Cedar Valley Nonprofit Association
Cedar Valley Connections

Issue 164
August 14, 2017
Dear Nonprofit Supporter,
 
Welcome to Cedar Valley Connections, a newsletter to connect the leaders of the nonprofit sector. 


CVNA & AFP Workshop...




What's Your Story? Learn techniques of crafting and sharing inspiring stories to increase donations and motivate volunteers. 
Hosted by Cedar Valley Nonprofit Association and Association of Fundraising Professionals- Northeast Iowa chapter

Wednesday, September 20, 2017
8:00am-12:00pm
UNI-CUE 800 Sycamore, Waterloo, IA

Featuring America's Top 25 Fundraising Experts: Lori J. Jacobwith, Ignite Fundraising.

Agenda:
8:00am Complimentary refreshments and check-in
8:15am Welcome
8:30am Breakout #1 (Choose 1)
A. Volunteers can do it all: how to engage across your entire organization. Lead by Lauren Finke- Executive Director, Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley
B. Art of sustainable grant seeking.  Lead by Constance Grimm- Director of Grants and Resource Development, Hawkeye Community College
9:40am  Breakout #2 (Choose 1)
C. All I want to do is raise some funds: Practice the power of word choices to inspire action like never before. Lead by Lori J. Jacobwith- Founder, Ignite Fundraising.
D. Grantwriting Do's and Don'ts and exclusive UNI Foundation Directory review. Lead by Angie Widner- Executive Director, YMCA.
10:45am All session keynote: Sharing powerful impact stories to create action. Lead by Lori Jacobwith, Ignite Fundraising.
12:00pm Conclude

Cost:  AFP/CVNA members free and have 1st priority to space if registered by September 1. All non-members can register after September 1st for a charge of $25.  Please click here  to register for this great workshop by September 19th.
Effective Meeting Planning Workshop...

Join us on October 5, 2017 from 8-9:30 am at the Philanthropy Center (425 Cedar Street, Waterloo; 3rd floor US Bank Bldg.). 

Isn't there a better way? 5 meeting mistakes and how to stop making them!

How does your nonprofit achieve its mission? Search your calendar for the answer and you will likely find  that "go to meetings" is our sector's preferred mode of operation. As nonprofits, we use meetings to
align goals, make decisions, solve problems and generally - get stuff done! But, poorly designed  meetings eat up time, make us desperate for the "real work" at our desk, and drive our teams apart.

As leaders we have the opportunity to design better meetings; meetings that strengthen organizations  and relationships and help meet our goals. During this session we'll explore the ways that meetings go  wrong and investigate the art and science of meeting design. You'll learn the architecture of exceptional  meetings and you'll  have a chance to consider new meeting designs.

Stacy Van Gorp is the Executive Director of the R.J. McElroy Trust, a private foundation dedicated to inspiring and transforming young people in northeast Iowa. She has 20 years of experience in nonprofit leaders hip, philanthropy and higher education... adding up to about 10,000 me etings in her career. She i s passionate about helping organizations align their strategy, actions and organizational culture to  achieve remarkable social change and innovation.

To RSVP for this great workshop, please click hereFree for CVNA members, $25 for non-members.  Please RSVP by noon, October 4th.  
Community Events...
Job Opportunities...

Job Title:   Driver/Warehouse

The Pickup and Delivery Driver's primary duties include driving Food Bank vehicles for the purposes of picking up donations and delivering products to agencies and programs.  Additional duties will include, but not be limited to, warehouse functions.
   
High school diploma or equivalent,  minimum two years of employment with responsibility level similar to Food Bank position, ability to perform basic mathematical functions,  ability to lift and carry objects weighing up to 50 lbs, a bility to work in extreme environments of a warehouse with freezer and refrigeration units, a bility to work evenings and weekends as required and have a va lid Iowa Driver's License and Class D license.

To learn more about this job opening and to apply, please  click here.


Job Title:  Americorps 4-H Program Assistant

Part-time AmeriCorps members will serve in school-based and  community-based host sites developing and strengthening youth development programs for Iowa youth.  Members may assist youth in completing homework assignments; provide one-to-one assistance in academic areas such as math, reading, and science; and develop positive and nurturing mentoring relationships with youth.  Members may also assist students in developing youth-identified and organized service learning events such as park beautification and intergenerational story sharing.  In partnership with a variety of community volunteers and entities including local businesses, agencies, organizations, and institutions, members may develop enrichment activities to strengthen and sustain out-of-school programming and fulfill the goals of t he AmeriCorps 4H Outreach Program, emphasizing the 4-H priorities of Healthy Living, Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Citizenship and Leadership, and Communication and the Arts.  

To apply, please send resume, references and cover letter to [email protected]
Internship Opportunities...


The Northeast Iowa Food Bank has two internship opportunities available.


Internship:  Graphic Design Intern

This position will assist with social media and communications, e ngagement with other Food Bank employees with production and design of materials  including but not limited to brochures, posters, promotional materials, newsletters,  business cards, event signage, fliers, internal communications, etc., h elp with project-related tasks such as copying, photography, printing, bindery and  editing/updating design files.

Internship:  Online Communications Intern

This position will assist with social media and communications, establish and maintain new online media outlets that build meaningful connections, encourages the community to take action, set up and optimize the current Food Bank's online media outlets to increase the visibility of the Food Bank's online content, create and implement one new idea to best help tell the Food Bank's story, continuously improve our communication outlets by capturing and analyzing the appropriate
data/metrics, insights and best practices, then acting on the information,  assist with the upkeep of our website and other duties as assigned.

These positions require a minimum of 20 hours per week. If interested in applying, please email cover letter, resume and 3 professional references to Alisha Rulapaugh at  [email protected].

Clients sought for courses in workplace communication. Fall 2017 courses in workplace communication are seeking individual and organizational clients who wish to have print and digital publications created, such as newsletters, brochures, flyers, proposals, report documents, websites and exhibition storyboards. For more information contact [email protected]
Free Webinar Opportunities...


Transforming Business Models Webinar
August 22, 2017 from 12-1 pm CST

This webinar discusses financial structure of nonprofits, broken down into four core components. These components: revenue mix, infrastructure and expenses, program cost, and capital structure, define the business model that creates value for the community and sustains the business entity. Please click here for more information on this webinar.

Establishing Tech Policies to Protect Your Nonprofit

Are you providing guidance to help staff members avoid scams, malicious software, and the inappropriate handling of data? Do staffers use their personal phones or computers to do work? What guidelines are in place to make sure your social media posts are appropriate? Do you know what to do if your offices experience a flood or fire? 

If you don't have written policies-and regular training to ensure that people understand those policies-your organization may be facing bigger risks than you think. This course will walk you through the questions you should consider as you develop policies to protect your nonprofit. 
Throughout this course, you will:
  • Consider the various risks your nonprofit faces and the level of risk you're comfortable with.
  • Ask yourself important questions about what is and is not acceptable use of organization resources and tools.
  • Learn how to manage people and data to keep your organization safe from malicious attacks and honest mistakes. 
  • Walk through the pros and cons of whether staff members should use their personal devices for work.
  • Consider the ways you can partner with your staff members to protect organization data on personal devices. 
  • Review what you'll need to do if your office experiences a major disaster such as flood, earthquake, or ransomware. 
  • Gain the knowledge you need to write smart policies to protect constituents, staff members, and your organization.
All sessions take place Thursday at 1:00 pm Eastern and last for 90 minutes.
August 17: Bring Your Own Device Policies
Nonprofits and staff members appreciate the convenience of being able to do work at home or on the road using a personal device. However, without good policies, the blurred lines between work and personal life can cause issues and put your data at risk. We'll discuss what to consider as you develop a policy for that's fair and protects your organization.
August 24: Disaster Recovery
The potential for disaster is everywhere. Hurricane, flood, tornado, earthquake-and those are just the big ones. What will you do if your systems are infected with ransomware or someone accidentally deletes important files? What about if your executive director or top IT staff storms out and takes all of their institutional knowledge (and passwords) with them? We'll walk you through the potential disasters and guide you through developing a plan that will help you get your organization back up and running as quickly and as safely as possible.

Please remember as a CVNA member you get to utilize this webinar at a discounted rate.  Please go to our website and click on member's only section to get your login information.  To sign up for these webinars, please click here. 
State Representatives Updates...

Please click here  for the most updated information from Bob Kressig


 
Please click here for the most updated information from Sandy Salmon


Please click here for the most updated information from Walt Rogers

 

Please  click here for the most updated information from William Dotzler


Please  click here for the most updated information from Bill Dix


Please click here for the most updated information on Timi Brown Powers

 

Please click here for the most updated information on Ras Smith

We Don't Want You To Miss A Thing!


Have you renewed or joined yet?  Don't miss out on our upcoming programs and networking opportunities!


RENEW/JOIN TODAY!

 In our first 5 years we have: (continually being updated)
  • 75 member organizations
  • 6 investors
  • 1,413 program registrations
  • 119 hours of programming
  • 164 e-newsletters
  • Grant Gurus workshops
  • 175jobs advertised
  • 20+ organizations connected with 50 UNI students 
  • added additional educational training workshops to our members
  • won the "Gift of the Heart Innovation" award in 2013
  • Partners with Idealware
  • Developed a new website 2017
Check out the other benefits of membership HERE If you are interested in joining CVNA, you can access our application form online HERE

If you have any questions, please email CVNA Coordinator at 
Share your good news with the CVNA and be featured in future e-newsletters.   Have you implemented an innovative idea?  Are you hiring?  Have you created or updated your website?  Are you hosting an event?   Let the CVNA spread the word. 

To submit an item for the next newsletter, click on the
submit news  page.  Please note that only member organizations who have submitted membership applications may post items.  The newsletter is published every two weeks.

 

 

 

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS
CVNA is pleased to announce the topics of our upcoming education events for the year ahead:  2017
  • September 20th - CVNA/AFP Workshop
  • September 28th - Grant Gurus
  • October 5th - Effective Meeting Planning Design
  • December 1st - Legislative Forum
There will also be some added"special training" presentations for 2017 so for  the most updated
information please visit our resources section and stay tuned to our web-site for additional information.
Quick Links
LIKE us on Facebook
 
Our Investors







Jean Trainor

The Guernsey Foundation
Visit Our Website!