Please answer the following question below .
1.What the issue is in the story ?
2.How you would respond to the question posed at the end of the study
INTRODUCTION TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
CASE STUDY 4
“The Dilemma Facing the Nonprofit Leaders Training Society”
The Nonprofit Leaders Training Society (NLTS) is a nonprofit organization that works in partnership with four-year colleges and universities across the country to prepare college students for leadership roles in the nonprofit sector. As part of their work, the NLTS offers students who attend the partnering schools an opportunity to earn the Exceptional Nonprofit Professional (ENP) credential by completing a program of nonprofit-focused academic training, community service, leadership opportunities and internships.
The NLTS created the ENP credential program nearly 20 years ago, and students pay. a one-time fee of $100 to participate. Currently, about 600 students are working toward earning the ENP credential at about 20 partner schools.
In addition to collecting participation fees from students, The NLTS charges partner schools an annual affiliation fee of $10,000 for the right to offer the ENP program on their campuses. In 2010-2011, the NLTS had its highest number of partner schools, with 50 being in their fold. By 2019-2020, that number had fallen to 25 schools. The steady loss of partner schools has resulted in decreased revenues, which has brought about staff layoffs and program service reductions. The NLTS has been struggling to stay afloat financially for at least the last five years.
The onset of COVID-19 made the NLTS’s financial situation significantly worse. By July 2020, five partner schools had ended their relationship with the organization because of budget constraints, leaving them with only 20 partner schools in the fold going into the 2020-2021 school year. Representatives at the remaining partner schools have reported decreased interest in the ENP program among students, and the recruitment of new students is expected to be difficult during the 2020-2021 school year because of campus restrictions brought on by COVID-19.
The NLTS must do something to stabilize its financial health. The NLTS Board and staff have been meeting for months to formulate a plan for bringing in more money. Most believe they need to recruit new partners schools as a way to bring in more money. Some even think they should consider partnering with other nonprofit organizations that have missions that are similar to that of the NLTS.
They’ve already been approached by some potential partners.
One two-year community college has floated the idea of partnering with the NLTS so they can offer the ENP program on their campus, but only at an annual affiliation cost of $5,000 since the students will only have two years to complete the program instead of four. Also, the NLTS has been approached by two nationally-recognized nonprofits, The Service Guild and The Community Connection, about potential partnerships. The Service Guild has a membership of about 8,000 across 110 college campuses in the country and focuses on creating volunteer service opportunities for its members. The Community Connection has about 500 members across 15 college campuses mainly located in the Midwest. They promote volunteer service and leadership training opportunities for their members. Neither of these organizations offer a credential like the ENP, nor do they have academic components to their programs.
Your response to this case study should include answers to the following questions:
Do any of these potential partnerships make sense for the NLTS to consider? If you were advising the NLTS board and staff, what questions would you ask these potential partners as they weigh out whether any or all would be good collaborators? What would you identify as the NLTS’s WHIIFMs as they consider these potential partnerships?
