If you’re looking to grow in nonprofit leadership, nonprofit conferences are great resources for connecting with other passionate members of the sector and gaining practical insights into working with nonprofits. In NPM’s Expanding Nonprofit Education article, we wrote about the launch of the Nonprofit Learning Lab (NLL), which offers conferences like these. NLL offers a variety of resources to nonprofits throughout the United States, including webinars, a mentor program, and Nonprofit Institutes. NLL’s institutes are nonprofit conferences that provide intermediate to advanced level educational opportunities for professionals, volunteers, board members, and community leaders.
“The Nonprofit Institute is a truly ‘must-attend’ event for nonprofit professionals!” says Felicity Palmer, a past attendee and the Development Manager at Executive Service Corps of Southern California. Many others feel the same way, which is reflected in the fast growth of NLL and its institutes. Although NLL began recently, the need for in-depth nonprofit education has driven its rapid expansion. NLL only brings the Nonprofit Insistitutes to cities where nonprofits have specifically requested them, and the institutes can now be found in 16 different cities nationally. In 2018, these in-person, nonprofit conferences will continue to take place across the United States, from Philadelphia to Los Angeles.
What can you expect attending a Nonprofit Institute? One of the most recent NLL nonprofit conferences took place in Newport News, VA in March 2018. The conference took place over the course of one day, beginning with breakfast and a welcoming session, and closing with workshops in the afternoon. With four workshop blocks, institute attendees had the opportunity to attend four different workshops on a variety of relevant topics.
Morning workshops included trainers like Jane Stein, president of JPS Consulting, who explained how to prepare for donor meetings, and Jeremy Andrews, developer at Alpha Beta Creatives, whose workshop “Diversity is Not a Quota,” examined the ways organizations frequently misunderstand the nature of a truly diverse workplace. In the afternoon, institute attendees heard from Jay Frost of Donor Search, as he provided best fundraising practices for small nonprofits. Past attendees, like Ray Merenstein, President of RDM Communications, Inc., speak highly of the practical application of NLL’s workshops.
“As an attendee, I was awestruck by the depth of expert content and the range of topics covered,” Merenstein says. “My only struggle was not knowing which sessions to attend because they all seemed to be meaningful and worthwhile.” At each of NLL’s nonprofit conferences, useful resources are available in addition to workshops. Beyond the specific training sessions, NLL’s institutes include events like a networking lunch and the “Consulting Cafe.” Lunch provides an opportunity to meet with other members of the sector, whether to reconnect or create a new connection. If the wide variety of workshops don’t answer your question, Consulting Cafe gives institute attendees 15 minutes to talk individually with a nonprofit expert.
These nonprofit conferences are perfect to attend either as an individual or with a group of colleagues. NLL offers a discount for groups of 3 or more from one organization, and also offers partial scholarships. If you are interested in learning more about the scholarship, you can contact info@nonprofitlearninglab.org to request information.
Organizations can also advertise with a particular Nonprofit Institute by sponsoring the event or purchasing an ad in the program booklet. Additional information is available on the specific pages for each event, which are listed below.
Don’t miss out on a fantastic learning opportunity for your organization at these nonprofit conferences! Find out more and register for one of the upcoming institutes:
Philadelphia, PA | Sept. 13, 2018
Los Angeles, CA | Oct. 4, 2018
Des Moines, IA | Oct. 11, 2018
