Notre Dame partners with YMCA to provide executive training

The University of Notre Dame Nonprofit Professional Development recently announced a new agreement with YMCA of the USA to provide executive education to the service organization’s leaders. The program is aimed at executives at the vice president level.

“The University of Notre Dame is committed to helping others as an outgrowth of our Christian faith,” said Marc Hardy, director of Nonprofit Executive Programs at the Mendoza College of Business. “We understand the importance of having excellent leadership skills and being a good steward of resources. Our expertise combined with the YMCA will be of great benefit to both organizations and most importantly to the attendees.”

The training will take place in Notre Dame’s executive classroom space at the Santa Fe Building in downtown Chicago. It consists of two four-day sessions – one Aug. 24 to 27, followed by a second Nov. 16 to 19 – plus a field project. The format allows the executives to gain education without losing a significant amount of job time.

Participants earn a certificate from the Notre Dame Nonprofit Professional Development upon completion.
The focus of the program is to help managers make the transition to a larger leadership role, Hardy said. This includes such topics as developing a philanthropic culture, managing the media, community relations, financial management and transparency, and nonprofit board leadership.

Nonprofits are finding greater need for leadership training as they face high levels of CEO retirement at the same time that demand for services is increasing and becoming more complex. A recent Conference Board report found that the nonprofit sector will need to recruit as many as 80,000 executive leaders by 2016.

“A lot of people come into the nonprofit career path because they have a heart for it. They want to do good,” Hardy said. “They come from all walks of life, but not typically from a business background. Yet nonprofits are complex and often very large organizations that require specific business skills to operate them at the highest levels. Our program helps fill the gaps in knowledge.”

Notre Dame provides similar nonprofit executive leadership training to national associations such as the Volunteers of America, the National Human Services Assembly and Catholic Charities USA. In addition, due in part to a $10 million foundation grant, the program provides other tailored educational offerings for both national and local communities. One of the national efforts, “Leaders in Transition,” is held annually on the Notre Dame campus. It provides career training for returning Peace Corps and other service volunteers as they transition to other employment.

Contact: Marc Hardy, director, Notre Dame Nonprofit Executive Program, 574-631-1087, mhardy@nd.edu

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