Nonprofit Utopia Podcast

David Young has been Housing Action Illinois’s (HAI) Director of Training since 2012. In this role, he is responsible for providing capacity building services to nonprofit developers and housing counseling organizations in order to increase these agencies’ ability to best serve their clients and communities. Join  David and me as we discuss  HAI’s housing  training programs  and their  upcoming fu...

The Westside Community Triage and Wellness Center was created to fight the ravages of trauma and opioid abuse on Chicago’s West Side. While the Center is expected to open the first quarter of 2018, there is already a movement afoot to address the issues utilizing rank and file citizens, elected officials, healthcare providers, churches and community-based organizations. Join Donald J. Dew, Preside...

Rebroadcast-North Lawndale Then and Now:  What Has Changed Since Dr. King Walked Among Us? Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. came to North Lawndale in 1966 to launch a fight for fair housing.  Fast forward to 2017, what has changed? Join Valerie F. Leonard as she examines the issues that brought Dr. King to North Lawndale in 1966, and the overall state of the community today. Valerie is an expert in com...

Nonprofits are often concerned with having  just the right social media messages to promote year-end giving campaigns. When the dust settles, they still need to maintain compliance with state and federal regulators.  These disclosure requirements provide an excellent opportunity for nonprofits to tell their stories; demonstrate impact and market their organizations and services. Join Holly Ivel, D...

How can nonprofits and other social enterprises deliver a better experience for customers and employees to increase value?  Join John Corrigan,  Founder and CEO of Journimap, L3C, and me for a lively  and me for a lively discussion on customer experience.  John will explain how customer experience practices used by for profit businesses -- such as qualitative research, personal development and cus...

Blocks Together (BT) empowers residents to work together for systematic changes that bring concrete improvement to their lives.  They tackle social justice issues relating to education, housing, economic justice and the criminalization of youth. Join Cecile Carroll-DeMello, Co-Director of Blocks Together, and me to discuss their upcoming community convention and meet and greet with Illinois’ guber...

Nonprofit storytelling is an essential part of fundraising. Join Daniel Ash, Chief Marketing Offcer, Chicago Community Trust, and Princess Currence, Director of the UIC Certificate in Nonprofit Management Program (CNM), for a lively discussion on the power of nonprofit storytelling to raise funds.  Use your organization's mission, history and core values to develop a narrative with a sequence of e...

Life after the military can be just as challenging for veterans and their families as serving in active combat.  In their effort to transition back into civilian life, many struggle with a number of physical, psychological, social and economic issues. Join Dumont Moore, Founder of Veterans Strike Force, and me for a lively discussion of life after military service.  We will talk about the most com...

We are living in an environment in which  immigration laws are being aggressively enforced.  This has several implications in the workplace.   Join Jody Adler, the Director of the Community Law Project, and me for a lively discussion on immigration rights in the workplace.  We will discuss: •I-9 audits •ICE Raids •What to do if ICE wants to detain certain people in your work environment •How emplo...

 Even when asked by their funders, organizational leaders are often reluctant to provide candid feedback to foundations, for fear of alienating  them.  As a result, foundations don't always have an accurate picture of what the grantee experience has been with them, while nonprofit organizations sometimes suffer in silence, or decide not to pursue a relationship due to things like, onerous applicat...

Nonprofit storytelling is an essential part of fundraising. Join Daniel Ash, Chief Marketing Offcer, Chicago Community Trust, and Princess Currence, Director of the UIC Certificate in Nonprofit Management Program (CNM), for a lively discussion on the power of nonprofit storytelling to raise funds.  Use your organization's mission, history and core values to develop a narrative with a sequence of e...

It has been over 49 years since Martin Luther King, Jr. and the SCLC organized the first Poor People’s Campaign, with mixed results. What were the lessons learned that will help us today?  Join Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis, Co-Director of the Kairos Center, and Carolina Gaete, Co-Director of Blocks Together, for a lively discussion of their work on the Poor Peoples Campaign on the national and local lev...

Celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday  kicks off the charitable season. #ILGive is a24-hour digital fundraising event that connects individuals with the causes that matter to them, and empowers donors to give to the local nonprofits that tackle our communities' most critical issues.  Is your organization ready? Learn everything you need to...

Join David Pendleton, the Executive Director of The Door of Hope Rescue Mission and me for a lively discussion. David will talk about the issues facing men in transition, share updates on the work of the Mission and ways to build capacity. The Door of Hope Rescue Mission opened in 1954 on Chicago's South Side, providing Christian discipleship for homeless men with a focus on empowerment, selfsuffi...

       Join Peter Creticos, President/Executive Director, Institute for Work & the Economy, for a lively discussion on the Institute’s work and their upcoming conference, The Many Futures of Work: Possibilities and Perils. The participatory conference will crowdsource guests’ expertise and insights and create real solutions that grow the middle; promote  innovation, and tear-down barriers to econo...

The UIC Certificate for Nonprofit Management (CNM) program is the longest running 100% online nonprofit management program in the country, and serves students around the world. Students going through the program have managed to cut years off their nonprofit learning curve and implement lessons learned in class as they go along, making greater impact to clients and communities in the process. Join...

     With Commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia serving as the Chief Sponsor, the Cook County Commission on Social Innovation was established by ordinance on April 12, 2016. The Commission  is comprised of  Cook County government department heads, economic development experts and community builders  who leverage public and private sector resources to address Cook County’s most entrenched  economic and...

Entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart. The environment can be very competitive and cut throat. Shelby Parchman, a serial entrepreneur and business coach, works with business owners to guide their ideas from concept to implementation through training and relationship building.  Join Shelby Parchman, serial entrepreneur, and me to talk about how new entrepeneurs can navigate the business la...

In a December 2016 blogpost on the Tutor/Mentor.org website, Daniel Bassill, PhD, CEO of the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC, wrote "I am one of those people who fear what will happen to our democracy and freedom, and the planet's health, over the next few years.  In some of the posts I've read, writers say 'don't lose hope' and 'get involved locally with a cause you care about'".  Those kind of artic...

The Community Law Project helps to build, strengthen, and support community-based organizations that are focused on economic development in Chicago’s low-income neighborhoods and that offer the delivery of social services to residents of these areas.  They bring hope to impoverished neighborhoods by supporting small businesses and home ownership. Working with volunteers from Chicago’s top law firm...

Please note, that we have postponed today's episode of Nonprofit "U". Instead of a live discussion on Veterans' issues, we will discuss reasons the IRS denies applications for tax-exemption. The show on Veterans will be postponed for a later time. I will keep you posted.  Filing for tax exemption is tedious, time-consuming, and not for the faint of heart.   The process often requires applicants to...

When Paul Norrington, one of the driving forces behind the creation of the K-Town Historic District, suggested that President Obama build his Library in North Lawndale, his neighbors laughed him to scorn. UIC eventually partnered with the North Lawndale community to submit a bid that made it to the final round of the Obama Presidential Library site selection process.   As a result, there is height...

The nonprofit landscape is changing dramatically. In spite of the fact that the national and state economies are in recovery, and foundations are giving more money, many nonprofits are finding it difficult to raise funds.  The State of Illinois has unilaterally terminated nonprofit contracts and does not have a budget in place in order to make appropriations.  Foundations’ priorities are constantl...

ome nonprofit leaders have a tendency to build organizations and programs around  issues  for which they have a passion.  They believe in their hearts that, “…if they build it, people will come…”  In other cases leaders continue to use program models that are no longer relevant to the communities they serve.   These practices can lead to duplication of services, while other needs go unmet. Tune in...

“Chicago area heritage musicians still play today, often in obscure holes-in-the-wall for very little money, competing for limited spots in downtown clubs, or exporting their skills overseas.  At home, blues is an undervalued cultural asset.  Crain's business magazine in January pointed out the city is losing money for failure to promote it. Chicago's West Side has a deeply-rooted history of blues...