On a crisp Saturday morning in late October, over thirty New York City executives, who wanted to learn more about becoming effective board members, attended the first part of the New York Junior League Nonprofit Boards Clearinghouse (NYJL NPBC). Part one of the Fall course addressed key topics such as how to connect one’s passion with the right organization and the responsibilities associated with one’s service. The course commenced with Susan Hanna-Wicht, an NPBC alumna and nonprofit executive, who shared her professional and personal insights which included what makes an organization successful, the importance of volunteers sharing their “time, talent, and treasure”, and the challenges organizations face.

Other speakers presented on “what makes the relationship between board members and the Executive Director effective” as well as the New York Nonprofit Revitalization Act, 2013.  The view from each table was of heads bowed from copious note-taking and hands raised to ask follow-up questions. By the end of the day, participants were enthusiastic about part two of the program which took place on Wednesday, November 1. Part two of the course consisted of an Executive Director panel and a nonprofit agency networking event.

Thank you again to all of the speakers who took part and shared their insights with participants:

• Tiffany Barfield, National Down Syndrome Society
• Susan Hanna-Wicht, Global Language Project
• Dee Falvo, CSS Fundraising
• Justin Zaremby, Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP
• Justin Model, TargetST8
• Diann Rohde, New York Junior League
• Lew Zuchman, SCAN New York
• Lydia Kontos, Kaufman Music Center
• Janice Zaballero, Breast Treatment Task Force

Don’t worry, if you missed the fall course, Save the Date! The next opportunity to participate in this valuable training is in April 2018.