I met Jamon Alexander this summer at the NP2020 conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I remember as I walked into the meeting room on the first night, I scanned the crowd for other young leaders of color. To my delight, Jamon was one of about a dozen of us in attendance, and as the weekend’s [...]
The "Stretch Assignment"
“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” – Eleanor Roosevelt During last week’s panel on African American Nonprofit Leadership, Patrick Corvington from the Annie E. Casey Foundation suggested that there were two [...]
Is it Time to Quit Your Nonprofit Job?
Many nonprofit employees stay at their jobs much longer than is healthy, making themselves martyrs for their nonprofit cause. All too often, this blind commitment to a cause can keep people in dead-end nonprofit jobs forever. What is a dead-end nonprofit job? It could be that envelope-stuffing gig you took right out of college, wide-eyed [...]
Why Should Young African Americans Be Afraid to Lead? This Ain’t Little Rock.
I keep reflecting on Cornel West’s words, “Our people and our country need more statesmen (and stateswomen), as statesmanship is qualitatively different than the garden-variety leadership that we’re experiencing.” There is a critical need for the kind of courageous leadership that we saw during the Civil Rights movement. We know that back in the Civil [...]
Notes From "Who’s Got Next"
Over 100 people in the nonprofit sector and philanthropy gathered yesterday afternoon for the first summit of it’s kind called Who’s Got Next? Addressing the Leadership Crisis Among African-American Nonprofit Organizations. The panelists included: Alandra Washington, Kellogg Foundation Michael Watson, Girl Scouts USA Dr. William Pollard, former President of University of DC Wanda Jackson, National [...]
Meet Rebecca Anderson: Representing the Future of African American Nonprofit Leadership
Talk to Rebecca Anderson about the need for more people of color in the nonprofit sector, and her eyes light up with excitement and passion. It’s not hard to tell that she is excited to be part of the solution to ensure that we create more diversity within community leadership in the Washington, DC area [...]
Glass Ceiling for Nonprofit Leaders of Color? I Think Not.
Last month, a reporter from the Chronicle of Philanthropy called to interview me for an article he was doing about the glass ceiling blocking advancement for people of color working in nonprofits. Apparently, the Chronicle is working on an October issue about diversity in the nonprofit sector. Yet I was very surprised by this particular [...]
Addressing the African American Leadership Crisis
We are facing a crisis in the quality of leadership in our country. Our people and our country need more statesmen (and stateswomen), as statesmanship is qualitatively different than the garden-variety leadership that we’re experiencing. – Cornel West This week in DC, American Humanics and Nonprofit HR Solutions are hosting a panel discussion called Who’s [...]
How to Kickstart Your Nonprofit Career in 7 Days
Professional development is so important it should be done on a weekly basis. Each week, you should be doing something to further your career. However, if you’re just getting started, the possibilities can be daunting. The good news is that you can do a lot in just a week’s time!Day 1: Polish Your Public Speaking [...]
Preparing to Go Beyond Your Current Nonprofit Role
If you work in a nonprofit and are under 30, chances are you’re not in a particularly influential leadership position. Chances are, you’re either in a heavily administrative position, like an ‘assistant’ or an ‘associate’, or if you’ve done well to promote yourself, you’re somewhere in middle management as a ‘program manager’. Either way, you’re [...]
