Master of Nonprofit Management Turns

10

By Sheryl E. Taylor

What is nonprofit management?

Glad you asked.

Nonprofit management is maintaining or managing a notfor-profit organization’s labor and resources to successfully create something of value—a social outcome or cause, such as providing services to a community or group. So, it comes as no surprise that UHD offers a graduate multidisciplinary program that prepares recent college graduates as well as mid- and senior-level administrators to manage and lead nonprofit organizations of all types.

During his tenure as UHD President, Dr. Bill Flores envisioned an opportunity for the University. “At the time, UHD had greatly expanded its work with local communities, governmental agencies, and nonprofits. We had (and still have) an active Center for Community Engagement (now Center for Community Engagement & Service Learning) with a broad advisory committee. So, we decided to develop a degree in nonprofit management, as there were only certificate programs in the Houston area.”

“The first order of business was to assemble an industry advisory committee to discuss the need for the nonprofit management program—which competencies should be woven into the courses, and what graduates should know and be able to perform.”

Executives were hired from relevant industries as “clinical faculty.” Per Flores, the Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management (MANPM) program was fortunate to hire Robert Sanborn, CEO of Children at Risk, and Brian Greene, CEO of the Houston Food Bank, as instructors. Both Sanborn and Greene also continue to serve as co-chairs of the MANPM Advisory Board. Cynthia Colbert, President and CEO of Catholic Charities of Houston-Galveston, joined Sanborn and Greene as an instructor.

The MANPM degree was approved. “In 2010, a Master’s in Nonprofit Management was not offered at any campuses in the UH System, and while many degree programs around the country connected nonprofit management to public administration and public affairs programs, nonprofit management as a discipline to itself was almost completely new in the U.S., especially in the South,” said Dr. David Branham. As Director of the MANPM program and Interim Chair of Social Sciences, Branham created six courses.

Flores added, “In creating the degree, it was important to develop strong connections to Houston’s nonprofit community and develop a program that had both academic and applied rigor.”

Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the MANPM program has been a tremendous success. The program consistently ranks among the top five nonprofit graduate programs in the country. Current rankings include No. 3 “Best Online Nonprofit Management Programs” (intelligent.com), No. 3 in the nation for “Most Affordable Online Nonprofit Management Programs” (geteducated.com), and No. 7 for “Best Value Among Online Nonprofit Management Programs” (bestvalueschools.com).

When asked what makes this program so relevant today, Professor of Political Science and Nonprofit Management Branham offered, “Relevance is usually related to the success of your graduates. Our graduates, as a group, have been extremely successful. However, when you remember that nonprofit success is measured in positive impact instead of net profits, you understand that the program is doing a service, not only to its students, but to the entire community. From that perspective, the relevance is massive.”