52nd City

BoardLinkStL

I attended a Readiness to Serve workshop presented by BoardLinkStL this week. This pilot program seeks to invigorate St. Louis area nonprofit boards by enhancing governance through innovative recruitment, matching, and education services. We were able to access the beta site where potential board members can create a pretty extensive profile in an effort to be matched with a non-profit organization. Kind of like match.com for do-gooders. Users pay a small fee granting access for one year, giving them plenty of time to find the perfect fit. Non-profit fees are based on a sliding scale. Designed by Bravo:Smart, the beta site was pretty impressive. The fully functioning version is scheduled to launch in mid-September.

I was amazed to learn there are over 9000 non-profit organizations in the St. Louis metropolitan region. The limited exposure I’ve had dealing with non-profit boards hasn’t been that positive, so I am very excited to see some real effort being made at educating both sides. Participating non-profits are required to attend training and the program is being evaluated on the length of the relationships made, not just the initial match. The program is being developed and supported by a variety of institutions including UMSL, Washington University, Focus St. Louis, United Way, RAC, Nonprofit Services Consortium, etc.

I highly recommend this program to anyone interested in taking community involvement a step further. I know so many bright and resourceful people who are already making a positive impact on the city through a variety of informal and formal efforts. Board membership at a non-profit seems like a logical, and fulfilling, next step.

Visit www.BoardLinkStL.org for more information.