The National Network of Fiscal Sponsors’ annual conference, held at key locations around the country since 2007, is an event many of us look forward to — a chance to share practical details of our work and enjoy the company of fellow sponsors. Last year, Covid-19 shut us out of that pleasure, too.
Fiscal sponsorship has mostly thrived during the pandemic, and December 8, NNFS will host a virtual meetup where we can reaffirm the importance and growth of our sector.
“Our plans are to return to an in-person conference next year, but we’re also talking about adding several virtual meetings during the year.” — Arun S. Prabhakaran, NNFS Steering Committee Chair
“This is a good way for us to connect while we’re still navigating Covid,” says Arun S. Prabhakaran, the network’s Steering Committee chairman and Urban Affairs Coalition executive vice president. “Our plans are to return to an in-person conference next year, but we’re also talking about adding several virtual meetings during the year.”
Online events have their benefits, he adds. “Some are financial. Not having to travel saves time and money. And for emerging sponsors, a virtual meeting can be like an appetizer to a larger commitment to the service.”
Event details are not yet final, but they’ll include keynote speakers and breakout sessions where you can join conversations with your colleagues. Also on tap are announcements about the network’s plans for the coming year. Most important will be the information shared among all the participants.
“The DIY culture among fiscal sponsors is strong and so is the willingness to share expertise,” Prabhakaran says. “When I’ve attended past conferences, I’ve always been struck by how the event lets us connect around sometimes obscure practices.” He believes it’s the kind of learning you’re unlikely to acquire in a nonprofit management classroom, for example.
Don’t miss this opportunity to share best practices with your professional peers. We may not be greeting each other in person, but the online event — noon-1:30 p.m. Pacific time, 3-4:30 p.m. Eastern time — promises an even greater diversity of participants than past conferences. — Arun S. Prabhakaran, NNFS Steering Committee Chair
NNFS held its first conference in Los Angeles, planned by the eight fiscal sponsors that had launched the network in 2004. Since that first gathering, event participation has grown annually, into the hundreds. Attendees represent the wide, healthy range of our field — newcomers with only a handful of sponsored projects and seasoned sponsors with decades of experience and hundreds of projects. Some serve only their immediate geographic area, and others are home to hundreds of projects nationwide.
Don’t miss this opportunity to share best practices with your professional peers. We may not be greeting each other in person, but the online event — noon-1:30 p.m. Pacific time, 3-4:30 p.m. Eastern time — promises an even greater diversity of participants than past conferences.
Prabhakaran says that by mid-November, more than 100 sponsors had signed up to attend, representing — like the sector itself — a large geographic spread, widely varying organizational sizes, the extent of their experience and the models they practice.
“I’m very excited about what I see reflected here,” he says. “There are lots of changes in fiscal sponsorship, truly increased diversity and new leaders emerging to lead their organizations in unique, significant ways.”
Those include offering fiscal sponsorship that enables their communities to fill more targeted needs. Prabhakaran gives an example of an Urban Affairs Coalition project that supports community gardens in Philadelphia to fight neighborhood blight.
Register here for the meetup. Once registered, and as the event approaches, you’ll receive an email with the agenda, breakout-session descriptions, and a list of speakers and moderators.
Marjorie Beggs is the Directory’s editor