This course is part of the Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations Specialization

4.4
stars
166 ratings
•
48 reviews

Prof. Yvonne Cafik Harrison, PhD +1 more instructor

22,352 already enrolled

Offered By

University at Buffalo

The State University of New York

Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations SpecializationUniversity at Buffalo

About this Course

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This course introduces you to the nonprofit sector, nonprofit organizations, and the concepts of leadership and governance. While this course has been developed with North American culture in mind, we do appreciate that in other parts of the world the nature of the nonprofit sector, nonprofit organizations, nonprofit leadership and governance may not be the same. Nevertheless, it is our hope that much of the course content will still be of value to those in other parts of the world. 
To learn more about this course, please watch the overview video by copying and pasting the following link into your web browser: https://goo.gl/YMg1Qd.

Keywords: Nonprofit; Nonprofit Sector; Voluntary Sector; Nonprofit Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Volunteer Organizations, Leadership, Management, Governance, Board, Board of Directors, Performance, Effectiveness

Course 1 Overview: 

Week 1: Some of the questions you will explore this week are: What is the nonprofit sector and why does it exist?  What are the unique characteristics of nonprofit organizations? What are the trends and emerging issues facing organizations in the nonprofit sector?

Week 2: Questions to be explored this week are: What is leadership at the governance level and how is it different from management?  What is good governance and why does it matter? What is a board of directors?

Week 3: This week's questions: What roles do board members play in nonprofit organizations? Broadly speaking, what are boards responsible for and how do they go about their work? What are some of the issues that challenge the board's ability to go its work?

Week 4: At this stage, you are asked to review the course content, submit a written assignment (known lightheartedly as a BEAR (Board Effectiveness Readiness Assessment), and take two multiple choice Readiness Assurance Tests (known similarly as RATs). One RAT will assess knowledge and reading comprehension and the other will test application of knowledge within a practical case.  

Week 5: We will encourage you to discuss the RATs in the discussion forums and take them again should you wish to change any of your answers based on the information exchanged.

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Course 1 of 4 in the

Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations Specialization

Approx. 11 hours to complete

English

Subtitles: Arabic, French, Portuguese (European), Italian, Vietnamese, German, Russian, English, Spanish

Instructors

Instructor rating

3.7/5 (11 Ratings)

Prof. Yvonne Cafik Harrison, PhD

School of Social Work, University at Buffalo

25,913 Learners

4 Courses

Prof. Vic Murray, PhD

Adjunct Professor

School of Public Administration, University of Victoria

25,913 Learners

4 Courses

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Course 1 of 4 in the

Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations Specialization

Approx. 11 hours to complete

English

Subtitles: Arabic, French, Portuguese (European), Italian, Vietnamese, German, Russian, English, Spanish

Offered by

University at Buffalo

The University at Buffalo (UB) is a premier, research-intensive public university and the largest, most comprehensive institution of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. UB offers more than 100 undergraduate degrees and nearly 300 graduate and professional programs.

The State University of New York

The State University of New York, with 64 unique institutions, is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States. Educating nearly 468,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs both on campus and online, SUNY has nearly 3 million alumni around the globe.

Syllabus - What you will learn from this course

Content Rating96%(5,128 ratings)

Week

Week 1

3 hours to complete

The Nonprofit Sector, Nonprofit Organizations, Leadership and Governance

Welcome to the first course in the series of three courses on developing leadership and improving governance in nonprofit organizations. We encourage you to dive right in--watch the lecture and guest interview videos, participate in the discussion forums, take the practice quiz, post a commentary in the forum, analyze the Board cases, and start working on the course project!

3 hours to complete

6 videos (Total 90 min), 7 readings, 1 quiz

6 videos

The Leadership and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations Promotional Video2m

Welcome to the video introducing this series of courses5m

Course 1 Overview Video9m

Week 1 Overview15m

Interview with Ruth McCambridge12m

Interview with Dr. Laura Schweitzer: Leadership and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations from a Practitioner Perspective43m

7 readings

Course 1 Teaching and Learning Overview10m

Required and Recommended Texts10m

Week 1 Key Questions and Competencies10m

Week 1 Readings and Resources10m

Discuss Case Study10m

Course Project Overview10m

Course Project Part II Guidance10m

1 practice exercise

Week 130m

Week

Week 2

2 hours to complete

Nonprofit Management and Leadership, Organizational Governance and Boards of Directors

Hello and welcome to Week 2 of the first course on Leadership and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations! The goal of this week is to introduce you to the concept of nonprofit leadership and governance and the function of boards in organizational governance. Details can be found on the week 2 course pages below. As usual, we encourage you to engage in the content and with each other on this online teaching and learning journey!

2 hours to complete

2 videos (Total 34 min), 5 readings, 1 quiz

Week

Week 3

2 hours to complete

The Board's Role and Responsibilities

Hello and welcome to Week 3! The goal of this week is to address a number of important questions related to how boards operate: What roles do board members play in nonprofit organizations, what are boards responsible for, What is the role and responsibilities of boards of directors and What are the elements of board behavior that shape how effective a board will be. These elements form the basis of the content of the second and third courses in this series on Developing Leadership and Improving Governance in Nonprofit Organizations. They also underline the structure of our course text, Improving the Effectiveness of Boards of Directors AND the tool used to facilitate assessments of board performance in the Course 2 project. Two videos relating to these topics can be found on the week 3 course page.

2 hours to complete

4 videos (Total 38 min), 5 readings, 1 quiz

4 videos

Week 3 Overview19m

Interview with Putnam Barber on Charitable Solicitations in the United States9m

Conceptual Framework of the Elements of Board Effectiveness7m

Professor Vic Murray summarizes the design of the board assessment1m

5 readings

Week 3 Key Questions and Competencies10m

Week 3 Readings and Resources10m

Discuss Case Study10m

Course Project Overview10m

Course Project Part II Guidance10m

1 practice exercise

Week 330m

Week

Week 4

3 hours to complete

Concept Testing and Application

Hello and welcome to Week 4! The goal of this week is to assess course learning. The end of Course 1 assessment of learning begins with the requirement that you to take two Readiness Assurance Tests (RATs) and submit your first Board Effectiveness Assessment Reflection (BEAR). During the testing process, don't forget to bring a piece of paper and pen to make a note of your answers to the RAT and RAT Application Exercise questions. You will need them to vote and discuss your responses in the RAT forums next week.

3 hours to complete

Reviews

4.4

48 reviews

5 stars
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4 stars
25.90%
3 stars
3.61%
2 stars
1.20%
1 star
5.42%

TOP REVIEWS FROM INTRODUCTION TO THE NONPROFIT SECTOR, NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP AND GOVERNANCE

by JNJun 19, 2019

Whether you are new to non-profit service, or have been volunteering and engaging for years, the course offers useful insights that can lend more substance and impact to your important work.

by SDFeb 27, 2016

Excellent introduction of this programme. As Australian student and professional practitioner I really admire the contents and research behind this programme. Thank you. Regards

by RVApr 13, 2016

I highly recommend the entire program to new and even experienced board members in both the non-profit and corporate world. Very real application and concepts that are applicable.

by BOFeb 28, 2021

This course made me understand what and how things go on in the boards. I am excited about the leadership skills I have learnt I cant wait to share them in the next board.

View all reviews

About the Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations Specialization

Identify and analyze leadership and governance issues, create practical ways to improve board performance and work with boards to implement these improvements.

This Specialization consists of three courses plus a Capstone Project: (1) Course 1 topics: The unique nature of the nonprofit sector in society; leadership in nonprofit organizations and the governance process. (2) Course 2 topics: The roles and responsibilities of nonprofit organization boards of directors and the challenges in carrying them out effectively. (3) Course 3 topics: The critical factors that impact the ability of the board to govern and how to intentionally change them into positive influences. The Capstone Project: How to help real boards overcome inertia and resistance to change and improve their governance effectiveness in an applied service learning experience. To learn more about the series of courses, please watch the Welcome Video.

Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations

Frequently Asked Questions

When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
What will I get if I subscribe to this Specialization?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
Is financial aid available?
Yes, Coursera provides financial aid to learners who cannot afford the fee. Apply for it by clicking on the Financial Aid link beneath the "Enroll" button on the left. You'll be prompted to complete an application and will be notified if you are approved. You'll need to complete this step for each course in the Specialization, including the Capstone Project. Learn more.

More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.

Introduction to the Nonprofit Sector, Nonprofit Organizations, Nonprofit Leadership and Governance

About this Course