Leadership Development Grants

The Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence (INE) has announced the recipients of its 2012 leadership development grants, funding for nonprofit organizations that seek to develop and enhance leadership capacity. The grants were awarded to 10 organizations that proposed a comprehensive, planful, and strategic approach to developing leaders at the executive and/or program levels.

Recipient organizations are:

Boys & Girls Club of East Providence
CareLink PACE Organization
Memorial and Library Association of Westerly
Rhode Island Foster Parents Association
Rhode Island Hospitality Association
Rhode Island Parent Information Network
Southside Community Land Trust
Year Up
Youth in Action, Inc.
YWCA of Northern Rhode Island

Organizations will receive up to $10,000 for their proposed leadership activities and up to $3,000 to support daily operations. The funds can be used for a variety of activities such as:

Exploration of new and/or different leadership models
Leadership skill development at the executive and/or staff levels (Board development may be included in a comprehensive approach, but should not be a sole leadership development activity.)
Action learning or organized learning and reflection in the workplace
Peer-to-peer mentoring or assignments that allow leaders to learn new skills or pursue specific learning goals
Developing a system for succession planning
Developing a system to enhance your organization’s ability to attract, develop, and retain diverse leadership talent

All organizations awarded a leadership development grant will participate in a yearlong peer learning and sharing network convened on a quarterly basis by INE staff. The quarterly meetings are designed to share implementation plans, discuss barriers and leverage points, and distill lessons learned from ongoing leadership development plans. Participants also will have an opportunity to learn from human resources professionals on topics such as setting up a performance management system and coaching/mentoring skills.