Thursday, April 26

7:30 a.m. – Noon

Conference Registration

8:30 – 9:45 a.m.

Opening Plenary

Welcome –

Guy Bailey, Chancellor, University of Missouri-Kansas City

Robert Herman, Professor and Senior Fellow

David Renz, Director, Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership

Henry W. Bloch School of Business and Public Administration University of Missouri-Kansas City

Plenary Address-

“Understanding Variation in Board Practice and Policy: Some Findings from the Urban Institute’s Survey”

Francie Ostrower, Ph.D.

Urban Institute, Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy

Response

Ruth McCambridge, Editor-in-Chief, The Nonprofit Quarterly

10:00 – 11:40 a.m.

Round Table Discussions

“Reframing Governance” - David Renz recently has written that a new form of nonprofit governance is emerging in many communities.  Renz will provide a brief summary of his article, and conference participants will engage in table and full-group discussion of this assertion and discuss its validity, significance, and potential implications.  Is there any substance to this?  If so, what might be the role(s) of the nonprofit board under these circumstances?  How can and do nonprofit organizations operate in this new governance environment? 

Noon – 1:30 p.m.

Luncheon Plenary

Introduction –

Ruth McCambridge, Editor-in-Chief, The Nonprofit Quarterly

“Network Governance and Organizational Forms: Captive to the Past or Rational Reconstruction?  A New Framework for Assessing what Works Best!”

Mel Gill

President, Synergy Associates, Consultants in Governance and Organizational Development

1:45 – 3:15 p.m.

Concurrent Paper Sessions

Session A

Governance Beyond Hierarchy

Nonprofit Board Governance: The Relationship Model

Stephen R. Block, University of Colorado at Denver

The Dynamics of Nested Governance in Nonprofit Organizations Patricia Bradshaw, York University, 

System-Wide Governance: A New Model for Community Empowerment

Judy Freiwirth, Nonprofit Solutions Associates, and Maria Elena Letona, Ph.D.

Session B

Boards, Accountability, & Performance

Learning from Failure: Insights from the Life of a Truly Dysfunctional Board

Thomas Jeavons, ARNOVA, and Pamela Leland, University of Delaware

The Role of Charter School Boards in a Complex Accountability Environment

Andrew Sparks, University Of Pennsylvania

Current Development and Challenges of Chinese NGOs

Tao Zhang, and Wei Jie, Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade

Session C

Governance, Stakeholders & Boards

Critical Assessment of Civil Society Governance in Japan and Nepal: A Comparative Study

Tek Nath Dhakal, National Museum Of Ethnology

Boards that count: How board composition relates to resource generation and community representativeness in nonprofit formation.

Nancy Kinney, University of Missouri-St. Louis

The Role of Racial Diversity in Nonprofit Governance: Does a “Representation Mismatch” Influence Stakeholder Orientation?

Kelly LeRoux, and Sheri Perry, University Of Kansas

3:30 – 5:00 p.m.

Concurrent Dialogue Sessions

Dialogue sessions have no formal presentations.  Rather, they are facilitated discussions on a specific topic among interested participants.  Each session is led by a skilled facilitator to ensure that discussion is on-point, free-flowing, and inclusive of all participants.  Dialogues are facilitated to include the perspectives of all.  We ask that you choose the topic of greatest interest to you and remain in the session for the entire period.

Session D

Cultural Dynamics of Nonprofit Governance

In many nonprofit organizations the mission contributes significantly to the culture of an organization.  Faith-based organizations inculcate spiritual values into service delivery.  Likewise, management of organizations serving ethnic populations is influenced by cultural components of such populations.  Based on these realities of nonprofit existence, what are the unique challenges that occur at the intersection of culture and governance? 

Session E

Accountability in Changing Times

The relation of governance and organizational accountability has been investigated for some time.  As the nonprofit landscape changes (increased legislation, network relationships) accountability responsibilities of boards also change.  What are nonprofit board’s doing to accept different accountability challenges?  Are there policies or processes that help identify changing environments so that issues like accountability can be adjusted in a timely fashion?

Session F

The Influence of Network Governance on Traditional Board Roles

As program development and delivery becomes an increasingly multi-organizational arrangement have the roles and responsibilities of boards changed?  Have governance functions been elevated beyond the boundaries of a specific organization?  What practices and models of network governance presently exist?  What impact does this new form of governance have on traditional board responsibilities?

5:00 – 7:00 p.m.

Reception

Join your conference colleagues and Kansas City nonprofit leaders for informal conversation and hors  d’oeuvres.

7:00 p.m.

Dinner on your own

Friday, April 27

7:30 – 8:30 a.m.

Networking and Continental Breakfast

:

7:30 – 8:30 a.m.

8:30 – 10:00 a.m.

Concurrent Paper Sessions

Session G

Roles and Relationships in Governance    

The Role and Impact of Chairs of Nonprofit Organization Boards of Directors: An Exploratory Study

Yvonne Harrison, Seattle University, and Vic Murray, University of Victoria

Board/CEO Engagement: Bridging the Governance Gap a Qualitative Study of Co-operative Boards and CEOs

Brian Newton, Case Western Reserve University

Understanding the Governance of Nonprofit Boards of Directors in Metropolitan Milwaukee

Stephen Percy, University Of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Patricia Wyzbinski, Management Cornerstones

Session H

Meaning and Board Behavior

Community Foundations as Philanthropic Catalysts for Change: What’s the Board’s Role and the Governance Expectations?

Judith Millesen, Ohio University

Balancing a Neoinstitutional Dilemma: Governing Nonprofit Organizations for Legitimacy and Effectiveness

J. Bart Morrison, Assumption College, and Paul Salipante, Case Western Reserve

Exploring the Rhetorical Foundations of Board Governance: Market-Based Strategies Versus Common Good Claims in Five Nonprofit Organizations

Max Stephenson, and Mary Beth Dunkenberger, Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University

10:15 – 11:45 a.m.

Concurrent Dialogue Sessions

Session J

Alternative Practice Models Past, Present, and Future

Existing governance models include the traditional, the policy governance, and executive leadership models.  While each of these have made important contributions to nonprofit governance it is also safe to assume that they are not an exhaustive list of possible models.  What other models are currently being used and are other models emerging?

Session K

Social Entrepreneurship/Innovation: A Strategic Governance Dilemma

Present understanding of social entrepreneurship conceives of it as either nonprofit commercial activity or innovative activity that creates social value.  In both cases the activities of social entrepreneurial nonprofits deviate from more traditional charitable functions.  What is or should be different in the governance of social entrepreneurial organizations.  Specific areas to address include the social entrepreneurial board’s role in: strategic planning, marketing, risk assessment, risk-taking and managing public image.

Session L

Diversity and Nonprofit Boards: Tools for Board Development

The pace of diversifying, both by demography and social class, nonprofit boards has been slow.  Though some funders push for greater inclusion and diversity, such efforts are often perceived as heavy-handed if not hypocritical.  What board development tools are or could be used that help boards pursue increased diversity as an advantage for the board and organization?

Noon – 1:45 p.m.

Luncheon Plenary

“A Model of Future Governance”

Presentation by the Governance Affinity Group, Alliance for Nonprofit Management  (Judy Freiwirth, chair)

Discussion facilitation by: Ruth McCambridge, Editor-in-Chief, The Nonprofit Quarterly

1:45 - 2:00 p.m.

Closing Comments

Robert Herman, Professor and Senior Fellow,

David Renz, Director, Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership