Presenter Debra Beck posted notes and additional links related to Tuesday's "Boundary-Spanning Boards" workshop on her blog.

Click here to read that post. Included are the ideas shared during group reflection activities, links for additional information on the topic and a YouTube video shown during the workshop. She also includes a link to the online version of her presentation.

What were the key ideas from Monday's SRNI sessions? What next steps are participants inspired to take as a result of what they learned? We posed those questions late Monday, to give everyone a chance to compare notes and reflect on the day.

The following photos capture the highlights of that conversation.

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group-reflection-key-ideas-from-monday-s-sessions-HmFjCablgdkAHHrdvfkD.zip (2.4 MB)

Participants in Sunday night's opening session came up with creative ways to express the contributions of Wyoming's nonprofits.

Curriculum team members Nurieh Glasgow and Kim Reaman led the process, encouraging registrants from across the state to get acquainted while articulating the unique value of the sector to the life and livelihood of the state.

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WordPlay.MP4 (32.84 MB)

The groups used dramatic interpretation, craftwork - and even a ukelele - to express those thoughts.

What makes an interesting and compelling nonprofit story? How do you deliver that story, as effectively as possible, to donors and other stakeholders?

Two veteran Wyoming development professionals - Anne Leonard and Sarah Brown Mathews - will share their secrets for success during a Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute workshop titled "Telling Your Story: Tips and Strategies."

Their session is part of SRNI's "Core Concepts: Practice" track. SRNI is July 31-Aug. 2 at the Hilton Garden Inn and UW Convention Center in Laramie.

Anne and Sarah will lead an interactive session to help participants see their nonprofit from the viewpoint of prospective donors, volunteers and other stakeholders. They will discuss key ingredients to developing a compelling overview of your nonprofit or fundraising program, as well as strategies for tailoring that message for different audiences.

During the session, Mathews and Leonard will demonstrate:

• How to develop different versions of your nonprofit's story - elevator speech, 15-minute meeting, and long meeting
• Ingredients to an interesting story - what to emphasize and how to avoid
• Delivering your message - going solo or together with a board member or volunteer

Anne Leonard, director of college relations for the UW College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, has been involved in development and fundraising since 1985. Her background includes information systems for fundraising, gift acceptance policies and procedures, and major gift fundraising. Prior to joining the University of Wyoming in 1996, she was the director of advancement and support services for the University of New Mexico.

Sarah Brown Mathews, major gifts manager for Wyoming Public Media, has more than 20 years experience in nonprofit management, fundraising, program development and training. Her previous professional experiences in the sector range from working for museums and educational institutions to organizations that work to preserve natural resources and provide affordable housing for needy individuals and families. A Wyoming native, Sarah currently serves as a member of the Albany County Habitat for Humanity board. She also volunteers regularly for community events and other organizations.

The Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute is a project of the UW Cooperative Extension Service Community Development Education Initiative Team. ServeWyoming is the institute's presenting partner. The Regis University Master of Nonprofit Management Program is this year's closing conversation sponsor.

Do you want to learn to think like a venture capitalist and discover new success in your fundraising efforts?

Longtime business consultant Diane Wolverton will discuss how seeking funding for your organization can be compared to an entrepreneur seeking capital for his of her business during a workshop at this year's Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute.

"The key to success is understanding what the funder is looking for and demonstrating how to deliver it," Wolverton says. "This session will provide insights into how principles of business funding can be applied to your fundraising efforts."

Wolverton's session is part of the institute's "Core Concepts: Business Planning" track. Theme of this year's Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute, scheduled for July 31-Aug. 2 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Laramie, is "The Business of Nonprofits: The Bottom Line and Beyond."

During the workshop, Wolverton will introduce participants to venture, angel and debt financing principles. She also will demonstrate how these principles can enhance fundraising success in the nonprofit sector.

Diane Wolverton is the executive director of the Wyoming Smart Capital Network, a company that provides funding education and capital for Wyoming companies. Diane recently retired after 16 years as the state director of the Wyoming Small Business Development Center, a statewide network devoted to enhancing Wyoming's economy through training and advising entrepreneurs. Under her leadership, the WSBDC more than doubled in size, with expansion of services and addition of programs such as the Wyoming Procurement Technical Assistance Center and Market Research Center.

Diane's business experience includes ownership of the Bridger Valley Pioneer, a newspaper, in Lyman, Wyo. She also is an award-winning writer. Wolverton holds bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. She is a 2001 graduate of Leadership Wyoming and an active member of the Association of Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC). Wolverton served two terms as national chairperson of the ASBDC board of directors.

The Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute is a project of the UW Cooperative Extension Service Community Development Education Initiative Team. ServeWyoming is SRNI's presenting partner. The Regis University Master of Nonprofit Management Program is the 2011 closing conversation sponsor.

There's still time to register for this year's conference: online through noon Friday and on-site at the Hilton.

Ensuring that community needs are being met, and resources are being used appropriately, begins when a nonprofit uses a clearly-defined mission to drive programming decisions.

A workshop at this year's Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute, scheduled for July 31-Aug. 2 in Laramie, will share a strategic planning process leading to that outcome. Wyoming Land Trust staff Lara Ryan (executive director) and Kathryn Boswell (director of public education and outreach) will lead the session, titled "Mission-Driven Programming."

"Nonprofit organizations must make strategic decisions about how they will invest their time and money," according to Ryan and Boswell. "With strong organizations, as with good architecture, form follows function; and success relies on the construction of a solid foundation. The successful process of defining your function and establishing that foundation - your purpose and mission - will help in developing the appropriate organizational structure."

"A mission statement shapes the visions of the board members into a unified purpose and direction for the organization and its staff," they add. "A strategic planning process tied to that mission builds consensus about where the organization wants to go and how it hopes to get there. Goals and strategies further define the strategic direction of the organization, while annual plans, work plans and program budgets ensure that the plan serves as the framework for all activities."

Lara Ryan knew she wanted to work in conservation from the time her father brought her to places like Lysite, Lost Cabin and Badwater, Wyo., looking for fossils in the 1970s. After completing her undergraduate work at the University of Colorado-Boulder and her master's degree at the University of Montana in Missoula, she moved to Wyoming permanently and worked at the nonprofit Jackson Hole Land Trust. Lara became executive director of the Green River Valley Land Trust in 2005, shepherding the GRVLT through significant growth and a name change, to the Wyoming Land Trust. Lara is a firm believer in sticking to the mission through thick and thin, creating a passion for the mission in the board and staff. She says she has the expertise - and the scars - to back it up.

Kathryn Paxton Boswell started her nonprofit career at age 18. With the exception of a five-year hiatus to serve as assistant to recent Wyoming First Lady Nancy Freudenthal, she has spent her entire career in the sector. A former associate vice president at Ark Regional Services in Laramie, where she worked with adults with intellectual disabilities, Kathryn joined the Wyoming Land Trust two months ago. While the how-tos of executing the organization's mission has changed dramatically for Kathryn, the use, focus on and effect of the mission hasn't. Kathryn, a UW graduate, is happy to be back in Laramie and re-connecting with SRNI.

To register for this year's institute, click here. You also may reserve a room at the Hilton, at the special conference rate, at that same address. To view and download a copy of the agenda, click here.

The Snowy Range Nonprofit Insitute is a project of the UW Cooperative Extension Service Community Development Education Initiative Team. ServeWyoming is its presenting partner. The Regis University Master of Nonprofit Management Program is the closing conversation sponsor.

My board? Involved in fundraising?!?!?!

For many nonprofit executives, the prospect of involving the board in the fundraising process often summons visions of begging/pleading/cajoling - and ultimately falling short of expectations that were probably too low from the beginning. It doesn't have to be that way, though.

 Casper's Shanna Harris shares strategies for successfully bringing members in to the development process during a Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute workshop titled "Engaging Boards and Volunteers in Fundraising." Her session is part of SRNI's 2011 "Business Planning: Practice" track, focusing on practical application of key business concepts.

Harris will discuss how to present fundraising strategies and responsibilities to board members. She'll cover ways to motivate members to raise funds and empower them to overcome their hesitation to make the "ask." Shanna will draw upon several years of direct experience working with boards and committees to raise funds and membership in this presentation.

During her decade as executive director of the United Way of Natrona County in Casper, Shanna worked closely with board members and other volunteers to raise funds for area nonprofits. Over one six-year period, with the active engagement of board and other volunteers, giving to United Way of Natrona County grew from $700,000 to more than $1.3 million.

Harris recently joined the Casper Area Chmaber of Commerce as its committee liaison. She holds a bachelor's degree in education and a master of public administration from the University of Wyoming.

SRNI 2011 is July 31-Aug. 2 at the Hilton Garden Inn and UW Convention Center in Laramie. Click here to access a copy of the agenda. Click here to register for the conference online. The online registration process includes an option to book a room at the Hilton at the special SRNI group rate. Participants also may call the Hilton at (307)745-5500 to reserve a room in the SRNI block. Conference registration is $150 per person (including four meals); the hotel room rate is $119 per night (extended dealine is July 24).

How does organizational structure impact a nonprofit's potential for success? Anya Petersen-Frey, regional director for the Wyoming Small Business Development Center, will discuss the role of organizational and managerial structures and offer tools to manage both during a workshop at this year's Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute.

Theme of SRNI 2011, scheduled for July 31-Aug. 2 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Laramie, is "The Business of Nonprofits: The Bottom Line and Beyond." Petersen-Frey's session is part of SRNI 2011's "Core Concepts" track. Participants who choose  to follow that track will leave the institute with the basic elements of a nonprofit business plan.

"Organizational structure is a topic seldom conetemplated by most people in organizational settings, whether nonprofit or for-profit," Petersen-Frey says. "We go to work every day, go to our space, and perform our jobs - and we don't ever think about how our organization is arranged. In a small organization it is easy to just 'do what has to be done' without assessing the best methods to accomplish goals."

"However," she says, "organizational structure is critical for a business and its employees. In the long run, the organization, or structure, of the business can spell the difference between success and failure for any entity."

Petersen-Frey holds a master's degree in business administration and is a PhD candidate in international business. She also holds certification as a global business professional. Anya brings a wealth of business experience to her work with Wyoming organizations. She was a business analyst with a Fortune 500 company, a director of the Small Business Development Center in Alaska and owner of several small businesses. Petersen-Frey also taught in the degree completion program at Alaska Pacific University.

Anya has served as an executive director of a nonprofit and as a board member for several other agencies in the sector. In addition to her current role as the WSBDC's regional director, she also coordinates the Center for Entrepreneurship at Laramie County Community College. Petersen-Frey teaches in the LCCC entrepreneurship program as an adjunct instructor. She is an experienced presenter, teaching a variety of corporate training programs and speaking at several events.

For more information on the 2011 SRNI curriculum, click here. To register online for the institute, click here. The Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute is an project of the UW Cooperative Extension Service Community Development Education Initiative Team. ServeWyoming is the institute's presenting partner. The Regis University Master of Nonprofit Management Program is sponsor of the closing conversation.

Does your nonprofit have a marketing plan? Do you understand the role of marketing as part of a larger organizational planning process? Do you have a strong sense of your client's needs?

A workshop at this year's Snowy Range Nonprofit Institute, led by Wyoming Entrepreneur Market Research Center Manager Mike Lambert, will explore the essential ideas and elements of this critical plan.

Lambert's workshop is part of the "Core Concepts" track at SRNI 2011. This year's institute theme is "The Business of Nonprofits: The Bottom Line and Beyond." His session is part of a five-session series designed to give participants a strong foundation for - and a good start towards - a business plan for their organizations.

"Any organization needs a marketing plan to help decide how best to offer its product or services," Lambert says. "This session will help you understand how to write a marketing plan, including understanding and describing your products/services, analyzing your market and consumers/clients, understanding your competition, determining best location, pricning and estimating sales of demand."

"In addition," he adds. "we will discuss creating marketing strategies, including the '4 Ps' of Positioning, Packaging, Place and Promotion."

As the manager and first employee of the Wyoming Entrepreneur Makret Research Center, Mike has in eight years built an information resource for Wyoming businesses that is unique in the nation. The MRC specializes in providing any Wyoming business with access to advanced marketing information that were previously available only to a few of the largest corporations.

Mike's individual expertise also includes marketing, product management, international trade and export. Prior to starting the MRC, Mike spent 13 years at Waterpik Technologies, ending as its director of international marketing. With  an MBA from UW, and experience working at both Unicover in Cheyenne and the Wyoming Department of Revenue, Mike has strong ties to Wyoming.

To register online for this year's institute, scheduled for July 31-Aug. 2 in Laramie, click here. To access an agenda and review the full 2011 curriculum, please click here. Cost is $150 per person (including four meals) through July 22; after July 23, registration rises to $175.