The University of Chicago will begin to offer a free, two-year certificate in nonprofit management program later this year. The new program is aimed at helping nonprofit professionals working in Chicago neighborhoods operate more effectively.

Here is an excerpt from a news item published in The Chicago Crusader:

The free, two-year Certificate in Nonprofit Management, designed for early to mid-stage nonprofit professionals, was created in a collaboration between SSA and the Office of Civic Engagement’s Community Programs Accelerator. Leaders who earn the certificate will be equipped to create, grow and operate sustainable, effective community-based organizations. And because the program is cohort-based, participants will develop a strong network of peers who are engaged in the effort to improve the quality of life in Chicago’s neighborhoods.

“This certificate program is designed to strengthen the individual up-and-coming leaders of community-based nonprofits as well as the civic infrastructure on the South Side,” said Ryan K. Priester, director of community programs for the Office of Civic Engagement.

A core course plus evening and weekend workshops form the heart of the program. SSA Associate Professor Jennifer E. Mosley, Ph.D., an expert on the nonprofit sector whose research focuses on the role nonprofits play in advocating for human services and under-represented populations, will teach the core course. Workshops, taught by practitioners from major nonprofits and consulting firms through the Community Programs Accelerator, will cover topics essential to operating an effective nonprofit, including how to build a productive board, use financial tools, improve fundraising and marketing, and evaluate programming.

SSA Dean Deborah Gorman-Smith, and Emily Klein Gidwitz, professor, said the school is the ideal home for the new program. “As a school that led in defining the field of social work, we know that social change must be guided by research, evidence and community collaboration. Nonprofit leaders who want to drive long-term, transformative change will benefit from gaining new skills, developing practical strategies, and using data in ways that will take their organizations to the next level and build a stronger South Side.”