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Tera Wozniak Qualls of the GVSU Dorothy Johnson Center for Philanthropy helped found the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network of Greater Grand Rapids after realizing many young people in those organizations wanted the chance to interact with one another but lacked any sort of vehicle to do it. The group has ballooned in size, rivaling those in much larger cities.

By Karen Gentry | MiBiz
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WEST MICHIGAN – In about three years, the Young Nonprofit ProfessionalS Network of Greater Grand Rapids has grown to 120 paying members with 200-250 individuals that take part in the group’s activities.

Tera Wozniak Qualls, co-chair of the YNPN board of directors and communications coordinator for the Grand Valley State University Dorhty Johnson Center for Philanthropy, founded the organization after seeing a need for a Grand Rapids-based network geared for professionals under the age of 40. She said the only surprise with the YNPN is how quickly it has grown. The group is now one of the largest in the country behind similar groups in New York City, Washington, D.C. and Denver.

“Grand Rapids has a very strong nonprofit sector,” Qualls told MiBiz, noting the founding board members’ devotion was able to provide the push necessary to gain support for the organization.

YNPN’s mission is to provide professional development and networking opportunities to young professionals. Morning “Conversations Starters” bring in local experts to speak on specific topics such as grant writing, marketing and resume building, as well as lead group discussions. Formal lunch speakers discuss relevant topics such as personal branding, building leadership strengths, community organizing and fundraising. The group holds its annual Leadership Awards in October and will host the YNPN Leaders Conference in late March in downtown Grand Rapids with dates and specifics to be arranged. The event will offer some more high-level, professional development opportunities and the chance to network with young nonprofit professionals from all over the country.

Employment and career development are big issues with young nonprofit professionals, according to Qualls. In a down economy, many of the available nonprofit positions tend to be in marketing and fundraising.

“We have such small organizations in the city. It’s often hard to move up to a leadership role,” Qualls said. “Grand Rapids has a very long tradition of philanthropy. This leads to individuals being at an organization for a very long time. The biggest issue right now is to be ready to take over those positions when they do finally retire.”

Qualls said there is now more educational opportunities for nonprofit work, including the master’s certificate program through Grand Valley State University’s School of Public, Nonprofit and Health Administration, as well as a master’s degree in management from Aquinas College. More professional education for nonprofits makes work in nonprofits more appealing, she said.

Qualls said nonprofits need to rely more on corporate partnerships particularly with decreasing and less reliable sources of government funding. There are opportunities to work with businesses in areas like job programming, public schools and transitioning business skills to nonprofit organizations.
Bridgette Bassford, 29, assistant executive director of Dégagé Ministries in Grand Rapids, majored in business management in college. With a passion for nonprofit work, she knew her gifts were more administrative, but not in social work. After work as a volunteer and an internship at Dégagé Ministries, she joined the organization and has been with the community service organization for more than eight years. Along the way, she earned a master’s degree in nonprofit management and leadership from GVSU, where she took courses on grant writing, financial management, public policy and working with boards of directors.

Bassford said it’s becoming more common for younger professionals to go into nonprofit work. She’s seen their interest firsthand in the “Introduction to Nonprofit Management” course she taught at Cornerstone University.

A prerequisite for nonprofit work is a passion for the community and working for the greater good in the community and a desire and passion for the mission of the organization, Bassford said. She encourages young people to go into nonprofit work if it fits them.

“A lot of people don’t consider it as a career path. I really enjoyed the graduate education I received,” Bassford told MiBiz.

Bridget Clark Whitney, is a young, well-known nonprofit leader as the executive director of Kids’ Food Basket. Whitney, a board member of YNPN, said the younger generation of nonprofit professionals really wants to make a difference in their community and beyond.

“They are entrepreneurial and want to have meaningful involvement with an organization,” Whitney told MiBiz. “More and more young professionals have a passion for change, and they have the talents and leadership to make it happen.”

She said Kids’ Food Basket is fortunate to have generous community and business support.

“The Kids’ Food Basket supporters in the community have been the greatest resource for me. They help me get through the challenges I have encountered in running Kids’ Food Basket each day,” Whitney said.

One of the issues facing nonprofit leaders is broader and ever-changing communications, according to Whitney.

“You can’t just sit back and use the same old strategy to reach out to your constituents. The audience demands creativity, efficiency, and assurance that the organization is really making a difference,” Whitney said.

Joining Qualls and Whitney as board members and committee chairs of the YNPN of Grand Rapids are Amanda St. Pierre, Grand Rapids Community Foundation; Steven Rust, West Michigan Science & Technology Initiative; Jenn Schaub, Dwelling Place, Division Avenue Arts Cooperative and Heartside Business Association; Gretchen DeVault, DVQ Studio; Rickey Ainsworth, planetarium educator; Olubunmi Fadase, Grand Valley State University;  Barbara Anderson, Hospice of Michigan; Angie Gravelyn, Metro Health Hospital Foundation; and Tim Mroz, The Right Place Inc.

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• dorhty johnson center
• grand rapids
• gvsu
• tera wozniak qualls
• west michigan
• ynpn
• young nonprofit professionals