The Giver’s Ledger January: From Nonprofit Capacity to Civic Leadership
First Published: Volume 2, Issue 1 by NINA NEEDLEMAN | January 17, 2025
The Giver’s Ledger is a monthly newsletter covering educational topics of Philanthropy, Finance, & DEIA.
OUR SECTOR’S WHY
“We all benefit from nonprofits’ work more than we’ll ever know. If people feel safe walking down the street, it’s likely due in part to the nonprofits working on neighborhood safety and providing services to those who need help. If they appreciate free art and music in their neighborhood and city, it’s likely because there are nonprofits supporting kick-ass artists and musicians in the community. If they like parks and clean air, it’s probably because there are nonprofits focused on making sure there are green spaces and recycling services and clean transportation. If people care about democracy, there are nonprofits educating and engaging people around voting and policy-related issues.” —Quote from Vu Le’s terrific book: Reimagining Nonprofits and Philanthropy
CAPACITY BUILDING SPOTLIGHT
WHAT IS CAPACITY BUILDING?
Simply – it’s teaching someone to fish, rather than just feeding them. So they can feed themselves. In the nonprofit world – it’s sponsoring or teaching grant writing, fund raising, governance, HR, crisis management, finance etc. Small to medium nonprofits do not have Staff Training budgets. Many funders just fund projects or kids or certain promised outcomes. Then they look for ROI, number served etc. A new approach is to fund ED Training or Staff Training or Board Training.
For a time, I provided an Arts organization $1500/year just for staff training.The staff always told me what they learned. Another time, I paid for an immigrant serving nonprofit to have HR training for leadership they requested. It was $1200 and they followed up and told me what they learned. What a great donor experience that was!
It occurred to me that similarly, Capacity Building for women in politics is needed. To address this, I’ve initiated a pilot:
Rise & Run – Women’s Political Empowerment Workshop
January 30-31st at Lindenwood University
WHAT’S THE INSPIRATION?
For 23 years, the Sue Shear Institute for Women in Public Life at UMSL trained women and students how to run for office. This terrific non-partisan program attracted women throughout the state and trained them in leadership and to run for offices ranging from school board to municipal councils to state rep and more. The program was shuttered in 2019. I saw this program as capacity building and felt strongly that it needed to be replaced.
Women need a comprehensive training program to learn all the logistics and skills of running and winning office!
WHY WOMEN ARE TARGETED AUDIENCE
Although women represent 50% of the population, they are grossly UNDER represented in all levels of government—except school boards. The big issue is that men are far more likely to receive the suggestion to run for office, and they have for their entire lives received messagesthat suggest to them they’re qualified….”
Women don’t get these messages. Until we can really close this recruitment gap, we’re not going to get anywhere. We’ve seen that recruitment works, because when Democrats and Republicans recruit women to run, a record number of women get elected. But it can’t be just about Congress. There are 500,000 elected offices in this country.”
WHY NON-PARTISAN
This program is a how-to, steps, logistics of running, and absolutely will not cover issues or policy. The focus will be on Communication, Team Building, Finance, Fundraising, Volunteer Management, Field Operations, Voter Contact Strategies, Media & Social Media Training and more. Purposely non-partisan because we want women in the room where it happens! We strongly believe women from all perspectives should be engaged in community leadership. We also believe a true public servant leader is one who listens to other points of view and is able to collaborate with others for common goals.
Few spaces left. REGISTER NOW
For reference, besides our training, there are other specialized trainings for people interested in running for office.
Local Options:
The Policy Circle (national) – right leaning
Missouri Ethics Commission – Candidate and Campaign Training
National Options:
VoteRunLead - National nonpartisan candidate training for women
Leadership Institute (Conservative-oriented political training)
Run for Something (progressive leaning)
Republican National Committee (RNC) - Political Education Programs
GOPAC -Trains candidates for office in methods of campaigning and messaging
EVENTS OF INTEREST
January 19 is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
January 27 is International Holocaust Remembrance Day
January 30 - Advocacy 101: Is Your Nonprofit Ready?
Excellent presenter: Holly Beadle
Network for Strong Communities virtual webinar, 9:00-10:30am
REGISTER HERE
Black History Month panel at Shaw’s Garden
February 3, 2026; 8:00am-9:30am.
Forum: the Power of Presence: Leaders Inspiring What’s Next.
Panel will: Explore how black leaders are shaping a more inclusive & equitable STL. Engage in meaningful dialogue on legacy, innovation, collective progress and more.
REGISTER HERE
Millcreek Valley/ Black Metropolis Exhibit has opened at the Missouri History Museum.
Nina Needleman is a Retired Financial Planner. She spent the first three-decades of her career in the financial services industry. Now she uses her business skills to help nonprofit organizations with Capacity Building and more importantly--as an educator, teaching people about personal finance and philanthropy.