Sage To Discuss Grant Management for ARRA Best Practices at 2009 Community Action Partnership Annual Convention

Philadelphia , PA - Sep 01, 2009 - Sage North America today announced that Bonnie McLain, a solution consultant for the Sage Nonprofit Solutions business, will co-present an educational session on grant management as it relates to American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding at the 2009 Community Action Partnership (CAP) Annual Convention this week at Philadelphia’s Marriott Downtown. Joe Perroti, finance director for Community Action Southwest in Washington, Penn., will present along with McLain. Sage develops software products, including Sage MIP Fund Accounting and Sage Fundraising 50, used by Community Action Agencies (CAAs) and other social service organizations across North America.

McLain and Perotti’s session, titled “Grant Management and Transparency for ARRA Funding,” will provide CAAs receiving CSBG, weatherization, Head Start, or other funding from ARRA with information to help them meet specific reporting and accountability requirements to ensure compliance.

“ARRA funds should be clearly segmented from non-ARRA funds for reporting expenditures, program activities, outcome measures, and jobs created or retained,” said McLain. “By implementing certain practices early, CAP agencies can avoid time-consuming corrections or custom reporting later. Attendees of my and Joe’s CAP convention session will learn best practices for grant management and financial tracking that will help them demonstrate their organization’s dedication to transparency and, hopefully, improve their chances for renewed funding.”

McLain has been employed by Sage’s Austin, Texas-based Nonprofit Solutions business unit for more than 10 years. She currently serves as a solutions consultant, but was most recently director of product management with overall responsibility for the Sage MIP Fund Accounting and Sage Fundraising 50 software products. Prior to joining Sage, McLain worked in the government sector for more than 11 years, most recently serving as finance director for the City of Leander, Texas. McLain earned a B.S. degree in Accounting from the University of Texas in El Paso, Texas.

CAP was established in 1971 as the National Association of Community Action Agencies (NACAA), and is the national organization representing the interests of the 1,000 CAAs organized to change people's lives, embody the spirit of hope, improve communities, and make America a better place to live. CAAs care about the entire community, and are dedicated to helping people help themselves and each other.

Sage North America helps more than 2.9 million small and mid-sized businesses and nonprofit organizations in the U.S. and Canada—like Community Action Southwest, Mid Central Community Action, Inc., and Western Community Action—increase efficiency and more easily manage their operations. For more than 30 years, Sage has been helping nonprofits further their missions and better serve constituents through the use of technology. Thousands of organizations manage their operations—from fund accounting, fundraising, and donor management, to payment processing, human resources, health care, and payroll—using Sage’s easy-to-use, flexible, and customizable software and services.