We are the board of a small nonprofit with an annual budget of around $100,000 and three part
time staff members. We have been around for 25 years, and for much of that time our board
functioned as a working board. We are in the process of transitioning to a governing board
model in which staff manages day-to-day program and administration, and the board sets
organizational policy and strategy, oversees the executive director, and plays a significant role
in fundraising and external representation. Because of our size, our board also provides key
programmatic skill sets that are not present on staff (for example, medical and human service
expertise relevant to pregnancy and the postpartum period).

We strive to be a diverse board that reflects our community, with volunteers, parents, donors,
health care and human service providers, and community members all represented. We are
also particularly interested in a more gender-balanced board make up to ensure we are
meeting the needs of fathers and honoring their important role in families and our community.

Board member commitments include regular attendance at our monthly meetings, serving on
one of the three board committees (governance, finance and fundraising), and contributing in
some way to fundraising and external representation of the organization. We know that not
everyone is comfortable asking for money, although that is a skill set that we are always in
need of! There are many ways to contribute to fundraising, such as helping to organize a
fundraising event, researching and writing grants, contributing names to our donor database,
representing us at community events, volunteering to stuff envelopes for our annual fall
appeal, and of course making a personal donation to Good Beginnings.