Day 1 – March 4
NCNG Business, Sector Updates, and Breakfast
- Sarah Mann Willcox, Executive Director, NCNG
- Marilyn Chism, Chair, NCNG Advisory Committee and Director of Programs, Golden LEAF Foundation
Speaking Up For and With the Nonprofit Sector
Nonprofits represent so much of what is wonderful about our democracy. The organizations we work with and fund every day serve as America's backbone - they strengthen communities, drive economic growth, and deliver services effectively in every corner of our state.
Now more than ever, foundations must speak up for—and alongside—the nonprofit sector and our communities. Speaker reflections from Dr. Laura Gerald, President of Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, and Mark D. Constantine, Senior Vice President of Community Investment at Dogwood Health Trust, will set the stage, followed by table conversations to consider how leading with community voice, working collectively, and experimenting can unlock new approaches to advocacy and impact.
Speakers:
- Dr. Laura Gerald, President, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust
- Mark D. Constantine, Senior VP of Community Investment, Dogwood Health Trust
Networking Lunch
Staying Grounded in Community
What does it mean to stay "grounded" in community? When time is limited, needs are overwhelming, and dollars are short, how can foundations prioritize building relationships? What does partnership with the nonprofit community look like knowing that dependable federal dollars are causing important nonprofits to make difficult and painful choices? How can philanthropy manage our privilege and power when it's hard to even keep up with what happened yesterday?
We'll start this session with a panel that focuses on what it looks like, in practice, to stay grounded in community: by building trust, listening with intention, and learning from nonprofit and community partners. And - while we know they're brilliant - they don't have all of the answers! So, we'll bring it down to NCNG community conversations so we can learn from each other and reflect on how our values guide decisions and approaches. Bring an open mind, new ideas, and dependable strategies to ground us in the importance of linking arms to manage whatever comes our way.
Panelists:
- Melissa Chappell, Executive Director of the North Carolina GSK Foundation
- Kelly Lee, Program Officer - Central NC, North Carolina Community Foundation
- Tango Moore, Grants Manager, Reidsville Area Foundation
Moderator: Ivan Canada, President & CEO, NC Center for Nonprofits
Building trust in tough times: Lessons from the news and information providers
How honing listening skills, building relationships and demonstrating consistency work together to create trust with communities.
Laura Lee is the Editorial Director of NC Local, a statewide news organization focused on helping North Carolinians understand how governmental decisions at the state level affect their lives. Laura previously served as news director at Blue Ridge Public Radio, the NPR affiliate for Western North Carolina, where she managed the organization’s award-winning coverage of Hurricane Helene, the most devastating storm in the state’s history.
We often think of community support in terms of tangible resources - food, money and health care - but in the modern landscape, news and information are some of the most valuable commodities for healthy and vibrant communities. Understanding how news and information is accessed, as well as what makes something reliable and trustworthy, enables grantmakers to leverage resources in the media landscape to better serve constituencies.
In an ecosystem full of “noise,” learn how to craft your message to breakthrough in today’s crowded media space. Develop a better understanding of how news, nonprofits, and philanthropy intersect, and how those relationships can strengthen community trust and impact.
NC Issues Dine Arounds
Day 2 – March 5
Workshop: Building Community Belonging
Legislative Tour and the Role of Reporters
Tales from the basement: Unwrapping the mysteries of political coverage at the NC Legislature.
Hear from reporters, past and present, about their work to bring news from the inside the capitol to the people of North Carolina.
Meet NC Press Corps members who perform an important public service function as the “on-the-ground” eyes and ears in Raleigh covering state government activity on behalf of all North Carolinians. Start with a reporter-led tour of the NC Statehouse press room, followed by a panel discussion on the day-to-day work of a journalist, the issues they view as important to NC’s future and the topics that matter to your foundations.
Panelists include Jeff Tiberii, Co-host of WUNC’s Due South, Travis Fain, communications consultant and former WRAL state government reporter, Rose Hoban, North Carolina Health News Founder and Editor, Claudia Rivera Cotto, Enlace Latino NC Reporter and Will Michaels, Senior Reporter for State Issues at NC Local.