Items relevant to more than one category may appear more than once in this summary. From the issue dated September 21, 2000 About Managing Non-Profit Groups A TIGHT JOB MARKET has prompted many charities to raise salaries, improve training programs, and take other creative steps to attract and retain good employees. A DISTASTE among some charities for the aggressive recruiting tactics common in corporate America has hurt their ability to compete for top job prospects. TOP EXECUTIVES at the nation's largest non-profit organizations received a median pay raise of 6.2 percent last year, according to The Chronicle's ninth annual compensation survey. DEFERRED COMPENSATION is increasingly being offered to charity chief executives as a way of supplementing their pension plans. MERGER of two watchdog groups raises concern among observers. CONGRESS is considering legislation that would allow older people to make tax-free withdrawals from individual retirement accounts for donations made directly to charities (Tax Watch). A BILL TO REPEAL the federal estate tax failed to attract enough votes in the House of Representatives to override President Clinton's veto (Tax Watch). THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE is providing its agents with new advice on its positions on several key issues, including tax-exempt "donor-advised funds" set up by charities and for-profit banks and investment companies (Tax Watch). About Gifts and Grant Makers THE FACE OF PHILANTHROPY: Children's HeartLink, in Minneapolis, has changed its mission from bringing sick children to the United States for treatment to improving cardiovascular care in developing countries. THE ROTHSCHILD FOUNDATION shines a spotlight on the work of artists, sculptors, and photographers who were unheralded in their day -- and who are no longer alive to seek fame or fortune. THE FORD FOUNDATION is announcing a new awards program to support local non-profit leaders, as well as to identify the characteristics that make them successful. RICHARD B. CHENEY, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, says that he and his wife, Lynne Cheney, donated to charity about 1 percent of their combined income of $20.9-million from 1990 through 1999 (Tax Watch). A LOS ANGELES COUPLE have donated $20-million for a new art complex at U.C.L.A.; other recent gifts to non-profit institutions. RECENT GRANTS by foundations, corporations, and other grant makers. SUMMARIES OF ANNUAL REPORTS from the Gill, the Richard King Mellon, and the Rhode Island Foundations. POINTS OF LIGHT 1,703 to 1,722 were named by the Clinton administration. About Fund Raising INCREASING COMPETITION for planned gifts is prompting many charities to pay more attention to figuring out what kinds of tactics are most suitable for which audiences of potential donors and their advisers. PATIENCE AND TRUST are crucial attributes for charities seeking planned gifts, many of which do not materialize for years or decades after they are donated. CHARITIES COULD REAP an additional $500-million from annual on-the-job fund-raising drives if employers and employees became more involved in planning and revitalizing such campaigns, says a new report. INTEREST RATES for planned gifts, issued by the Internal Revenue Service. About Technology THE MICROSOFT CORPORATION will contribute $25-million in cash and software to develop technology-assistance programs for charities nationwide. A NEW YORK ACTIVIST has started an online lobbying campaign to persuade Congress to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. BITS: Meeting to discuss a non-profit data protocol, and a survey on non-profit issues. Also in This Issue OPINION: Allan Parachini on the importance of public communication to foundations' prosperity. LETTERS on what philanthropy can do to improve elections; renewed criticism of America's Promise; and a cartoon offensive to telemarketers. PRESS CLIPPINGS: Forbes magazine on the man who manages celebrities' giving; Worth on American's ìconvenient volunteerism; Trusts & Estates on why and how charities should cultivate a favorable public image; and U.S. News & World Report on college students and community service. BOOKS: A guidebook on board recruitment and development; essays on direct-mail fund raising; a book on collaboration in natural resource management; and summaries of publication on the well-being of children in the United States and women in community development. PEOPLE: Appointments and promotions in the non-profit world.