Category Archives: Award

INSPIRING PHILANTHROPY PROFESSIONALS

We are proud and inspired by many of our friends and collaborators in the University of San Francisco MNA Program who have been recognized by the Association for Nonprofit Professionals (AFP) Golden Gate Chapter during the 2020 National Philanthropy Day. “The National Philanthropy Day is a special celebration to recognize and pay tribute to the great contributions that philanthropy — and those active in our own philanthropic community — make to our lives, communities and world. This year, AFP Golden Gate has joined chapters across the country and around the world virtually to honor individuals, organizations and businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area who generously give their time, talents and resources for the enrichment and benefit of our communities.”

Among this year’s honored recipient was Kay Sprinkel Grace, our MNA Advisor a well recognized author and well-known fundraising professional who was recognized with a lifetime achievement award along with Mary Barbara Schultz, a well-known philanthropist. We are also very proud of Robert (Bob) Glavin, MNA, former MNA Advisor and past Development Director at USF who, along Dr. Chandra Alexandre, our current MNA advisor and past Fundraising course instructor, were the winner of the Spirit of Philanthropy Award.

Philanthropy – as love of humanity – is one of the most noble expressions of our common humanity and needed collective values. Unfortunately, philanthropy has many limits and cannot become the substitute to needed systemic solutions to societal issues such as individualism, inequalities, homelessness, poverty and racism. As Martin Luther King, Jr. stated:

“Philanthropy is commendable… But it must not cause the philanthropist to overlook the circumstances of economic injustice which make philanthropy necessary.” (MLK)

Regan Pritzker, co-founder of Kataly Foundation and representative of one of the wealthiest families in the United States of America, was this year’s recipient of the Outstanding Philanthropist Award. Recognizing her family’s privilege she also acknowledged the limits of philanthropy and how the generosity of those who give back should raise the question of their privileges in how they accumulated their wealth in the first place. Reflecting on the importance to channel the power of philanthropy toward impact investing and systemic change, Ms. Pritzker suggested that

“Philanthropy should be in the business of investing in new models that democratize decision-making and ownership, and shift power and control to those who are most impacted by social, economic, and environmental harms. These are the people best positioned to lead us towards change and transformation” (Impact Assets).

Philanthropy should be about promoting deeper expressions of humanity, innovation, inclusion and compassion, and not become a substitute to justice. Charities often target symptoms, not causes. This is why privileged and powerful people prefer to be recognized as philanthropist (s)heroes instead of granting systemic solutions for implementing social justice and tax-supported public services. That is why our MNA program moves beyond philanthropy to educate well-rounded leaders who combine human compassion with social justice, social innovation, social impact and organizational sustainability.

THE MICHAEL O’NEILL AWARD AND FUTURE OF NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP EVENT

The Michael O’Neill Award during the MNA 35th Anniversary Event, April 25, 2018

 

THE MICHAEL O’NEILL AWARD

The Michael O’Neill Nonprofit Leadership and Management Education Award is a named after USF Professor Emeritus Dr. Michael O’Neill, a recognized scholar in nonprofit leadership and management education who founded the MNA Program in 1983, the first nonprofit-specific graduate program of its kind. The award was instituted on April 25, 2018 during the 35th Anniversary Celebrations of the Master of Nonprofit Administration (MNA) Program. The Award recognizes exceptional leaders who demonstrate excellence in nonprofit leadership and management with educational strategies, systemic solutions and sustainable impact.

About Prof. Michael O’Neill, Ed.D.

Dr. Michael O’Neill, Ed.D. is recognized as the father of nonprofit management education (NME) field. He demonstrated his leadership through the founding of the Master of Nonprofit Administration  (MNA), the first graduate degree of this kind. He also founded the Institute of Nonprofit Organization Management (INOM) and served as President of theAssociation for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA). He was also instrumental in the establishment of Nonprofit Academic Centers Council (NACC), the accrediting body for NME programs.

THE MICHAEL O’NEILL AWARD RECIPIENTS

Liz Jackson-Simpson

Liz Jackson-Simpson is CEO of Success Centers. We recognize her exceptional example of a committed nonprofit leader providing systemic solutions for at-risk youth and disenfranchised communities in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Alexa Cortez Culwell, MNA

Ms. Alexa Cortez Culwell, MNA  is the co-founder of Open Impact and a longtime philanthropy advisor, speaker, and facilitator. For the past 25 years she has built and managed foundations and philanthropic initiatives for successful entrepreneurs, including serving as the founding CEO of the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation. She recently completed a four-year appointment as a visiting practitioner at Stanford University’s Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society.

Jeanne Bell, MNA

Ms. Jeanne Bell, MNA  is the former CEO of CompassPoint and current Director of the Nonprofit Quarterly NPQ‘s Advancing Practice program. She also serves in the Advisory Board of  University of San Francisco’s MNA program. She is a recognized author of numerous articles on nonprofit leadership and management including The Sustainability Mindset (Jossey-Bass, 2015).

 

THE FUTURE OF NONPROFITS EVENT

The 2019 Award Ceremony will be on Saturday May 4 during the THE FUTURE OF NONPROFIT LEADERSHIP, an annual event of the Master of Nonprofit Administration (MNA) at University of San Francisco’s School of Management featuring professionals and expert leaders reflecting on current and future trends relevant to nonprofit organizations, philanthropy and social enterprise solutions for the needs of our communities.

A panel discussion representing community leaders, MNA alumni, student, faculty and advisors will respond to Liz’s remarks in their view of the sector. The Panel will be moderated by Sergio Cuellar, MNA ’17, Program Manager, Sierra Health Foundation and will include Sheryl Evans Davis, Executive Director, San Francisco Human Rights Commission and Karen Campbell, MNA Student & President, Nonprofit Student Council.

The event includes a networking reception to celebrate our graduates and review the nonprofit sector analyses of students completed in their capstone projects and featured in printed posters. These represent the experiential learning and project based values of the program that develop competent value leaders while also contributing to the capacity and effectiveness of nonprofit organizations.

Please join us to connect with nonprofit leaders, sector professionals, MNA alumni and graduating students who represent the Jesuit mission of our university to “change the world from here.”

Learn more and register for the event here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-future-of-nonprofits-tickets-59964726110 

The Posters produced by the MNA graduating students during their Capstone course exemplify the contributions that the program gives to nonprofit capacity development and data driven social impact analysis
Beatrice D. Cardenas, MNA is a respected nonprofit leader in the San Francisco Bay Area known for her inspiring advocacy for healthier and equity communities.
The Master of Nonprofit Administration (MNA) Program at University of San Francisco has been a pioneer in nonprofit management education and continue to inspire innovative leadership and management solutions to complex social problems.