Create Healthy Invests in Local Nonprofit Organizations’ Capacity Building & Resilience
This past spring, Create Healthy sponsored a Nonprofit Leadership Development Program through Washington State-based Gonzaga University for leaders from 16 Create Healthy grantee organizations. The multi-month certificate program, through Gonzaga’s School of Leadership Studies, was made available free of charge to participating organizations.
The Create Healthy Board of Directors approved the investment to address the fact that leadership turnover can be a significant disrupter of organizational continuity and effectiveness, and nonprofit organizations typically lack the resources to dedicate to professional development that for-profit entities have.
“Building the leadership capacity of our region’s nonprofit organizations is key to their resilience and longevity to be able to continue providing the wide range of health and well-being programs and initiatives our communities rely on,” said Jayne Pope, president and CEO of Create Healthy. “Create Healthy made the strategic decision to subsidize this professional development in addition to our direct philanthropic giving because we believe so strongly in the missions of the organizations we support.”
The 6-session program ran from March to the end of June and covered:
- Emotional intelligence
- Crucial conversations
- Adaptive leadership
- Burnout
- Giving and receiving feedback
- Coaching
- Resilient leadership
“As one of the largest philanthropies in the Texas Hill Country, Create Healthy has a responsibility not just to fund our region’s nonprofit organizations but to support them in organizational infrastructure development so they can continue their vital work for the long-term,” said Joel Junker, chair, Create Healthy board of directors. “The leadership development program through Gonzaga University was purposefully selected because of its focus on cultivating leaders of nonprofit organizations.”
Representatives from 16 Create Healthy grantees participated:
- Little Hearts Child Development Center
- Frontera Healthcare Network
- Good Samaritan Center
- The Grace Center of Fredericksburg
- Comfort Golden Age Center
- Texas Wine Auction Foundation
- Boys and Girls Club of the Texas Hill Country
- Boys and Girls Club of the Highland Lakes
- Mason First United Church Steady Steps Daycare
- Hill Country Needs Council
- Golden Hub Community Center
- Mason Ministerial Alliance – Food Pantry
- Fredericksburg Parks Foundation
- Admiral Nimitz Foundation
- Fredericksburg Independent School District
- Johnson City Christian Food Pantry
