Executive Education Programs in Social Enterprise.

More about the Nonprofit Excellence Awards, including the Awards’ guiding document, Eight Key Areas of Nonprofit Excellence; past winners; funders; and Selection Committee members, is available at www.npccny.org/info/awards.htm.