There was a time when employees in non-profit organizations learned all of the guidelines needed to run their agency in an on-the-job fashion.
Those days are no more thanks to a Standards for Excellence Two-Day Implementation Workshop offered through the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations or PANO.
Thanks to two local agencies, the workshop will be offered from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 28 and Nov. 2 in Bradford. The event is open to executive directors, board members, non-profit administrators and other key leaders within organizations, said Mandi Wilton Davis, executive director of the United Way of the Bradford Area Inc., which is a member of PANO.
Davis said the workshop will be held both days at the newly-renovated conference room at Beacon Light Behavioral Health Systems (Journey Health System) at 800 E. Main St., which has donated the space and equipment.
Admission for two people on both days is $150 and will include a light breakfast, lunch and afternoon snacks provided by the United Way. Other fee variations are available to agencies that want to send additional people or a group.
Davis said the local workshop is unique in that it is typically provided in larger communities, such as Erie. She said Tina Martin, executive director of CARE for Children, and Ron Orris, executive director of the Blaisdell Foundation, were instrumental in arranging the local workshop.
“They provide services to non-profits across the state,” Davis said of PANO. “What you’re going to take away from this is going to be hugely beneficial in your day-to-day operations.”
She said the United Way participated in PANO training last year, but she and her administrative assistant, Sonja Bacha, had to travel to Erie for the workshop.
Davis said attendance at the sessions can set the groundwork for an agency’s accreditation through PANO. She noted CARE has been accredited through PANO for several years.
“It’s like (receiving) a good housekeeping seal … it’s saying that the non-profit is operating at its best capacity, and following recommended guidelines with policies and procedures,” Davis explained. In addition to the training, workshop participants will receive printed information as well as a flash drive containing samples and recommendations from PANO.
“We want to stress to non-profits that during this two-day training they’ll get a good, solid starting point they can implement at their own pace,” Davis continued. “They can show the community and donors that they are operating the best possible way.”
When contacted, Martin said she has served on PANO’s Standard for Excellence subcommittee since 2012.
“I knew there were so many new executive directors and leaders in the area and thought this would be a perfect opportunity to bring (the workshop) here,” Martin remarked.
She said Orris, in his new role with the Blaisdell Foundation, and as past executive director of the Bradford Area Chamber of Commerce, has always advocated for the best practice in non-profit management as well as collaboration between agencies.
“Rather than creating a program, this one is already in place,” Martin added. “This covers management, fundraising, finance, governance and leadership in general — all in a two-day workshop.”
For more information on the workshop, or to register, send emails to katie@pano.org with the organization’s name and email address, or call the PANO office at (717)236-8584. The
deadline to register is Sept. 21.
