STRATEGIC GOALS AND ACTIVITIES 2008-20011 INSTITUTE FOR NONPROFIT EDUCATION AND RESEARCH November 5, 2008
Mission Statement: The mission of the Institute for Nonprofit Education and Research is to educate leaders and advance best practices in the nonprofit and philanthropic community through academic excellence, applied learning, and research that examines issues of strategic importance to the sector.
Vision Statement: In the next five years, the Institute for Nonprofit Education and Research will become recognized as a premier national and international academic center by: • Educating nonprofit leaders at the graduate level • Enhancing the knowledge of nonprofit practitioners through professional and educational development • Researching issues affecting the nonprofit sector • Preparing future researchers and scholars for nonprofit/philanthropic studies
GOALS AND ACTIVITIES
Research/Evaluation/Consulting Activities 2008-2009: Goals 2008-2011: • • • • •
Develop a business plan for securing significant income through targeted educational events and consulting services. Minimally generate $250,000 in feefor-service research evaluation and consulting products Conduct top quality research and evaluation and produce consulting products Train doctoral students in research, consulting and evaluation techniques Train doctoral students in the preparation and delivery of research Train doctoral students in the preparation of scholarly and practitioner articles for publication
Activities 2008-2009: • • • • • • • •
Explore the creation of a research group among San Diego grantmakers that is linked to the research center. Train students in use of data bases provided by Urban Institute, Foundation Center, Guidestar, Census Bureau, and other sources as well as data processing systems such as SPSS and excel Work with students to produce “confidence” articles for academic and practitioner publications Work with students on the preparation of conference presentations for various academic conferences such as ARNOVA, West Coast Nonprofit Data Conference, Academy of Management, International Leadership Association, etc. Produce up-dated “Spotlight” report. Conduct research and produce report for American Humanics on affiliated nonprofit employers Conduct research and produce report(s) for state 2-1-1 coalition Work on other contracts as secured.
Community Education: Goals 2008-2011: • • • •
Disseminate Caster Center research to the nonprofit community and general public through symposia, workshops, conference presentations and publications Provide technical assistance resources to the nonprofit community through workshops, MA technical assistance projects, and resource materials Develop criteria for assessing community education project opportunities Expand outreach to practitioners in order to engage more and diverse participation in Institute events
Activities 2008-2009: • • • • • • •
•
Host 5th Annual Nonprofit Governance Symposium Host workshops on the revised form 990 Host research symposium on San Diego Giving Report Host research symposium on 2009 Spotlight on San Diego’s Third Sector Report Collaborate with The Rancho Santa Fe Foundation on fall 08 workshop series for north county nonprofits Develop applied project/best practice website Increase collaboration with key nonprofit leadership organizations such as LEAD San Diego, SD Grantmakers, Fieldstone Foundation, SD Foundation and Jewish Community Foundation on marketing and outreach for community education programs. Assess feasibility of placing ethics survey online.
•
Develop activities for showing practitioners how Center research can and should be integrated into practice
Curriculum Review and Development: Goals 2008-2011: •
Review MA curriculum and make modifications as needed, using evaluation data and benchmarking data from the Nonprofit Academics Centers Council Create and pilot new NP International courses Conduct evaluation of applied MA projects
• •
Activities 2008-2009: •
Facilitate (or arrange to have facilitated) annual meeting of faculty and advisory board committee members to review curriculum and assess desired outcomes. Compare primary program outcomes using national data as benchmark. Document desired outcomes and how and where they will be included in various courses. Modify curriculum as determined by faculty and advisors. Consider where and how often core issues are covered. Specifically include diversity considerations for staff, clients, boards, and donors. Work with administrations to ensure student evaluations are delivered to faculty within 3 months of completion of courses. Offer at least 2 new international courses and evaluate the effectiveness of those courses. Develop an expanded Board Leadership course to be offering during the 09-10 academic year.
• • • •
Marketing and Branding Goals 2008-2011: • • •
Brand the Institute to USD NP alumni Brand the Institute to San Diego NP executive directors Market the Institute to local foundations and leadership programs to raise awareness, participation in our academic and community programs, generate funding Connect the Institute to every major philanthropic venue in San Diego Promote the work of the Institute through various media
• •
Activities 2008-2009: •
Develop a brand document for the Institute
• • •
• • •
Work with USD’s marketing dept. to create a logo for the Institute and collateral materials Ask each alumni to bring one prospective student to the open house Develop a strategy for advisory board members and others who have direct experience with our program to host two subsector events to raise awareness of the MA and PhD specialization programs (for example, an event aimed at reaching health care sector employee, arts people, etc) Identify complementary leadership programs (i.e. Fieldstone Foundation, LEAD, SDF, JCF, etc). to promote programs for attracting new students and for generating scholarship opportunities Develop a strategy for advisory board members to pass along major philanthropic venue activities where the Institute can have a presence in order to increase our visibility. Promote the PhD specialization and work of the Center by having doctoral students present their research at four conferences.
Fundraising Goals for 2008-2011: • • •
Collaborate with Marketing and Branding Committee on developing a strategy for raising the visibility of the Institute among high-profile nonprofits and funders in San Diego Collaborate with Marketing and Branding Committee on developing a strategy for raising the visibility of the research conducted by the Center such that it is “indispensable” to San Diego nonprofit practitioners Identify new donor prospects
Activities for 2008-2009: • • • • •
Develop comprehensive fundraising plan for Institute Meet with Tim O’Malley, Paula Cordeiro and Gary Neiger to clarify roles and expectations of USD/SOLES fundraising and fundraising for the Institute Craft business plan for research center that contains vehicles for profitability Target high profile nonprofits and funders for attendance at Institute events Target high profile nonprofits and funders for participation on the Institute’s Advisory Board
Strategic Planning Goals 2008-2011: •
Facilitate annual strategic planning process. Revise plan as needed.
•
Gather data to inform planning process such as entrance and exit survey of program students, alumni surveys, benchmarking data from other programs, competitive analysis, etc. and use that data to inform planning process.
Activities for 2008-2009: • • • •
Conduct an evaluation of the applied projects conducted by the MA students. Assess the results of the aforementioned evaluation and consider mid-course corrections, if any, to MA curriculum as well as other actions. Work with director of assessment for SOLES to determine appropriate evaluation mechanisms and cycles for MA students and alumni. Create a grid of how the activities outlined in this plan correlate to one another with clear delineation of staff and advisory board member roles.