Course Format: Courses are 12.5 instructional hours (1 unit) or 25 instructional hours (2 units), are scheduled in 4-8 class meetings of 3 – 3.5 hours each week and complete in one month; the entire program can be completed in two semesters.
Certificate: Complete five core courses and three units of electives for a total of at least 8 or 9 units to earn a professional certificate.
Emphasis in Advocacy: Students that choose to do their elective coursework in Advocacy (i.e., all courses noted with a single *) are eligible to earn a Nonprofit Management Certificate with an emphasis in Advocacy.
Core Courses
Overview of the Nonprofit Management - 1 unit
Developing Effective Nonprofit Boards - 1 unit
Introduction to Nonprofit Financial Management - 1 unit
Introduction to Fundraising - 1 unit
Fundamentals of Program Evaluation -1 unitNote: Students able to demonstrate competency in financial management may substitute this course for an elective.
Electives (3 units required)
Managing and Supervising Today’s Nonprofit Teams -1 unit
Attracting and Retaining the New Volunteer Workforce - 1 unit
Marketing Matters: Branding, Messaging and Publicity Strategies -1 unit
Effective Presentation Skills for Nonprofits: Building a Voice for Your Cause - 1 unit
*Advocacy for Change - 1 units
Learning Outcomes of the Certificate
You will learn to …
- Comply with the legal and regulatory requirements of nonprofit corporations
- Identify key and emerging trends affecting nonprofit organizations
- Apply effective fundraising strategies
- Adopt operational practices that improve organizational effectiveness
- Effectively recruit and manage staff and volunteers
- Understand budgets and financial reports
- Plan and develop goal oriented communication strategies
- Build effective boards and manage board relationships
- Identify the core elements of effective programs and of program evaluation
- Develop your leadership style and networking skills
- Emphasis in Lobbying learning outcomes:
- Develop a campaign from an informed perspective of lobbying law guided by the Lobbying Strategy Handbook
- Apply research methods to compile data that supports a campaign
- Understand the systems that shape rules and regulations
Courses
Overview of the Nonprofit Management - 1 unit (Core Course)
This course provides a foundation for understanding nonprofit organizations within the greater context of the nonprofit sector and society as a whole. Students will learn about the characteristics of nonprofit organizations/nonprofit organizational structures, dimensions of the nonprofit sector, how the nonprofit sector developed in the U.S. and understand theories about why the sector exists in its current form. The economics of the nonprofit sector will be explored as will emerging sector trends.
Course Objectives:
- History of the nonprofit sector in the U.S.
- Theoretical frameworks for understanding how and why the nonprofit sector developed
- Economics of the sector
- Legal and compliance overview
- Emerging trends
- Writing skills development
Faculty: Laura Deitrick, Phd, Director, USD's Caster Family Center for Nonprofit and Philanthropic Research
Introduction to Fundraising - 1 unit (Core Course)
Nonprofits secure revenue from a variety of different sources – individuals, corporations, foundations, and government, and through a variety of different means – membership dues, gifts, events, grants and contracts. Understanding the funding landscape, and how that landscape varies from place to place, is key to developing a successful fundraising strategy. While approaching each contributor requires its own strategy, this course will provide students with the basic components needed for making a compelling fundraising case.
Course Objectives:
- Understanding how nonprofits are financed
- Understanding trends in funding for nonprofits
- Reviewing the elements of a basic request
- Strengthening writing skills
Faculty: Elizabeth Castillo, Associate Director, Institute for Nonprofit Education and Research
Managing and Supervising Today’s Nonprofit Teams - 1 unit (Elective Course)
This course is designed to provide Participants with the basic skills needed to manage nonprofit teams. Nonprofit teams may include: executive staff, management staff, line staff and volunteers. Students will develop an understanding of: Supervisory skill, Human Resource basic, Legal and ethical consideration with regard to employees, and effective verbal and written skills.
Course Objectives:
- Participant will be able to demonstrate skills in recognizing day to day as well as catastrophic risks encountered in managing nonprofit organizations.
- Participants will have an opportunity to develop proactive practical strategies to mitigate risk associated with human resource development.
- Participant will be expected to develop their knowledge and skill regarding factors that impact unemployment and worker’s compensation insurance.
- Participants will develop an Injury Illness Prevention Program (IIPP). Developing an IIPP requires that the participants develop plans for:
- Assuring work place safety
- Employee/volunteer training and education
- Employee/volunteer motivation
- Team development
- Agency communication systems
- Crisis management
Faculty: Elaine Lewis, Executive Director, Development Services Continuum
Introduction to Nonprofit Financial Management - 1 unit (Core Course)
Leaders of nonprofits have multiple responsibilities and one of the most important is to ensure that the organization remains financially secure. This class is structured for those with little or no experience in financial management and will introduce the student to financial organizational structures and internal financial controls, basic accounting concepts, interpreting and analyzing required financial documents, financial reporting, and budgeting.
Course Objectives:
- Internal Controls Concepts
- Financial forms and analysis
- Basics of fund accounting
- Preparing and managing budgets
Faculty: Rondi Stein, Budget and Operations Manager, USD School of Leadership and Education Sciences
Attracting and Retaining the New Volunteer Workforce - 1 unit (Elective Course)
Most nonprofits fall short of understanding the talent management component of attracting, retaining and sustaining volunteers within their organizations. This class will provide an overview of how the demographic of today’s volunteers is changing, how best to deploy the talents of these multi-generational volunteers, and understand how to provide a structured objective framework to be accomplished by the volunteer corps.
Course Objectives:
- Volunteer management
- Supervisor and staff management
- Legal and ethical issues
- Personal Communication
Faculty: Melinda Wilkes, CNP, Director of Volunteer Services, Jewish Family Service of San Diego
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Marketing Matters: Branding, Messaging and Publicity Strategies to Improve Nonprofits Bottom Line - 1 unit (Elective Course)
This course is designed to create an understanding of the critical role marketing plays for nonprofit organizations. It will emphasize the importance of creating marketing goals and objectives that feed into the nonprofit’s organizational and fundraising strategies, and will help students determine the most effective ways to develop marketing plans get results.
Course Objectives:
- Branding
- Marketing and lobbying integration
- Writing an effective elevator pitch
- Public Relations
- Social Media
Faculty: Deirdre Maloney, USD Nonprofit Faculty Member and Marketing Consultant
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Developing Effective Nonprofit Boards - 1 unit (Core Course)
Nonprofits can struggle with poor board governance because of the lack of properly training board members. Many board members lack an understanding of the true role of the board, what are the expectations of board members, and how board members will be evaluated. Because many boards lack of training, board meetings can be run inefficiently with no set of objectives to be achieved. This class will teach nonprofit leaders how to recruit, retain and engage board members for the mutual benefit of the organization and those who serve on its board.
Course Objectives:
- Introduction to the role of nonprofit boards
- Board recruitment
- Models for board engagement, leadership, and training
Faculty: Liz Shear, faculty, USD Nonprofit Leadership and Management Program
Fundamentals of Program Evaluation - 1 unit (Core Course)
Nonprofits often launch programs without knowing exactly how they will determine whether or not an initiative has achieved its expected outcome. Understanding basic evaluation methods and how simple evaluation tools can best be deployed, will help your organization determine whether or not its programs are making an impact and/or, how that impact can be strengthened.
Course Objectives:
- Introduction to the role of evaluation in program assessment
- Introduction to elements of effective program design
- Evaluation models
- Simple evaluation tools
Faculty: Jaime Carrillo, Grant Writer, Evaluator, and Facilitator
Effective Presentation Skills for Nonprofits: Building a Voice for Your Cause – 1 unit (Elective Course)
Giving voice to your cause requires an advocate to be able to clearly articulate the major issues concerning their campaign. This course will teach students the essentials of delivering a well-crafted campaign message. Students will practice mock lobbying with elected officials.
Course Objectives:
- Understand the fundamentals of effective communications
- Practice delivering mock lobbying messages
- Design and articulate the major issues concerning your campaign
- Inspire others to act on behalf of your cause
Faculty: Jackie Freiberg, Ed.D., Author, Coach, Public Speaker, Freiberg.com
Advocacy for Change – 1/2 units (Elective Course - Emphasis in Advocacy)
This course will be a soup to nuts overview on how to assemble and carry out an effective grassroots legislative campaign. The course will cover topics such as lobbying law (e.g., legal structures pertaining to lobbying for nonprofits and lobbying registration requirements), campaign development including issue identification, mapping opposition, citizen advocacy/community organizing, and more. Students will participate in a public meeting as part of a public comment process for a particular legislative issue. The course will draw upon the 10 step strategic framework outlined in The Lobbying Strategy Handbook. Guest lecturers will include Pat Libby, USD Professor and author, The Lobbying Strategy Handbook; Pedro Anaya, a lobbyist for Southwest Strategies, and others.
Course Objectives:
- Understanding the importance of lobbying
- Identifying an issue for legislative action
- Developing a strategy to create and promote legislation
Faculty:
Ben McCue, Conservation Director, WiLDCOAST San Diego
Pat Libby, Ph.D., Director, USD Institute for Education and Research
