Each week, I invite you to tune in to my live internet radio show, Perspectives From the Pipeline on BlogTalkRadio! Join me on your lunch break every Wednesday at 12pm EST for live discussions where we talk about current nonprofit events, highlight new initiatives, and promote the voices of young people and leaders of color working for social change. This is free, real-time professional development where you will get to learn about what’s happening right now in the nonprofit sector, as well as chime in with your questions, thoughts and ideas. Next week, I’m excited to present a special 90-minute episode! Mark your calendars for November 18’s live discussion featuring four young nonprofit executive directors who will speak candidly about their leadership experiences.
November 18, 12:00-1:30pm EST
A Day in the Life of a Young Nonprofit Executive Director
Wanna know what it’s really like being the boss? Join me and several young nonprofit executive directors under 40 to hear about the paths they took to becoming a nonprofit executive director, their approach to working with staff and funders, and how they continue to hone their leadership skills. This week’s guests include Trista Harris from Headwaters Foundation for Justice, Laura Zabel from Springboard for the Arts, Bridget Clark Whitney from Kids Food Basket and John Mark Eberhardt from The Steward’s Staff. Learn more about each leader by reading their bios below!
John Mark Eberhardt, Executive Director of The Steward’s Staff
John Mark is a seasoned entrepreneur, whom at one time accumulated over $1 million in assets from his Real Estate Investment Company and Insurance Agency. He has owned/operated three businesses and held leadership positions in several organizations. As the founder of The Steward’s Staff, John Mark now serves as the organization’s Executive Director. In this role, he develops and manages the facilitation of after-school programs throughout the Jefferson County Public School system, empowering youth to become community leaders. In just their second year, the organization has served over 200 youth, awarded seven scholarships and escorted 50 youth on a college tour. Since entering the nonprofit sector, John Mark has engaged in nonprofit advocacy through participating in Nonprofit Day at The Capitol, becoming the Charter Chapter President of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) of Metro Louisville, serving on YNPN’s National Board of Directors, as well as sitting on the board of directors at the Center for Nonprofit Excellence (CNPE). He is also a graduate of CNPE’s 2008 Emerging Executives Class and the 2009 Leadership Network Class of the Leadership Louisville Center. John Mark received his license to preach January 27, 2001, under Dr. Walter Malone, Jr. Canaan Christian Church and currently is a member of Southeast Christian Church. John Mark received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Western Kentucky University. A native Louisvillian, John Mark graduated from Jeffersontown High School and is the proud husband of Rayna R. Eberhardt.
Laura Zabel, Executive Director of Springboard for the Arts
Springboard’s mission is to cultivate a vibrant arts community by connecting artists with the skills, contacts, information and services they need to make a living and a life. Since 1978, Springboard has served more than 60,000 artists and cultural organizations throughout Minnesota and the upper Midwest. Laura has worked in the non-profit arts sector for over 10 years. At Springboard, Laura serves as a consultant on topics such as strategic planning, board development, fundraising and non-profit start-up for small to mid-size arts organizations in the Twin Cities and across the Upper Midwest. In addition to her work at Springboard, Laura is an actor in the Twin Cities and has worked with companies such as Theatre in the Round and the Brave New Workshop. Previously, she was the Program Director for the Twin Cities Unified Theatre Auditions and the Development Manager at COMPAS. In 2000, Laura wrote the play “Dreaming for Real” for Climb Theatre and the Minnesota Higher Education Services Office, which has been performed in Title I schools all over Minnesota. In June 2005, Laura was awarded one of five national “Emerging Leader” scholarships from Americans for the Arts. Laura also serves on the board of directors of the National Association of Artists Organizations (NAAO).
Bridget Clark Whitney, Executive Director of Kids’ Food Basket
Bridget Clark Whitney is executive director of Kids’ Food Basket, a hunger relief organization which provides daily “sack suppers” for food- insecure children in Kent County, Michigan. Drawing volunteers and financial support from all aspects of the Grand Rapids community, KFB provides these suppers at elementary schools where 80 percent of the students live at or below the poverty level. During Ms. Whitney’s tenure in this role, KFB has grown from serving 125 children each weekday in 2002 to 1,700 children in 2009. Bridget was named a 2009 American Express NGen Fellow by Independent Sector.
Trista Harris, Executive Director of Headwaters Foundation for Justice
Headwaters is a community foundation with a mission to act as a catalyst for social, racial, economic and environmental justice. Trista oversees the Foundation’s grantmaking, communications, fund development and investment management activities. As spokesperson, she is responsible for developing collaborative relationships with all sectors and segments of the community, as well as with other organizations nationwide. Trista came to the Headwaters Foundation from the Saint Paul Foundation, where she was a program officer and provided leadership on the Foundation’s initiatives related to civic engagement and philanthropy, as well as managed both scholarship funds and a grantmaking portfolio that reflected the Foundation’s interest in comprehensive solutions to community issues. A native Minnesotan, Trista received her Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Howard University and her Master’s in Public Policy degree, with a focus on philanthropy and nonprofit effectiveness, from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota. Trista is nationally known as a passionate advocate for new leaders in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors. She is a leading voice for Generations X and Y and seeks to create professional development opportunities throughout the sector. She writes about generational change in the foundation field in her blog, New Voices Of Philanthropy and is an international speaker on working across generations to create social change.
Don’t Forget to Join the Live Chat Room!
About 10 minutes before the show begins, I open up the live chat room that appears right below the audio player. Be sure to log-in to the chat room during the show to share your questions and comments. Talk live with me, my guests and the other listeners! Remember, you can both listen online or call in – this is a LIVE show! And it’s going to be AWESOME. Can’t listen to the live show on November 18? No worries – each show is archived for you to listen to later online or you can subscribe to the show in iTunes and get it in your iPod.
