About Us
Leadership Fellows at The Trust is the premier professional development opportunity for mid-career nonprofit practitioners in the metropolitan New York City region. The fellowship program represents a diverse, inclusive, and talented community of nonprofit leaders who are advancing social justice missions in New York and beyond.
Originally established in 2015 by The New York Community Trust in association with the Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College and its Center for Nonprofit Strategy and Management, the fellowship has supported almost 600 leaders at more than 250 local and national nonprofit organizations.
Our Founding Story
In 2014, program officers at the New York Community Trust noticed a wave of executive director retirements across their focus areas. Leadership transitions were happening more often than ever before. Around the same time, The Bridgespan Group reported that about 60,000 nonprofit directors were retiring annually nationwide, with the New York metropolitan area being especially impacted.
To address this leadership gap, the Trust launched a professional development program for emerging nonprofit leaders. They partnered with the Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College to establish it as a certificate program.
Program Overview
The objective of the Leadership Fellows at the Trust program is to help nonprofit professionals build the confidence and skills to lead their organizations more effectively. Over 12 weeks, participants meet once a week to learn practical tools for any nonprofit practitioner seeking to lead an organization.
Each fellow also completes a real-world “change project” tailored to their organization’s needs, with guidance from an experienced mentor. The program culminates in a final presentation that reflects each fellow’s growth, learning, and leadership journey.
The program values the experience fellows already bring. Sessions are interactive and discussion-based, giving participants space to learn from one another, connect with instructors, and talk honestly about the challenges nonprofit leaders face today.
Topics covered throughout the fellowship include but are not limited to:
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Leading Organizational Culture
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Strategic Communication
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Project and Change Management
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Financial Management
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Marketing and Audience Development
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Data and Analytics for Nonprofits
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Wellness and Leadership Sustainability
Now in its 10th year, Leadership Fellows at The Trust has supported over 600 rising leaders from more than 250 organizations across the region.
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“The Leadership Fellows Program provides a special gift; the ability to spend a quarter of the year, with like-minded peers and mentors, to reconceptualize and refresh your approach to the important challenges you face in providing equitable and inclusive services to New Yorkers.”
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“The intensive programming that this leadership program offers has been invaluable to the organization. The leadership program supported Exalt to successfully launch our adjunct pilot project.”
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“In New York, nonprofits are critical to so many aspects of urban life. Working with Baruch College, we’re starting to train the next generation of nonprofit leaders.”
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“Today’s nonprofit leaders must act right now to make sure that their successors have the necessary knowledge to ensure the long-term sustainability of their organizations for the future benefit of all the residents of our metropolitan region.”
