Thursday, November 14, 2019
Following on our successful program on Skill-based Voluntarism, Wharton Club of Chicago is pleased continue the conversation by shifting to addressing non-profit board service.
Join us for this informative and inspiring panel discussion with the leaders of Compass Pro Bono, the Arts and Business Council of Chicago, and Storycatchers Theater.
We’ll discuss:
• What’s it like to serve on the board of a non-profit?
• What will I do? What skills are needed?
• What’s the time and financial commitment?
• How do I find a non-profit that aligns with my interests / values?
Panel:
Natalie Tessler, Executive Director, Compass Pro Bono
Noemi Garcia, Director, On BOARD, Arts & Business Council of Chicago
Priya Shah, Executive Director, Storycatchers Theatre
David Sowinkski, Ph.D., Board Member, Storycatchers Theatre
Moderator – Tad Gray (WG’93)
Event Details:
Date and Time: Thursday, November 14, 5:30 - 8:00 PM
Location: Horwood Marcus Berk, 500 W. Madison Street, #3700, Chicago IL
Cost: $25
Choose from the following Ticket Offerings:
Wharton Alumni: Click Here for tickets
Berkeley Haas Alumni: Click Here for tickets
HEC Alumni: Click Here for tickets
Stanford Alumni: Click Here for tickets
University of Penn Alumni: Click Here for tickets
General Admission (Other Alumni): Click Here for tickets
Meet Our Panel:
Natalie Tessler is Executive Director of Compass Pro Bono. She practiced corporate tax and estate planning law at Katten Muchin prior to launching a Chicago-based business, Spa Space, which she owned and operated for 16 years, followed by a successful sale in 2017. She has extensive experience with deal structuring, raising capital, business development and strategy, marketing, and employee management. She received her BA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, her J.D. from American University, and her LL.M. in Taxation from New York University School of Law.
Noemi Garcia is the Director of On BOARD at the Arts & Business Council of Chicago (A&BC). Since joining A&BC in 2011, she has worked in all facets of nonprofit management including program development, client relations, and strategic visioning. In her current role, she consults with creative organizations, facilitates relationships across sectors, and manages the On BOARD program – a leadership development program that equips individuals with the knowledge and tools to effectively serve as board members. She currently serves on the Auxiliary Board of Snow City Arts and the Host Committee of 2nd Story. She received her BA from the University of Michigan.
Priya Shah is the Executive Director of Storycatchers Theatre, a nonprofit organization that inspires justice involved youth to positively change the trajectory of their lives by transforming their real life experiences into powerful musical theatre. Under Priya’s leadership, Storycatchers has doubled its revenue and impact in the past three years, strengthened its infrastructure and created a positive change for the youth in Chicago communities while developing the courage and vision to become leaders and mentors of the future.
Priya has built a network of collaborations to provide an ecosystem of services for Chicago youth. She forged critical relationships with institutions including the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice. Chicago Police Department and Cook County Jail. Under her leadership, the organization built strong partnerships with community based organizations for recruitment, wraparound support structure and workforce opportunities with the outcome of youth getting equitable opportunities after graduating from Storycatchers.
Prior to joining Storycatchers, Priya had spent over 16 years leading functions of business development and strategy at Deloitte Consulting and Allstate Insurance Corporation. Priya is a fellow at Leadership Greater Chicago (LGC) which is the region’s premiere civic leadership development organization, and is the recipient of Field Foundation’s Field Leader Fellow for her contributions as a leader and ongoing impact in the Greater Chicago region.
David Sowinski has been working with executives and high-potential leaders to unlock their potential, better equip them to lead teams, and help them adapt to and drive change. His passion lies in helping his coaching clients challenge their personal assumptions about what is possible, and make positive, meaningful and lasting impact on those they lead. His coaching approach blends self-discovery with sharing strategies that have proven successful for other coaching clients facing similar challenges.
David frequently presents at professional associations and academic conferences, and has published in the areas of organizational culture, leadership coaching, and talent selection. In addition to executive coaching, David specializes in 1:1 leadership assessment, management team development, succession planning, and building internal talent management capability within his clients’ organizations. He tailors his consulting approach to suit the individual needs of each client and is driven to help leaders and management teams take performance to the next level.
Tad Gray (WG’93) is a musician, certified leadership coach, and wealth advisor with Buckingham Strategic wealth. He served in leadership and business development roles in corporate banking, derivatives, and capital markets with Bank of America and Wells Fargo.Tad serves on the board of directors for the Chicago-based Fifth House Ensemble, an 11-person chamber music group focused on redefining the classical music experience and cultivating social change in the community.
Compass Pro Bono’s mission is to inspire business professionals to engage with their local nonprofits to transform communities. Compass delivers strategic guidance to nonprofits in a growing number of cities across the U.S. For almost two decades, we have viewed the strategic challenges of nonprofit leaders as our own, tapping into the wealth of talent within the business community to deliver the best of business – in terms of both people and practices – to local nonprofits. Compass partners with local professionals who advise local nonprofits and guide them toward strategic excellence. For more information, visit: https://compassprobono.org
The Arts & Business Council of Chicago (A&BC) works to develop leadership, the business of the arts, and the art of business of Chicago. It does this by building working relationships between nonprofits and business professionals; providing training in all aspects of arts management and nonprofit board governance; and working to make Chicago a more culturally vibrant—and culturally equitable—city. Business Volunteers for the Arts®, its inaugural program, recruits skilled professionals, trains them in nonprofit practice, and connects them with organizations in need of management assistance. For more information, visit artsbiz-chicago.org.
Storycatchers: For more than 30 years, Storycatchers has empowered young people in the justice system to tell their true stories. Youth turn their narratives, often involving real life traumatic events, into powerful musical theatre and then perform these stories for the public. By facilitating discussions on the difficult realities they face in Chicago, Storycatchers' youth assert agency over their futures and create change in themselves and their audiences. Storycatchers offers four programs, including a supported employment program for 17-24 year-olds released from the justice system. These youth work 30 hours per week to tour their musical stories across Chicago; they have run workshops for 2,400+ Chicago police recruits and performed for more than 200 Illinois judges. With a licensed clinical social worker on staff, ensemble members utilize case management services that help them transition to meaningful education and/or career-oriented employment.
