After six very successful years, we have decided to bring the Executive Program
for Nonprofit Leaders in the Arts to a close. Originally slated as a three-year
program, EPNL-Arts has achieved far more than we had hoped, and we are grateful
to our partners at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, the nominating
funders, and to our wonderful alumni for their part in this success.
A joint program of National Arts Strategies and the Stanford Graduate School
of Business Center for Social Innovation, the Executive Program for Nonprofit
Leaders in the Arts (EPNL-Arts) was a nomination-based opportunity for mid-career
executives who were proven leaders in their nonprofit arts organizations, their
communities, and their disciplines. Participants spent two weeks working together and with
leading business school faculty in an intensive survey program on leadership and management.
What past participants have to say
"The thought-provoking readings, classroom presentations, and conversations left
me with more food for thought than I could possibly consume in two short weeks.
I have continued to feast on the benefits to face both the big and everyday
challenges of leadership."
Page Talbott, Ph.D.
Former Chief Curator, Franklin Tercentenary Exhibition, The Franklin Institute Science Museum, Philadelphia
"The EPNL-Arts program has changed the way I think about my work. The emphasis
on developing and implementing a strategic approach to my work was critically
important as I set about making change in the organization. The network of colleagues
has been great - I send out a message asking about some specific detail and
how people handle it and get a dozen replies – all of them frank and honest.
That's a rare treat in this day and age."
Ken Foster
Executive Director/Performing Arts Curator, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
"The EPNL-Arts Program is more than just ‘sound bites.’ It’s
something of serious substance you ‘bite into’ and use over and
over again when you leave the classroom and resume your ‘more than full
time’ duties. The faculty is just amazing. I felt I had received an MBA
in two weeks time."
Peggy Loar
Executive Director, COPIA
"Two years later I still think of the program or individual project within the
program at least weekly, as I address challenges at my own institution. The
curriculum was very well designed to be practical for the complex challenges
we face every year as our institution grows and reacts to changes in our community."
Jim Ballinger
Museum Director and Chief Curator, Phoenix Art Museum
"I have used the skills learned during the EPNL-Arts training to impact every
level of my organization's operations. In fact we have undergone a complete
restructuring that was keyed by concepts learned during the training."
Charlie Lawrence
Executive Director, Fine Arts Association
"It was so empowering to have our work in the nonprofit sector given the same
level of attention as the for-profit world. It reinforced my belief that what
we do is integral to the economy, but also that we play a unique role in creating
social value that's not easily measured in stock tables or balance sheets."
