About this course: This course introduces you to the nonprofit sector, nonprofit organizations, and the concepts of leadership and governance. While this course has been developed with North American culture in mind, we do appreciate that in other parts of the world the nature of the nonprofit sector, nonprofit organizations, nonprofit leadership and governance may not be the same. Nevertheless, it is our hope that much of the course content will still be of value to those in other parts of the world. To learn more about this course, please watch the overview video by copying and pasting the following link into your web browser: https://goo.gl/YMg1Qd. Keywords: Nonprofit; Nonprofit Sector; Voluntary Sector; Nonprofit Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Volunteer Organizations, Leadership, Management, Governance, Board, Board of Directors, Performance, Effectiveness Course 1 Overview: Week 1: Some of the questions you will explore this week are: What is the nonprofit sector and why does it exist? What are the unique characteristics of nonprofit organizations? What are the trends and emerging issues facing organizations in the nonprofit sector? Week 2: Questions to be explored this week are: What is leadership at the governance level and how is it different from management? What is good governance and why does it matter? What is a board of directors? Week 3: This week's questions: What roles do board members play in nonprofit organizations? Broadly speaking, what are boards responsible for and how do they go about their work? What are some of the issues that challenge the board's ability to go its work? Week 4: At this stage, you are asked to review the course content, submit a written assignment (known lightheartedly as a BEAR (Board Effectiveness Readiness Assessment), and take two multiple choice Readiness Assurance Tests (known similarly as RATs). One RAT will assess knowledge and reading comprehension and the other will test application of knowledge within a practical case. Week 5: We will encourage you to discuss the RATs in the discussion forums and take them again should you wish to change any of your answers based on the information exchanged.
Created by: The State University of New York, Luther College at the University of Regina
Taught by: Prof. Yvonne D. Harrison, PhD, Associate Professor and Director
Voluntary Sector Studies Network (VSSN)
Taught by: Prof. Vic Murray, PhD, Adjunct Professor
School of Public Administration, University of Victoria
| Basic Info | Course 1 of 4 in the Improving Leadership & Governance in Nonprofit Organizations Specialization |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
The Nonprofit Sector, Nonprofit Organizations, Leadership and Governance
Welcome to the first course in the series of three courses on developing leadership and improving governance in nonprofit organizations. We encourage you to dive right in--watch the lecture and guest interview videos, participate in the discussion forums, take the practice quiz, post a commentary in the forum, analyze the Board cases, and start working on the course project!
6 videos, 7 readings, 1 practice quiz
- Video: The Leadership and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations Promotional Video
- Video: Welcome to the video introducing this series of courses
- Video: Course 1 Overview Video
- Reading: Course 1 Teaching and Learning Overview
- Reading: Required and Recommended Texts
- Reading: Week 1 Key Questions and Competencies
- Video: Week 1 Overview
- Reading: Week 1 Readings and Resources
- Video: Interview with Ruth McCambridge
- Video: Interview with Dr. Laura Schweitzer: Leadership and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations from a Practitioner Perspective
- Practice Quiz: Week 1
- Reading: Discuss Case Study
- Reading: Course Project Overview
- Reading: Course Project Part II Guidance
WEEK 2
Nonprofit Management and Leadership, Organizational Governance and Boards of Directors
Hello and welcome to Week 2 of the first course on Leadership and Governance of Nonprofit Organizations! The goal of this week is to introduce you to the concept of nonprofit leadership and governance and the function of boards in organizational governance. Details can be found on the week 2 course pages below. As usual, we encourage you to engage in the content and with each other on this online teaching and learning journey!
2 videos, 5 readings, 1 practice quiz
- Reading: Week 2 Key Concepts and Competencies
- Video: Week 2 Overview
- Reading: Week 2 Readings and Resources:
- Video: Interview with Prof Chris Cornforth on "Innovative Approaches and Perspectives to Nonprofit Governance"
- Practice Quiz: Week 2
- Reading: Discuss Case Study
- Reading: Course Project Overview
- Reading: Course Project Part II Guidance
WEEK 3
The Board's Role and Responsibilities
Hello and welcome to Week 3! The goal of this week is to address a number of important questions related to how boards operate: What roles do board members play in nonprofit organizations, what are boards responsible for, What is the role and responsibilities of boards of directors and What are the elements of board behavior that shape how effective a board will be. These elements form the basis of the content of the second and third courses in this series on Developing Leadership and Improving Governance in Nonprofit Organizations. They also underline the structure of our course text, Improving the Effectiveness of Boards of Directors AND the tool used to facilitate assessments of board performance in the Course 2 project. Two videos relating to these topics can be found on the week 3 course page.
4 videos, 5 readings, 1 practice quiz
- Reading: Week 3 Key Questions and Competencies
- Video: Week 3 Overview
- Reading: Week 3 Readings and Resources
- Video: Interview with Putnam Barber on Charitable Solicitations in the United States
- Video: Conceptual Framework of the Elements of Board Effectiveness
- Video: Professor Vic Murray summarizes the design of the board assessment
- Practice Quiz: Week 3
- Reading: Discuss Case Study
- Reading: Course Project Overview
- Reading: Course Project Part II Guidance
WEEK 4
Concept Testing and Application
Hello and welcome to Week 4! The goal of this week is to assess course learning. The end of Course 1 assessment of learning begins with the requirement that you to take two Readiness Assurance Tests (RATs) and submit your first Board Effectiveness Assessment Reflection (BEAR). During the testing process, don't forget to bring a piece of paper and pen to make a note of your answers to the RAT and RAT Application Exercise questions. You will need them to vote and discuss your responses in the RAT forums next week.
Graded: Readiness Assurance Test (RAT)
Graded: RAT Application Exercise
Graded: Board Effectiveness Assessment Reflection (BEAR) Course Project
WEEK 5
Assessment of Learning: BEAR Peer Review and RAT Discussion Forums
Hello, and Welcome to Week 5! The goal of this week is to discuss and complete the end of Course 1 assessment of learning. It begins with peer discussion of the individual Readiness Assurance Test (RAT) and RAT Application Exercise (case) you took last week plus peer review of the three BEAR assignments you have been assigned to evaluate this week. It concludes with re-taking the RAT and RAT Application Exercise Tests and returning the three BEAR assignments you peer-reviewed last week.
2 videos, 1 reading
- Reading: RAT and RAT Application Exercise Discussion and Polling Instructions
- Video: RAT Peer Discussions and Polling
- Video: RAT Application Exercise Peer Discussions and Polling
Graded: RAT Post Peer Learning Forum
Graded: RAT Application Exercise Post Peer Learning Forum
FAQs
How It Works
Coursework
Each course is like an interactive textbook, featuring pre-recorded videos, quizzes and projects.
Help from Your Peers
Connect with thousands of other learners and debate ideas, discuss course material, and get help mastering concepts.
Certificates
Earn official recognition for your work, and share your success with friends, colleagues, and employers.
Creators
The State University of New York
The State University of New York, with 64 unique institutions, is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States. Educating nearly 468,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs both on campus and online, SUNY has nearly 3 million alumni around the globe.
Luther College at the University of Regina
Pricing
| Purchase Course | Audit | |
|---|---|---|
| Access to course materials | Available | Available |
| Access to graded materials | Available | Not available |
| Receive a final grade | Available | Not available |
| Earn a shareable Course Certificate | Available | Not available |
Ratings and Reviews
Very insightful. Examples and issues discussed match situations faced in real boards.
Great readings and course material
it is very beneficial courses i will do hard to get benefits
Coursera provides universal access to the world’s best education, partnering with top universities and organizations to offer courses online.
© 2017 Coursera Inc. All rights reserved.
I made an excellent choice by taking this course while planning and running my own project on Nonprofit entrepreneurship