NY event: The Board's Role in Managing a CEO Transition - 1/24

Brown Bag Lunch Roundtable

Topic:
"The Board's Role in Managing a CEO Transition"

The transition of a nonprofit CEO is a time of great vulnerability for a nonprofit organization, especially if the outgoing CEO is a founder or long-term CEO. Risks include donor and funder apprehension, staff bail-out and loss of morale, loss of momentum on new projects, and the potential for significant reduction in client and/or community services. The Board's role in ensuring organizational stability during the transition is critical.

Join u s for a panel that will explore:

• The benefits of engaging an Interim CEO and the board's role in securing an appropriate Interim
• The Board's role in Succession Planning and the benefit of having an emergency succession plan
• The key activities a Board must assume responsibility for to minimize the risks

Panelists:
Don Crocker, CEO, Support Center for Nonprofit Management
Bill Falahee, CFO, JM Kaplan Fund
Regina Podhorin, President, The Leadership Group

Date:
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Time:
Noon to 2 PM
Venue:
Support Center for Nonprofit Management
Address:
305 Seventh Avenue (bet. 27th & 28th Sts.), Suite 1100, NYC 10001
Registration:
http://www.nycharities.org/event/event.asp?CE_ID=903

Cash/Check/Money Order (payable to Governance Matters) are also accepted at the Event. Please email us at info@governancematters.org with ALL PARTIES' Last Names, First Names, Organization/Company/Affiliates and Email Addresses (req'd).

Please bring your lunch. Water will be provided.

Don Crocker, CEO, Support Center for Nonprofit Management
Don is recognized nationally for his work in board development, program planning, and funding development. He has led numerous organizations including a community development corporation in Brooklyn, and a community-based agency serving developmentally disabled people in Queens, New York.

Don formerly was an affiliated consultant with BoardSource in Washington, DC and is a trained facilitator for their Board Self-Assessment process. Don is an adjunct professor in the graduate studies department at Manhattanville Col lege and holds a B.A. in Psychology and an M.S. in Leadership and Strategic Management. Don's Master's thesis focused on executive transitions in the nonprofit sector and explored strategies that grantmakers can take to assist nonprofits through transitions.

Bill Falahee, CFO, JM Kaplan Fund
The Fund is a family foundation with approximately $160 million in assets. Bill has been the Controller of the Fund since August 1995.

Bill is currently Vice-Chair/Treasurer of The Support Center for Non-Profit Management, after serving as Chair in 2003 and Treasurer in 2002. He has also served as a member of the Foundation Financial Officers Group (FFOG) from 1997 to present. Bill is currently Treasurer for NYRAG, from 2004 to present, and is chair of the NYRAG Finance Committee. NYRAG are currently going through a full transition.

Bill came to the Fund with an accounting background specializing in found ations and non-profits.

Regina Podhorin, President, The Leadership Group
Regina Podhorin completed an interim executive director assignment with New Jersey Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NJCASA) from January to September of 2006.

Ms. Podhorin brings 25 years experience in the nonprofit sector including 11 years as an Executive Director and 10 years as a consultant. With a BA in Sociology from Rutgers University and MA in Public Administration from Rider University she combines state and local experience as both a funder and program evaluator. Primary areas of specialty are behavioral healthcare, domestic violence and sexual violence, crisis response and prevention services.

Who is invited:
This meeting is designed for anyone who has an interest in promoting an effective, ethical, and honest nonprofit sector.

Cost:
Member: charge is $10
Non-member: charge is $15
Student with valid Student ID: charge is $5

Please contact Suet Batten at admin@governancematters.org should you have questions and/or concerns.

Next Roundtable: "Term Limits", Tuesday, February 27, 2007 at Noon.
Annual Meeting: Wednesday, February 28, 2007 at 5:00PM

Please visit our Event Calendar for upcoming exciting events.

My article: To proliferate or not to proliferate

My recent column in the Pakistani paper I write for went online earlier this morning and I am copying it below. Many thanks to my friend Christina Madden who provided some latent inspiration for it. Thanks, Christina!

To proliferate or not to proliferate

Nuclear energy is fast becoming a commodity the developing world wants to get its hands on. Iran, much to the chagrin of the rest of the international community, is well on its way to developing power plants to harness power from nuclear energy. And quick to follow suit is India. While both cases differ radically, India’s, much to the surprise of many of us, might prove to be the one to keep a watchful eye on.

This December, American politicians voted in favor of providing the Indians with “civilian nuclear technology”. This event has effectively reversed the US policy where the government would not provide any nuclear technology or know-how to anyone, irrespective of prior track record. While there will obviously be checks and balances every step of the way, the very fact that a country like India will be receiving this technology is cause for concern not only for Pakistan, but also for the entire world.

India has neither signed nor ratified the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). It has conducted numerous nuclear tests and the last time it received nuclear technology it proceeded to use it in preparation for a nuclear bomb under Indira Gandhi’s reign. While India is correct in arguing that it is in dire need of hefty power supplies to keep pace with its stupendous economic and industrial growth, it is incorrect in relying on the US for these “civilian” uses. Such a move on the part of the US government can single-handedly trigger an arms race the like of which was witnessed during the Cold War.

Taking advantage of the situation, the Chinese were quick to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Pakistan’s government wherein exchange of nuclear technology would take place between the two Asian countries. China has long been an ally of Pakistan and arriving at this current juncture was not difficult for either country. What remains to be seen is how the two countries proceed from here.

What interests me, though, is the use of public relations methodologies by the Indian authorities to garner support for this endeavor. While many recognizable people like US Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice did the public bidding for the US-India civilian nuclear energy agreement, the deal was actually sealed behind closed doors with much assistance from lobbying firms and PR agencies. According to Subrata Ghoshroy, who is a research associate in the science, technology and society programme at MIT and directs a project to promote nuclear stability in South Asia, $ 1.3 million was spent on two lobbying firms. He mentions that one of the firms hired was Barbour, Griffith, and Rogers, which is headed by Robert Blackwill, a former US ambassador to India.

Needless to say, the Indian lobby is making its political power quite apparent by flexing its lobbying muscle. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent on travel expenses of American political leaders shuttling between India and the US. To add to the pressure being exerted, the American Jewish community also played a leading role in promoting India’s cause.

A lot can be learnt from this whole experience. It is not only representative of the American political process whereby lobbies garner power and exert influence, but also where one can clearly see that the US no longer plays a role where it safeguards the interests of the international community. Today, that same country harms many millions the world over while allowing a minuscule number of them the opportunity to see the “American dream” come true. Today’s America cares, at best, only for itself, or at worst, for its closest allies in the dirty games it plays in the name of “civilization”, “development” and “modernity”.

Tomorrow’s world will be one where states compete for “civilian nuclear technology” while their own populations die for want of food, water and clothing. A shelter from their leaders is what they actually need. Their greed and vanity knows no bounds. At this very moment, I can imagine a child’s eyes closing for one last time as I type these final words. Perhaps, with sustained efforts, a future of non-proliferation can give that child one more chance at a life of peace and prosperity.

U.S. Has Lost Credibility On Rights: HRW; Ban echoes Annan on Gitmo closure

Gitmo has gotten next to no media coverage this week, even though there was really no other international crisis to report on; it was essentially business as usual for the media monster, yet they still didn't jump on the opportunity to cover such an important anniversary/commemoration.

After yesterday's column and numerous blog postings on the topic of Guantanamo Bay, I was heartened to see Human Rights Watch come out with a scathing report on human rights violations by countries the world over. But the criticism directed at the US had me in raptures because, along with it, came a recommendation that the EU take a lead in the promotion of human rights and civil liberties - since the US obviously has veered off the track on this point.

I've said enough, and can say more, but instead, will direct your attention to two articles. One on HRW's report in today's Washington Post, and the other in the Washington Times regarding the United Nations' new Secretary-General's call to close the camp. He's not saying anything new; his reiteration of his predecessors call for the closure of the camp is honorable and appropriate at this time, but what I found interesting was that the author of the article was present at the SG's press conference where he made those statements, and of all the things she could have covered in the article (at least 15 issues), she chose Ban's call for the closure of the camp (a 2 minute segment of the press conference). The Washington Times is a conservative newspaper that doesn't always report on the good stuff the UN does and so this came as a pleasant surprise in some ways. Then again, they could be implicitly pitching Ban against the US. With the media, you never know!

Happy reading!

My article: "Guantanamo: the terror lives on"

January 11th marks the day when Gutananamo Bay received its first inmates five years ago. Just a few months ago, we commemorated the 5th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, and now, on a much smaller level, a much smaller group of people are commemorating the demise of human rights and civil liberties in the nation that championed those causes for centuries.

I have been extremely depressed and distressed at the situation at hand. After reading numerous books on Gitmo, and after having finished one just last night, I find myself in a constant state of anxiety and suffer from mild headaches every now and then. How can this country let such an atrocity go on? My anger at American human rights violations knows no bounds. The only thing that can anger me more is the double standards we continue to propagate the world over.

I can go on and on and invite comments - constructive and destructive - but will instead draw your attention to the article I've copied below which was published in the Pakistani newspaper I write a column for, The Post.

Waiting for a miracle - or a revolution?

Guantanamo: the terror lives on

I have been living in the US for several years now, but have failed to understand the recent and highly disturbing trend that can be observed in this country regarding human rights violations. The country that once prided itself on being a beacon for those seeking the protection and enjoyment of those rights is today the same country that blatantly violates them. The US is no longer a harbinger of hope for those who are persecuted the world over; instead, it inspires deadly fear and anxiety and has lost the stature it once held in a world already plagued with countless wrongs.

A constant reminder of this negative role the US is now playing in the realm of human rights is none other than the very existence of Guantanamo Bay. I have written about Guantanamo numerous times before in this column space. It has mostly been because all, if not the vast majority, of the detainees are Muslims of Arab or South Asian heritage. In solidarity, I stood with them, writing articles like the one you are reading right now, hoping someone, somewhere would read it and contact an influential member of their social circle or community, and help spread the word about the atrocities going on in the name of national security and protection of civilians.

But alas, today, Americans are no better protected than they were before 9/11. In fact, the world is an even more treacherous place, perhaps more so because of the blatant human rights violations going on in places like Guantanamo. These gross injustices give fuel to the fire of terrorism that threatens to rip across the Muslim world if we do not contain it soon.

And yet, the American authorities do not realize how simple it is to both uphold these sacred values they helped enshrine, and to still wage a much-needed war against terrorism and terrorists. If only these officials knew that this process begins with respect; respect for life, for civilization, for values. In its blind quest for superiority and supremacy in anything and everything, the US forgot that greed and selfishness can only harm those who indulge in these acts.

Guantanamo is the antithesis of everything Americans hold sacred. Yet today, as we commemorate the day it received its first inmates five years ago, it stands tall and proud as the tarnished image of what the new US has come to reflect: double standards, hypocrisy and the alarming disrespect for things the civilised world holds in high esteem. While over 500 Muslim men languish in conditions we shudder to think of, the US continues to export torture to other countries. In the 21st century, torture has officially become an exportable commodity, the product of a few decades of poor policy that remains unchanged. As if it was not bad enough that Americans are indulging in this horrific act, they are coercing other countries to pursue similar policies.

Guantanamo has, for many months, been eliminated from the international agenda. We no longer see human rights experts calling for its closure, or for the due trial of its inhabitants. Instead, Britney Spears’ misdeeds are splashed all over the pages of newspapers and sensationalism regarding anything that can potentially harm Americans is drilled into our heads as a credible “threat” to our lives. What the American authorities do not realize in their haste to protect their people is that they can do their countrymen a much better service by not only advocating social justice and fairness, but also by proving that they hold these principles close to their hearts for those of other nationalities as well.

Five years after Guantanamo received its first prisoners, I walk the streets of New York City in perpetual fear; Fear that, one day, out of nowhere, I can be picked up off the street, never to be seen again. My tranquility will forever be snatched from me and my dreams will forever be shattered. If places like Guantanamo exist to show us what our future can be, then I will never be able to sleep peacefully at night. If places like Guantanamo exist to ensure my safety and security, then the terror it inspires in my heart must be curbed.

President Bush, I hope you are reading this.

Post 9/11 film: Out of Status on 1/16 @ Two Boots Pioneer

3rd i NY and Alwan for the Arts Collaborative Monthly Film & Video
Series presents the documentary feature:

Out of Status (Pia Sawhney, Sanjna Singh 2005. USA. 70 min. English)
Official Selection Rotterdam, IDFA, Edinburgh, Amnesty International,
and Asian American Film Festivals
*Director Pia Sawhney present for Q&A*

Two Boots Pioneer Theater
Tues, Jan 16th @ 7pm
155 East 3rd Street (at Avenue A)
Subway: F to 2nd Ave; 6 to Bleecker

Tickets: $10 Adults / $6.50 Pioneer Members
Followed by FREE PIZZA & BEER/SODA at the Den of Cin
Advance Tix: http://pioneertheater.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=82840

About the Film
Before 9/11, there was an implicit understanding between the INS and
immigrant communities that people who had applications pending to
legalize their status could reside in the country until an application
was approved. After 9/11, and for South Asians and Arabs, the rule
changed. The Muslim community, today, is alone among the vast
immigrant population to face such targeted enforcement. Out of Status
follows four families whose lives were permanently altered, when a
member was secretly detained or deported.

Carma, an American with two children, sees her husband, Akram deported
to Egypt. Their family has now been separated for two years. Two days
after 9/11, Salem, a Pakistani-American, is charged with stealing a
rental car and jailed in solitary confinement for 40 days. Hakim, an
Algerian, faces the possibility of separation from his wife (a legal
resident) and child for complying with a government program to
register Arabs. The Rahmans, who are staying in a shelter upstate,
wait to gain asylum in Canada. They, along with 15,000 other
Pakistanis, leave New York rather than face deportation. Through
focusing on individuals who are discriminated against by national
security measures, this film helps the audience experience the fear of
speaking out and see current policy through their eyes.

*Director Pia Sawhney present for Q&A*

About the Directors
Pia Sawhney
Pia has worked in documentary for four years, and most recently on a
production for Jennifer Fox, which will air on HBO next year. Pia's
short film Out of Status, with co-producer Sanjna Singh, played at the
Rotterdam, Edinburgh, and Amnesty film festivals among others. The
feature version, in post-production, is funded in part by grants, and
screened as a Work-in-Progress at IFP Market 2004. Pia and Sanjna are
finalists for the Roy. W. Dean grant, and were nominated by NAATA for
the ABC Talent Development Award. Pia has served as a panel judge for
the SAJA Scholarship Award, was accepted to IFP New York's Project
Involve workshop, and attended Bryn Mawr College. She has lived in the
US, India, and the Middle East. Pia is completing a graduate degree in
broadcast journalism part-time at New York University, and works as a
freelance producer.

Sanjna Singh
Born in Mumbai, India, Sanjna left at 17 for the U.S. She graduated
from Bryn Mawr College magna cum laude with honors in both Political
Science and French. Along with co-producer Pia Sawhney, she was
awarded grants from the New York State Council for the Arts and the
Experimental TV Center for Out of Status. The Queens Museum, Asia
Society, Pioneer Theatre, Egyptian Theater (LA) and Angelika Film
Center among others have screened their work. Sanjna was accepted into
IFP's Project Involve Documentary Unit in Spring 2004 and was awarded
the Eastman Kodak Final Pitch Award. Her personal essays have been
published in the New York Times, among other publications. She has
studied film and photography in New York and in Paris, and was a
panelist at Amnesty International USA's Annual General Meeting in
2004. She currently works at HBO Studios in New York.
__________________________________

SAVE THE DATE:
New York Arab & South Asian Film Festival
Feb 24 - March 4
www.alwanforthearts.org/filmfestival