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Policies and Guidelines

Contents

Philosophy of Journal of Nonprofit Innovation

For more information, please see Journal of Nonprofit Innovation Aims and Scope page.

Who Can Submit?

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation welcomes submissions from both academic scholars and nonprofit leaders. We accept contributions that advance nonprofit research, practice, and innovation.

Anyone may submit an original article to be considered for publication in Journal of Nonprofit Innovation, provided they own the copyright to the work being submitted or are authorized by the copyright owner(s). Authors are the initial owners of the copyrights to their works, unless they have, as a condition of employment, agreed to transfer copyright to their employer.

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Submission Types

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation publishes three primary types of submissions:

  • Research Articles – Academic studies that contribute to nonprofit and social innovation scholarship. These should follow established research structures (abstract, literature review, methodology, findings, discussion, references) and be grounded in relevant scholarship.
  • Thought Papers – Essays or reflective pieces from scholars and nonprofit leaders. These highlight new ideas, conceptual frameworks, or lessons learned from practice, with an emphasis on bridging theory and practice and sharing best practices with the field.
  • Nonprofit Spotlight – Features on validated organizations (through WikiCharities) that highlight their mission, work, geographic focus, impact, and insights. These spotlights are designed to showcase practical examples of nonprofit innovation that others may learn from.

Each submission type should be original work and follow the general and formatting requirements outlined in these guidelines.

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General Submission Rules

Submitted articles cannot have been previously published, nor be forthcoming in an archival journal or book (print or electronic). Please note: “publication” in a working-paper series does not constitute prior publication. In addition, by submitting material to Journal of Nonprofit Innovation, the author is stipulating that the material is not currently under review at another journal (electronic or print) and that they will not submit the material to another journal (electronic or print) until the completion of the editorial decision process at Journal of Nonprofit Innovation. If you have concerns about the submission terms for Journal of Nonprofit Innovation, please contact the editors.

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Language Submission Requirements

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation accepts submissions in English as well as Spanish, French, German, Chinese, and Hindi.

To ensure consistency in review and publication, all non-English submissions must follow this process:

Step One: English Submission – Authors must first submit an English version of their article. This version will be reviewed through the standard editorial and peer-review process. As outlined in the formatting requirements, the English submission must exclude author information on the title page, and the abstract must be submitted separately.

Step Two: Non-English Submission – Immediately after submitting the English version, authors may submit their article in one of the approved additional languages as a separate submission. This non-English version must include the title, author(s), and abstract (150–200 words) at the beginning of the article.

Once the English version is accepted, the corresponding non-English version will be automatically approved for publication.

Publication Format: The English version will be included and designed into the official journal issue. All non-English versions will be published as separate linked articles and will not appear in the full issue PDF (English only).

Authors are responsible for ensuring the accuracy and quality of their translations.

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Formatting Requirements

Journal of Nonprofit Innovation requires APA Style (7th ed.) for all submissions. See “Final Manuscript Preparation Guidelines” below for more details. Although bepress can provide limited technical support, it is ultimately the responsibility of the author to produce an electronic version of the article as a high-quality PDF or a Microsoft Word file that can be converted to a PDF file.

It is understood that the current state of technology for Adobe’s Portable Document Format (PDF) is such that there can be no guarantees that documents in PDF will work perfectly with all possible hardware and software configurations that readers may have.

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Final Manuscript Preparation Guidelines

All submissions must follow APA Style (7th ed.). This document provides details on typesetting and layout requirements pertaining to final manuscript submission to Journal of Nonprofit Innovation.

Formatting Requirements

  • Cover Page (English submission only). Include all authors’ names, affiliations, addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses. Also include 3–5 keywords that reflect your article.
  • Title Page & Abstract (English submission). Provide a title page without author information. Submit the abstract (150–200 words) separately, per journal instructions.
  • Non-English submissions. The translated version must include the title, author(s), and abstract (150–200 words) at the beginning of the article (in the translated language).
  • Main Body. The main body should follow the title/abstract materials (English body typically begins on page three). Include research-based or practice-based analysis, references to reliable sources, and visuals where appropriate. All tables and figures should be embedded where first referenced (not placed at the end).
  • Conclusion. Include a final section that summarizes findings and implications.
  • Appendix (optional). May include references, author bios, instruments, or supplemental materials as appropriate.

All submissions, references, and citations should be in APA Style, Times New Roman 12 pt., single spaced. Images, figures, and charts must be placed in the proper location within the text and be print-ready with no copyright restrictions. Document file format should be PDF or Word. Submissions that are incorrectly formatted will be returned to the author for revisions, with the opportunity to resubmit. Upon acceptance, the author(s) will receive further instructions on the publication process and final article formatting.

For further APA Style information, please refer to:

  1. Purdue OWL
  2. Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020. APA Style Guide

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Rights for Authors and BYU ScholarsArchive

As further described in our submission agreement (the Submission Agreement), in consideration for publication of the article, the authors assign to BYU ScholarsArchive all copyright in the article, subject to the expansive personal-use exceptions described below.

Attribution and Usage Policies

Reproduction, posting, transmission, or other distribution or use of the article or any material therein, in any medium as permitted by a personal-use exemption or by written agreement of BYU ScholarsArchive, requires credit to BYU ScholarsArchive as copyright holder (e.g., BYU ScholarsArchive © 2025).

Personal-use Exceptions

The following uses are always permitted to the author(s) and do not require further permission from BYU ScholarsArchive, provided the author does not alter the format or content of the articles, including the copyright notification:

  • Storage and back-up of the article on the author’s computer(s) and digital media (e.g., back-up servers, external drives), provided that the article stored on these computers and media is not readily accessible by persons other than the author(s);
  • Posting of the article on the author(s) personal website, provided that the website is non-commercial;
  • Posting of the article on the internet as part of a non-commercial open access institutional repository or other non-commercial open access publication site affiliated with the author(s)’s place of employment; and
  • Posting of the article on a non-commercial course website for a course being taught by the author at the university or college employing the author.

People seeking an exception, or who have questions about use, should contact the editors.

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General Terms and Conditions of Use

Users of the BYU ScholarsArchive website and/or software agree not to misuse the BYU ScholarsArchive service or software in any way.

The failure of BYU ScholarsArchive to exercise or enforce any right or provision in the policies or the Submission Agreement does not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any term of the Submission Agreement or these policies is found to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties’ intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the Submission Agreement and these policies remain in full force and effect. These policies and the Submission Agreement constitute the entire agreement between BYU ScholarsArchive and the Author(s) regarding submission of the Article.

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