TIME TO RENEW! EZ/EC/CC COMMUNITY BOARD MINI-TRAINING SESSION

1. TIME TO RENEW!EZ/EC/CC COMMUNITY BOARD MINI-TRAINING SESSION Adapted from Advanced Systems Corp. “Community Empowerment Board Training” by Rural Development’s Office of Community Development U.S. Department of Agriculture Washington, DC

2. Welcome • Introductions • Theme • Purpose and Agenda • Logistics • Norms

3. History, Progress and Promise of the Empowerment Program • Vision • The Four Key principles of the Empowerment Program (we never get tired of hearing these!) • Each community is part of the larger whole (what's your community’s part?) • Future considerations

4. The Empowerment Staircase Empowerment is a process, like climbing stairs

5. First Steps on the Empowerment Staircase 5. Converting vision intoworkplan 4. Creating soundstrategies 3. Finding partners 2. Building broad participation 1. Building a solidfoundation

6. Next Steps in Building Empowerment 10. Achievingsustainable development 9. Adapting strategic plans 8. Building community capacity 7. Creating successes 6. Finding resources

7. Where Should Your EZ/EC Put Its Energies? Activity: Indicate which step(s) along the Empowerment Staircase the Board should focus its energies in the next year or two?

8. EZ Responsibilities & Social Contract • Legal stuff -- MOA, grant agreement, forms • Be true to the plan and vision • Celebrating, amending, and revising your plan • Benchmarks are a board's best friend

9. EZ/EC Regs & Boards Post March 25th • 7 CFR Part 25 § 25.404 Validation of designation. (a) Maintaining the principles of the program Ongoing broad-based participation (1) Continuous improvement Learn from the past and continuously enhance performance (2) Participation Continuous broad-based community participation in the implementation of the strategic plan,…, including board membership in the lead entity and other key partnership entities.

10. EZ/EC Regs and Boards (continued) • 7 CFR Part 25 § 25.404 Validation of designation. (b) Administration of the strategic plan (3) Board Membership • Must be representative of the entire community • Either broad-based election or appointment • 55% must be elected locally • At least 1 locally elected board member from each census tract that is representative of low income residents in that tract • For Tribal Government Organizations the Deputy Administrator can waive the 55% elected criteria if it’s determined, in writing, that an appointed board will be more representative of the community

11. Guidelines on Board Representation • Broad Based Election • Locally Acceptable • Nominations • Sufficient Notice • Representative Board • Conflict of Interest • Low-Income • Transparency

12. Board Representation and Reconfiguration Discussion • Are we fully compliant? What steps need to be taken to meet the requirements? • Beyond strict compliance, is it opportune to make other changes in Board selection, composition, and terms? • When was the last time we made an assessment of our internal operations? • How do we best increase effectiveness and maintain the spirit of the program?

13. Empowerment CommunityBoard Type • An Empowerment Community Board is a type of Executive Management Team providing: • Leadership • Direction • Oversight • Advice • Motivation

14. COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT BOARD • The Board members are to be the organization’s leaders, providing it with oversight and advise concerning mission- related efforts. They are responsible for creating and updating the organization’s Strategic Plan, giving all members of the organization a sense of direction. Also to keep the organization motivated.

15. Empowerment CommunityBoard Type • An Empowerment Community Board is like an Executive Management Team: • Purpose: to provide coordinated leadership to the organization • Contribution: oversight and advice • Dangers: that it shirk its responsibilities or not be used • Advantages: builds common purpose and consensus within the organization

16. EZ/EC Board As Hybrid • Different from Corporate Board • Different from common Volunteer Boards • Key Role played by Committees • Limited Staff size • Board members: One head -- Two hats

17. Committees: Vital to the Mission • EZ/EC Community-Based Mission & Philosophy • Job too big for Board and Staff • Committee Make-up: • Geography (sub-Zone) or Sector representative • Ad-Hoc or Standing • EZ/EC Created or Pre-existing partner • Board-led, staff-led or citizen-led • Empower – Communicate - Monitor

18. Ten Responsibilities of Non-Profit Boards 1. Determine the Organization’s Mission and Purpose 2. Select the Chief Executive 3. Support the Chief Executive and Assess His/Her Performance 4. Ensure Effective Organizational Planning 5. Ensure Adequate Resources 6. Manage Resources Effectively 7. Determine, Monitor, and Strengthen the Organization’s Programs and Services 8. Enhance the Organization’s Public Standing 9. Ensure Legal and Ethical Integrity and Maintain Accountability 10.Recruit and Orient New Board Members and Assess Board Performance - Richard T. Ingram, Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges

19. Define Reasons for Being • As your organization’s Strategic Planners, you must spell out its purpose (why it was formed) • You must also create a formal statement of the organization’s Mission (what are its responsibilities) • You should also organize these responsibilities in descending priority

20. Select a Manager • As Board Members, you are your organization’s leaders • One exercise of leadership is to define the characteristics you want in a manager of day-to-day operations • Another leadership function is to select the candidate who is best qualified to carry out your agenda

21. Support and Assess the Manager • The Manager and his/her Staff are your organization’s “troops in the trenches” • As leaders, you must provide adequate support and guidance to these troops • As mentors and coaches, you must evaluate the performance of the Manager and Staff and provide them with feedback

22. Perform Planning • To qualify for designation as an Empowerment Community, you had to create a Strategic Plan • Your planning responsibility requires you now to develop a Tactical or Implementation Plan • You need to revisit your Strategic and Tactical Plans periodically to update and revise them as needed

23. Acquire & Leverage Resources • In addition to your Title XX grants, you need to acquire other, continuing resources • You need to form alliances or partnerships with other organizations to leverage both your resources • You need to guide your community in the necessary activity of fundraising

24. Oversee Resource Utilization • As leaders, you need to resist the temptation of micro-managing your organization • You should review and make decisions on proposed resource allocations • You should review and evaluate resource utilization

25. Oversee Organizational Activities • As leaders, you don’t design and sponsor your organization’s programs and services • Instead, you assess, advise, and facilitate your organization’s actions in support of its programs and services • One of your important responsibilities as leaders is to “grow people” in your community

26. Maintain Public Relations • You can not assume that your organization will continue to have the respect of the community • As leaders, you have a responsibility to inform them continually of your problems, your efforts to solve them, and your accomplishments • As leaders, you have a responsibility to motivate your community to take responsibility for its own fate

27. Govern Morally • As leaders, you must ensure that your organization avoids any actions that are illegal or unethical • As leaders, you must be concerned that your organization does not even give the appearance of illegal or unethical behavior • As evaluators of proposals, you must be impartial and not give preferential treatment to any individual or organization

28. Recruit Fresh Blood • As leaders concerned with the continued well-being of your organization, you must be constantly looking for new candidates for the Board • As new Board Members take their place, you must be sure that they are given formal orientation into the purpose and functioning of the Board • As leaders, you must set the example of assessing and evaluating the performance of the Board

29. Leadership

30. Activities of a Leader • Experiment and take risks • Envision the future • Enlist others to follow • Search for opportunities for change and improvement • Foster collaboration • Empower followers • Lead by doing • Build commitment to action • Recognize contributions • Celebrate accomplishments • Kouzes and Posner, The Leadership Challenge (1987)

31. Activities of a Manager • Structure the job • Select staff • Improve competencies • Correct incorrect behavior • Motivate staff • Delegate responsibility and authority • Support your staff’s activities • Clay Carr, The New Manager’s Survival Manual (1989)

32. Board – Executive Director Relationship “No single relationship in the organization is as important as that between the board and its chief executive officer.” John Carver, Boards that Make a Difference

33. Activities of an Executive Director • Execute policies of the Board • Maintain fiscal accountability • Foster environment for communication & success • Ensure compliance with Federal & State laws • Participate in fund-raising efforts • Promote the corporation thru public relations, marketing and advocacy • Work with others to improve programs • Provide planning structure & recommendations • Provide leadership for policy development • Supervise and evaluate day-to-day operations

34. Leadership Questions • Who do you think of as leaders? • What was his/her chief leadership characteristic? • Who do you think of as managers? • What was his/her chief manager characteristic? • What are the differences between a leader and a manager? • Can the same person/group be a leader and a manager simultaneously?

35. Leader/Manager in an Empowerment Community • The role of leader is played by the Board • The role of manager is played by the Executive Director • If the Board must play both roles, it must be very aware at any moment which role it is playing

36. Activity IHow Do You Rate as a Leader? 1. On your own, fill out the Leadership Questionnaire. 2. Identify areas where you need improvement. 3. Devise a plan for becoming a better leader. 4. Make a commitment to carry out your plan.

37. Teaming – Board and Staff

38. Teaming Atmosphere • What kind of atmosphere or environment is necessary for a group to act as a team? • Individualistic? • Competitive? • Cooperative?

39. Individualistic Atmosphere • Encourages each person to go his/her own way • No guarantee that all individuals will reliably march in the same direction • Individuals usually invest personal feelings in their own thoughts, beliefs, and values

40. Competitive Atmosphere • Pits groups members against one another • Competition is a “game” in which one side wins and the other loses • Competitors find it difficult to admit that the ideas of others can be true, good, or valuable

41. Cooperative Atmosphere • Group members work for the good of the whole, rather than for their own good • They are convinced that working together is better than working alone • They are willing to do whatever needs to be done to get the job done

42. Teaming Beliefs • “The best way to solve this problem is by all working together” • “Each of us has his/her own set of talents to contribute” • “Our success as a team depends on the quality of our communications with one another” • “To meet our responsibilities and make good decisions, we all need to be well-informed and we need to hear from every member”

43. Team Decision-Making • Team members will implement decisions made through consensus, which is reached by: • Discussing • Bargaining • Compromising or collaborating • Voting

44. Decision-Making Tools • Problem Identification • Brainstorming • Multi-voting

45. Who is Your Community? Results from Community Quiz

46. Why Involve the Community? • Community problems can be solved by the community or by outside “experts” • Usually the community can not afford “experts” • As often as a community allows someone else to solve its problems, it strengthens its doubt in its own ability to satisfy its own needs

47. The Principle of Community-Based Partnerships • One of the four principles of the Empowerment Community Program is that of Community-Based Partnerships • Involving participation of all segments of the community • Working together to build and implement a plan for bettering their community • Developing problem-solving abilities to enable self-sufficiency

48. Required Paradigm Shift • To be successful, leaders must adopt a collaborative approach • Representative participation (“grassroots volunteers”) • Committee consciousness (“a meaningful slot for all”) • Collaborative atmosphere (“a solution best for all”) • Consensus building (“a chance to be heard”)

49. Representative Participation • Representatives of all civic groups • Representatives of all concerned citizens • All age groups (beyond children) • Both genders • All ethnic groups • All income levels

50. Collaborative Atmosphere • Involvement must be early and broad • Give adequate notice of public involvement project • Ensure time for community to review and discuss • Ensure that participants have a clear, realistic understanding of the goals of the project • Give real (not “make-work”) tasks and show appreciation for efforts expended • Provide public access to technical information • Use collaborative decision-making process