Next-Gen Ovation Board Focuses on Diversity and Leadership Among Young Professionals
To help prepare young professionals for community leadership and high-level stewardship of non-profit institutions, Ovation Communities has partnered with Fuel Milwaukee to create the Next-Gen Ovation Leadership Program.
By partnering with Fuel Milwaukee, Ovation Communities, through the Jewish Home and Care Center Foundation, has prepared a seven series leadership program that equips young professionals with the tools they need to begin serving on organizational boards and committees, while taking an active role to better their community.
After receiving dozens of applications from interested young professionals, Tanya Mazor-Posner, Jewish Home and Care Center Foundation Vice President of Development, selected 30 people to participate in the inaugural program.
“With a focus on diversity and multiple faiths, we want to help train the next generation of people who are going to serve Ovation Communities,” Mazor-Posner said. “This group is diverse in backgrounds, ethnicities, and faiths and has a sincere desire to collaborate together in making an impact on our community.
“The Next-Gen Ovation participants bring a variety of talents, varied experiences in life and their professions. This group of people will help advance the Foundation and Ovation’s mission of caring for our community’s seniors and program participants with comfort, dignity and care.”
Over the course of seven weeks, Milwaukee’s young professionals will participate in virtual seminars that will cover topics that include, financial and fiscal oversight, leadership, strategic planning and thinking, diversity, ageism, and Judaism and Ovation history.
In addition to Ovation Communities and Fuel Milwaukee leaders, seminars will be led by other community leaders and experts. The program will culminate in a virtual ceremony and celebration with current Ovation Communities board members and residents.
“The Next-Gen Ovation Leadership program has exposed me to an opportunity to network and build relationships with a community of like-minded professionals,” said Tammy Mays, Milwaukee Public Library Branch Manager. “The weekly engaging topics have given me valuable tidbits to interact with my peers and staff effectively.
“President and CEO of Ovation Communities, Mike Sattell’s presentation enlightened me about Ovation Communities and its commitment to increasing leadership opportunities by serving as a board member.”
The overall goal of the program, at the completion of the seven sessions, is to have these young professions either serve on one of three Ovation Communities boards or one of Ovation Communities’ high-level committees.
“I have been increasing my efforts to be involved in the community,” said Peter Klein, Vice President and General Manager at lakeside International. “This program seemed like a good opportunity to learn more about leadership, specifically in the context of volunteering in a non-profit.
I am looking forward to getting to know the other people in this group and learning more about Ovation. I am glad that Ovation and FUEL Milwaukee are investing in developing people my age – and I am hopeful that this will be a catalyst for me to be more involved in Ovation in the future.”
