What education do nonprofit board members need?

Earlier thisweek, an article from Miami Herald stated that a common theme among nonprofit boardmembers and people pursued to serve as nonprofit board members is “the need formore education and information about what it takes to govern a nonprofitboard.” The article suggested there are different issues that should beconsidered when addressing this particular educational need. The article listedthe following seven issues:

1)    The ways in which a nonprofit isdifferent from a for-profit;

2)    The key characteristics of a nonprofit;

3)    What makes an organization a nonprofit;

4)    Who owns a nonprofit;

5)    Who controls a nonprofit;

6)    What every nonprofit board member should knowabout serving; and

7)    To whom is the nonprofit organization accountable?  

The articlegives a brief response to each issue. For example, the article explains that “whatmakes an organization a nonprofit” is that “[n]o person owns shares of thecorporation or interest in its property” and it goes on to shed some light onthe nondistribution constraint. Further, the article says every board membershould know about the “serious fiduciary, legal and ethical responsibilities”involved.

While thearticle does not claim the list of seven issues to be an exhaustive one, isthere anything missing from the list of issues presented? In other words, isthere something else a currently serving or hopeful nonprofit board membershould know to efficiently and effectively serve? Are any of the issuespresented more significant than others?

http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/07/07/3489387/what-every-nonprofit-board-needs.html

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