Non-profits are in a quandary characteristic of our media age: how to create images, talking points, visual and verbal messaging that capture their essence...

The results, as we all see everyday, are sometimes incomprehensible, confusing, redundant and generic. They are viscerally acceptable but substantively shallow. Settlement houses are in an even more difficult situation since the very essence of a settlement is a holistic relationship to community that cannot be easily encapsulated.

University Settlement is the oldest settlement house in the country, founded in 1886, but it is eternally youthful in its responses to the challenges faced by a predominantly lower income immigrant community. Why make simple the wonderful complexity that can only come from an institution that has successfully evolved over many decades? University Settlement is both true to its original mission and extraordinarily effective as a modern organization. The Settlement runs a comprehensive array of high quality programs serving all age groups in an integrated accessible manner; it advocates with and on behalf of local residents to create a more stable and viable community; it takes substantial programmatic risks in responding to service needs that defy simple resolution; it recognizes the importance and the implications of neighborhood change, reaching out to  populations that share a common geography but have dramatically different demographic characteristics. University Settlement attracts and retains a dedicated staff, loyal financial supporters, respect among our government, corporate and foundation partners, and close connections with the other institutions that create a strong community fabric.

University Settlement has not changed its name and never will, even if some people are not as yet familiar with what a settlement represents in our country's past and future. Our logo -- an image of our historic building on Eldridge Street -- remains the same even though it might not win the hearts of graphic designers. Our stationery tag line, "The First Social Settlement in America," may not do well in a jingle but does assert our place in history. Our message may not be easily conveyed in a short elevator ride or over drinks at a social event, but anyone who has visited our programs or talked to our staff becomes a settlement convert for life.

University Settlement is easy to understand when it is witnessed up close and personal. Short attention spans and visual blips may be appropriate when considering simple issues. To truly understand the challenges faced by the tens of thousands of people who rely on the Settlement for their survival and success -- challenges that are, by their very nature, complex -- take a longer look at why our name, our character, our values and our reputation remain steady over time.