Lakeland College

About Nonprofit Organization Management

Running a nonprofit organization requires many of the same challenges and responsibilities as any for-profit business: leadership skills, strategic planning, and a keen eye on the annual budget. However, the differences between the two sectors are both subtle and profound. The nonprofit organization management major will point out that the differences lie beyond the bottom line and speak to a greater sense of community awareness, social responsibility, and the desire to serve others.

Lakeland's nonprofit organization management curriculum teaches its students the most important economic and marketing principles and theories that help any organization to thrive. But its courses primarily focus on the practical and motivational differences of our country's growing nonprofit sector - a sector that serves our youth, our families, and our society. Students majoring in this field who satisfy certain requirements also receive the nationally recognized American Humanics Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership.

Students who major in Nonprofit Organization Management will be able to:

• meet the professional development competency standards for American Humanics certification;
• conduct marketing and evaluation research appropriate to nonprofit organizations, including statistical evaluation of the findings from quantitative measures;
• analyze social theories relevant to the function of nonprofit organizations; and
• make both ethically sound social decisions and economically sound decisions based on an understanding of the role of nonprofit organizations within the community.