2015 Regional Tour

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During this series of regional gatherings, nonprofits will come together for dialogue and discussion around guiding principles in the unveiling of West Virginia Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence and the future of the nonprofit sector in the Mountain State.

The Challenge

Nonprofits are viewed by investors and donors as mission-driven organizations, and the evaluation of success focuses on a nonprofit’s impact in the community. Though mission-driven, nonprofits are business enterprises as well, with business models that make programs and organizations operate and succeed. As community leaders, it is our responsibility to ensure that nonprofits in West Virginia transcend public scrutiny ensuring purpose of mission, ethical practices, accountability and transparency.

During this series of regional gatherings, nonprofits will come together for dialogue and discussion around guiding principles in the unveiling of West Virginia’s Principles and Practices for Nonprofit Excellence and the future of the nonprofit sector in the Mountain State.

Who Should Attend

All Nonprofit leaders, staff, and volunteer board members.

Principles & Practices for Nonprofit Excellence

West Virginia’s nonprofit organizations provide a wide variety of valuable services and products that are essential to communities across the state. The success of these nonprofits is dependent upon public confidence and support. The West Virginia Nonprofit Association, in partnership with Dr. Susan Aloi of West Virginia Wesleyan College and a team of stakeholders, has developed these Principles & Practices to serve as a model for West Virginia nonprofit organizations to guide their operations and practices, enabling them to meet their missions.

Good organizational practices are primarily implemented through education and self-regulation. The Principles & Practices are intended to serve as an educational resource to describe best practices in managing and governing nonprofit organizations. These principles provide benchmarks to help an organization evaluate how efficiently and effectively it is working towards its mission and provide recommendations for improvement. Adherence to Principles & Practices is not mandatory, though specific practices are required by state or federal law and are so noted. There is no certification or accreditation process. It is not designed as a report card, but simply a planning and assessment framework that raises the bar for nonprofit performance.

The Principles are organized into eight categories: Mission & Programs; Planning; Governance; Finances; Legal/Compliance; Human Resources; Marketing & Communications; Outcomes & Evaluation. Most nonprofits will not demonstrate full adherence to all guiding Principles immediately, nor will every guiding practice be reflected in their operations.

In this session, you will be introduced to West Virginia’s Principles & Practices for Nonprofit Excellence.
Participants will learn:

  • The 8 Principle categories critical to nonprofit organizational excellence.
  • Best practices within each principle to use as tools to guide you to make a conscious comparison and determination of what will best move your organization forward in ensuring your organizations operates with integrity and its programs and services are of the highest possible quality.
  • How to access the online Principles & Practices assessment tool and resource library to guide you in evaluating your level of accountability, transparency, and service impact and outcomes that demonstrate progress towards your mission.
  • Network with your peers to discuss nonprofit standards that are critical in raising the value of the sector as a whole.

What’s Next for West Virginia Nonprofits?

Communities throughout West Virginia are having deep conversations about our state’s future by asking What’s Next for West Virginia? The same applies to the nonprofit sector, and in this session we bring nonprofit leaders and representatives together to allow for fresh, innovative thinking to emerge on the future of West Virginia’s nonprofit sector.

In this session, nonprofit attendees will have an open conversation about the role nonprofits in West Virginia.

  1. Where are we are now?
    • What is the current state of the nonprofit sector in WV?
    • What is our impact in our local communities?
    • How does our impact translate to economic impact?
    • What are the strengths of the nonprofit sector?
    • What are the weaknesses of the nonprofit sector?
  2. Where do we want to go? What does success look like in your community?
    • What is your vision of the impact of the nonprofit sector 5 years from now?
    • What public perceptions must change in order to achieve the vision?
    • How will the vision positively impact our communities and the economy?
  3. How will we get there? What can the WVNPA do to help?
    • What actions do we need to take to move towards the vision?
    •  What actions are most doable?
    • What actions will have the greatest positive impact?
    • If we can’t do everything at once, where should we begin?
    • What tools and resources do you need to move towards the vision?

Schedule & Registration

There is no cost to attend and you may attend any session that works with your schedule. All nonprofits – WVNPA members and non-members alike – are welcome. Sessions are 10AM – 2PM with lunch included except *** Region VIII. This session is scheduled for 12:30-3:30PM with snacks and refreshments but no lunch.