Giving Back Through Charity and Political Action

For this lab you are asked to either engage in political action of some form or to give to charity.  Political action and charitable giving can take many forms.  You can volunteer your time, donate money, sign petitions, give unwanted items to thrift stores, write letters, etc..   As this year is an election year, I would strongly encourage you to register to vote if you are not already registered.  You can follow the starred link below to register.  Below are some links to charities and political action groups.  You need not restrict yourself to the groups listed below.  The lists are merely way to get you started.  The charities listed below were all ranked A- or above by The American Institute of Philanthropy or a 3 or 4 star rating on Charity Navigator.  In general this means that 80% or more of money raised goes towards the cause, and that they are relatively effective fund raisers.  Entries with a red star are volunteer or non-monetary actions.  Political action links were chosen based solely on my personal knowledge.  Suggestions for either group are welcome.  

To complete the assignment:

(1) Visit the charity evaluation sites linked above (The American Institute of Philanthrophy (Charity Watch)  and the Charity Navigator).  Read the material on charity evaluation.  This information is on the pages linked below.  If you normally give to a charity, look-up their rating on each site.
(2) Go to ALL of the Non-Partisan Voter Research sites.
(3) Go to at least 3 charity sites and  at least 3 political action sites.  Your sites need not be on this list.
(4) Choose a charity or political action site and take action.  Entries with a red star are volunteer or non-monetary actions.
(5) Go to beachboard and answer the questions on the CPA assignment.