I attended the presentation at the March 13 IVGID Board meeting by Nevarez-Goodson, Executive Director of the Nevada Ethics Commission. One point she made is that a relationship with a non-profit can be similar to a personal relationship and should be disclosed when considering a matter that will financially benefit the non-profit. Parasol announced its intentions to provide monetary benefits to the non-profits currently receiving discounted rent if IVGID agreed to the so-called “lease modification”. One of only 11 non-profits still housed at the Parasol building at the time the proposal was submitted was “Girls on the Run”. Trustee Wong had served on the non-profit’s Board for nearly 5 years, until just a few months before introducing Parasol’s proposal, and continued to participate in the group’s activities, yet she never made any disclosure at IVGID Board meetings over the months the proposal was being considered. Why not?

Although Girls on the Run no longer occupies the Parasol building office space, its long relationship with Parasol is a good indication it will be one of the non-profits on Parasol’s list to receive those monetary benefits. But even if it does not, disclosure of potential conflicts is something we should expect from our Trustees.