11 March 2003. An information professional submitted a question about free sources for finding out whether an individual serves as a board member of any non-profit organization. No one responded, so I'll throw out a couple of ideas.

I would start with the state corporation databases for the states where the individual works and resides. While not necessarily free, some of these low-cost resources offer a lot of bang for the buck. Not all, however, permit searching by personal name. Locate these databases with finding aids like Search Systems or Business Filings Databases by Kathy Biehl.

Next, if the individual is, or was, an officer of a public company, I would search an EDGAR database. But you would have to find one, like EDGARIQ, which enables searching entire public filings rather than just the header data. (23 September 2003. EdgarIQ went offline during September 2003. Searching full-text EDGAR filings requires a subscription service.)

I would also check litigation databases like PACER (Search most PACER courts via the U.S. Party/Case Index .) and state case information databases, or LexisONE (does not contain federal district court cases).

If the individual's name is uncommon, a search engine query may also uncover his or her board memberships. And finally, you could try searching the news Web sites for the newspapers, radio and other news media available in the geographic region where the individual works or resides.