Friday, June 6th
Aaron Killian
Originially published at www.thedailytimes.com

Nationally renowned speaker Peggy Morrison Outon’s advice to nonprofit organizations is to collaborate. She spoke at the Nonprofit Training and Enrichment Seminar Wednesday at Maryville College to representatives of more than 50 area nonprofit organizations.

Ever upward.

With those two words, nationally renowned speaker Peggy Morrison Outon kicked off the Nonprofit Training and Enrichment Seminar Wednesday at Maryville College to representatives of more than 50 area nonprofit organizations.

Outon is the executive director of the Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management at Robert Morris College. She emphasized that one way organizations can move “ever upward” is through collaborations, the theme for the seminar, which itself was a collaborative effort of the Blount County Chamber Foundation, the Center for Strong Communities at Maryville College and United Way of Blount County.

“Unleash the collective brainpower of your team,” Outon said. “Look at ways to work together and serve to create effective collaborations and alliances.”

Dr. Billy Newton, director of the Center for Strong Communities at Maryville College, also noted how effective partnerships can benefit nonprofit organizations.

“In collaborations, we’re discovering that not only do we connect with colleagues for support, but we’re able to create more impact than we could alone in our own silos,” said Newton.

The theme of collaborations was even featured during the seminar’s lunch break, offering attendants themed tables with topics such as education, faith-based initiatives and affordable housing.

Ken Smither, chairman of United Way of Blount County’s Nonprofit Training and Resource Center, remarked, “The face to face networking was one of the best things we had to bring people together. My table discussed housing issues the whole hour.”

The seminar ended with a panel discussion on building successful collaborations and featured representatives from each of the three of the seminar’s sponsoring organizations.

State Rep. Doug Overbey facilitated the panel.

“It’s important for different organizations in a community to know each other, understand each other, so that they are able to work together for the greater good of the community,” Overbey said.

Sharon Hannum, who chairs the Blount County Chamber Foundation, emphasized how sharing resources is beneficial to an organization as a whole.

“Don’t worry about fishing with a rod. Cast your net,” Hannum said. “When you cast your net, you’ll get multitudes.”

This entry was posted on Monday, June 9th, 2008 at 9:19 am and is filed under In The News, Uncategorized.
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