Board Life Matters is a national sounding board designed to inspire and engage the next generation in nonprofit board service.
Dave Sternberg
You’ve been asked to fundraise. Now what?
There are three common reactions board members have to this request: 1) sure, just give me the names, 2) I am not completely comfortable and need some training, and 3) never.
In all three cases there is a response that can create a good fundraising team. (more…)
While board service doesn’t always get the spotlight when discussing community service, some corporations – including an increasing number of Fortune 500 companies – recognize the benefits of encouraging their employees to serve on nonprofit boards (and many even offer training, resources, and board matching to their employees to prepare them for board service). I know what you are thinking…of course promoting any type of community service helps the company’s community relations efforts – but board service does more than that.
Isabel Varnado
Greek letter organizations are not just keg parties and girls in pearls, but they make for great memories and real accountability. Actually, accountability is an understatement when you are charged with all aspects of what can only be described as running a mini-nonprofit. From the day I signed my name to be added to thousands of dedicated women of my sorority, I have been charged with a sense of service. (more…)
Today, September 11, marks the eighth anniversary of the attacks on America as well as the inaugural National Day of Service and Remembrance.
MyGoodDeed and ServiceNation, as well as The Corporation for National and Community Service and the National September 11th Memorial and Museum and other organizations, have banded together to create a website where volunteers can search for service opportunities or post their own ideas. All for Good is another great resource for service opportunities.
Anna Tegen
Board service wasn’t exactly in my 5-year plan when I graduated two years ago. In fact, I could have sworn the prerequisites for being a board member included owning a boat and resembling Donald Trump in both age and ethnicity. Had I not been launched into the world of BoardSource, where I work, my perceptions of board service might still be the same.
Alexis S. Terry
Nametag?
Check.
Program?
Check.
Diversity?
Diversity?!
I confess: When I walk into conference workshops and board recruitment events, I survey the landscape to see if there are other “people like me.” It’s not intentional; it’s habitual. In my so-called nonprofit board life, I cannot tell you how many times I have been the only person of color or the only “next generation” nonprofit professional at the conference roundtable or boardroom. (more…)
Andrew Davis
I suppose I truly did take the road less traveled. After a long and somewhat memorable undergraduate career, I can look back with confidence knowing that, while my occasional breaks from scholarly pursuits probably had more to do with general apathy than enlightened self-exploration; I did learn something…quite a lot actually. Namely, I learned that governance isn’t Robert’s Rules or simple compliance. It is a “who” thing. It’s leadership, guidance and active involvement. While these qualities are occasionally intuitive, the principles of effective governance like oversight, program evaluation, and strategic thinking are learned through education. (more…)
David Styers
In my opinion, the most important resource for any nonprofit is its volunteers. Many people get their first exposure to the work of a nonprofit through hands-on volunteer experiences. Volunteers provide direct services to clients or staff – filing papers in the main office, hammering in drywall as part of an effort to build a house, handing out sandwiches to the hungry, adding your voice to the community chorus, etc.
