How Sept. 11 changed charity in America (CNN Money): “Americans donated a record-breaking $2.8 billion to help the victims of the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy [...] Four years later, after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans and the Deep South, Americans pulled out their checkbooks once again. Donations to help the survivors of Katrina outpaced September 11 charity by 90%.” According to Dr. Una Osili, director of research for the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, an incredible 66% of households in the US donated to survivors of Katrina and September 11. Is this a truly new phenomenon? Or have the developments in technology in this decade simply enabled more Americans to act upon their desires to give?

Back to School in Northern Virginia (Washington Post Local): “School systems across Northern Virginia enrolled more students this year than last, continuing a trend that has officials seeking ways to ease crowded classrooms. Arlington County schools are among the fastest-growing and will welcome an estimated 22,245 students this fall — an increase of about 5 percent over last year [...] Starting school has always been a milestone in the lives of children and their parents. But this year it feels like a bigger transition than usual for parents at Orange Hunt and 35 other Fairfax schools where kindergarten is being extended from a half-day to full-day.” What might be the cause of these fast enrollment increases? And do you agree with the establishment of full-day kindergarten? (asks this author, as an alumna of morning-only kindergarten in ’91)

Boston Mayor Urges Nonprofits to Hire the Unemployed, and Puts Money Where His Mouth Is (Nonprofit Quarterly): “In a Labor Day speech, Boston Mayor Tom Menino announced a new jobs program that will offer financial incentives to large nonprofit institutions for hiring unemployed workers. The incentives are worth $1,000 or $1,500 per hire, and will be deducted from payments that tax-exempt organizations voluntarily contribute to city coffers (known as payments in lieu of taxes, or PILOTs) [...] Boston has a relatively modest joblessness rate of 7.9 percent, compared to a national average of 9.1 percent.” What do you think of Mayor Menino’s plan and could a version ever be beneficially adapted to DC? (Or to for-profits?)