Essay About Mary Stewart And Reading Of Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions Case

Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions Case Study
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Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions Case Study
August 12, 2013
BSHS/373-Financial Management in Human Services
Professor: Scott
According to the reading of Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions Case, Magnolia Therapeutic
Solutions is a nonprofit organization in New York City that specializes in psychotherapy for
individuals diagnosed with Post Traumatic Syndrome Disorder (PTSD). The organization was
created in 1998 by Mary Stewart. Mary who is the founder and the executive director of
Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions realized that there were many people in New York City who
where suffering from post-traumatic syndrome disorder after the terror attack on September 11,
2001. with the unique position of the organization as well as the funding of several sources who
where willing to provide grants in order for Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions to start, the
Organization quickly grew. The city of New York granted the Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions a
one year grant in order to provide treatment to those who were suffering from PTSD. With the
grant that was granted to Magnolia Therapeutic Solutions Mary was able to expand her staff in
order to meet the demand for services. With the help of several grants Magnolia Therapeutic
Solutions was doing quite well. When it came time to do her budget, Mary was sure that she
would receive the grant that was given to the organization in 2001 once again in 2002. Mary
added the grant money to her 2002 budget. Unfortunately Mary did not receive the grant in 2002
and fell short $500,000, which in turn forced Mary to lay off one third of her employees.
The members of the board decided to approve the 2002 budget that was submitted by
Mary which she based on her budget from 2001 which was made up of fund raising monies as
well as several grant monies. The decision that was I would have made would be opposite of the
decision made by the board. The boards decision lacked funding documentation stating that the
grant would be renewed for the upcoming fiscal year. The decision was made based on the
assumption that the grant would be renewed for the upcoming fiscal year. Mary failed to make
her budget based on monies that she knew the organization was guaranteed to have from the
fundraising and various grants monies. Mary also failed to take into consideration that the
economy was declining after the terror attacks on 2001 and it would be difficult to keep up with
the demand that she made on her development department to raise more money than they did in
2001. The Magnolias Therapeutic Solutions fiscal budget for 2001 was 1.3 million and the
budget that Mary presented to the board was one of 2 million dollars. Even though in many cases
budgets are needed to determine how much funds an organization may need, the organization
need to research the cost of the project and then put that into the grant as well as plan according
in the event that they do not receive. It seems that Mary or the board did not follow the fully
understand the grants term.
The main cause behind the problem that Magnolia ultimately suffered I feel is the lack of
understanding the terms of the grant as well as the lack of strategic planning when it comes to the
growth of the organization as well as the management functions. As the director of the
organization Mary failed to see that without the grant it would be difficult to continue to provide
services and continue to employ a large number of staff. Mary should have maintained
open communication with the organization that provided her with the grant that funded