Mequon nonprofit Starting Point Inc. has joined The Difference Principal Inc., which serves as a parent company for a network of nonprofits focused on social justice.
Starting Point, which has eight employees, offers youth-focused substance abuse prevention and intervention. The Difference Principal is a Milwaukee-based nonprofit that provides administrative oversight, fiscal management, human resources, IT, fund development and contract management services.
Through the partnership, which has been in discussions for about a year-and-a-half, The Difference Principal’s board of trustees will now govern Starting Point’s fiscal operations, said Carrie Gleba, assistant director of Starting Point. By joining the larger network of organizations, Starting Point will be able to take advantage of administrative and back office support, allowing it to shift more of its resources toward its mission. It will also take advantage of economies of scale for things like information technology and health insurance through the larger network.
“It is more of a partnership, so we maintain our 501(c)3 status as a separate entity,” Gleba said. “The fiscal direction of the organization and the approval of the budgets has now been moved up to The Difference Principal. The concept really is to take away some of those things nonprofits spend a lot of time on that don’t necessarily fit their mission.”
