Meet the Advisory Board: Serena Ngo

What are your roles within the nonprofit community?

"I am the Training Coordinator for Nonprofit Management Solutions where I am responsible for the planning, marketing and implementation of nearly 300 professional development workshops annually. In addition to being a part of the Advisory Board at YNPN San Diego, I am also a volunteer with Center for Community Solutions as an advocate for victims of sexual assault."

Tell us about an experience you have had with YNPN San Diego.

"All of my experiences with YNPN San Diego have been terrific! My fellow advisory board members are a group of incredible, talented, motivated and dedicated individuals and it has been a privilege to work with all of them as well as the membership and nonprofit community."

Name a person or resource that has helped you in your nonprofit career and why.

"My time at Nonprofit Management Solutions (NMS) has been critical in helping me determine my future career goals. Sara Roscoe Wilson, the Executive Director, has shown me so much encouragement, advice, and support over the years and without her leadership and guidance, decisions regarding my career choices could have taken a lot longer. So thank you Sara and the rest of the amazing staff at NMS!"

Just for fun - what was the last dream you had?

"I dreamt I met up with an old friend from UCLA for drinks - maybe a sign since I'll be returning this fall for grad school."

Serena will leaving the Advisory Board this summer to prepare for her next venture in graduate school at UCLA's MSW program. All of us at YNPN San Diego wish her the best of luck and thank her for amazing dedication!

Read Serena's full bio on our website...

Reminder: Advocating for Yourself Workshop

Advocating for Yourself, July 16th
LESS THAN ONE WEEK left to register!

REGISTER HERE: http://ynpnsdadvocatingforyourself.eventbrite.com/

Do you have brilliant ideas you want to share with your Executive Director or Leadership Team but don’t have the nerve to start the dialogue? How do you even start the conversation with your supervisor about a raise or development in your current position? Once you begin the exchange, how do you make sure you are clear and precise about your needs? Whether you’re currently employed, actively searching or determining your next move – it’s obvious we could all use new tips and confidence while advocating for our professional selves.

During our July Professional Development Workshop, you will leave with…

• Confidence in asking for what you want in the workplace
• An ability to clearly communicate your professional needs
• Ideas and tactics on how to persuade change in your organization

All of YNPN San Diego’s programs are free to its members, but there is a cost to coordinate these events, bring high-quality programs to the membership, and serve as a reliable and high-quality organization. Your donations will help to ensure that YNPN San Diego can continue to meet these demands. Please consider making a donation online, through our Facebook Cause or at the event. Individuals who donate at the Workshop will be eligible for a gift from our generous in-kind supporters. The recommended donation for this event is $25.

We will also have a drawing for a special gift from YNPN San Diego and one of our partners, so make sure to bring your business card. Those who make a donation will be in the running for a drawing for one of our fantastic gifts. This event is open to everyone, so please spread the word by forwarding this email!

As always, feel free to bring information for the Community Table about your organization, but please pick up your materials following the event or they will be recycled.

Schedule on July 16th at Volunteer San Diego

• 5:30 - 6:00 Networking
• 6:00 - 8:00 Workshop facilitated by Jenni Prisk of Prisk Communication
• 8:00 - 8:30 Networking

REGISTER HERE: http://ynpnsdadvocatingforyourself.eventbrite.com/

Thank you to our generous supporters, Volunteer San Diego, Prisk Communication, and Nonprofit Management Solutions for supporting the YNPN San Diego Professional Development Series!!!

Professional Development Workshop: Advocating for Yourself, July 16th

Advocating for Yourself, July 16th
NEW Professional Development Workshop from YNPN San Diego

REGISTER HERE: http://ynpnsdadvocatingforyourself.eventbrite.com/

Do you have brilliant ideas you want to share with your Executive Director or Leadership Team but don’t have the nerve to start the dialogue? How do you even start the conversation with your supervisor about a raise or development in your current position? Once you begin the exchange, how do you make sure you are clear and precise about your needs? Whether you’re currently employed, actively searching or determining your next move – it’s obvious we could all use new tips and confidence while advocating for our professional selves.

During our July Professional Development Workshop, you will leave with…

• Confidence in asking for what you want in the workplace
• An ability to clearly communicate your professional needs
• Ideas and tactics on how to persuade change in your organization

All of YNPN San Diego's programs are free to its members, but there is a cost to coordinate these events, bring high-quality programs to the membership, and serve as a reliable and high-quality organization. Your donations will help to ensure that YNPN San Diego can continue to meet these demands. Please consider making a donation online, through our Facebook Cause or at the event. Individuals who donate at the Workshop will be eligible for a gift from our generous in-kind supporters. The recommended donation for this event is $25.

We will also have a drawing for a special gift from YNPN San Diego and one of our partners, so make sure to bring your business card. Those who make a donation will be in the running for a drawing for one of our fantastic gifts. This event is open to everyone, so please spread the word by linking to this blog!

As always, feel free to bring information for the Community Table about your organization, but please pick up your materials following the event or they will be recycled.

Schedule on July 16th at Volunteer San Diego

• 5:30 - 6:00 Networking
• 6:00 - 8:00 Workshop facilitated by Jenni Prisk of Prisk Communication
• 8:00 - 8:30 Networking

REGISTER HERE: http://ynpnsdadvocatingforyourself.eventbrite.com/

Thank you to our generous supporters, Volunteer San Diego, Prisk Communication, and Nonprofit Management Solutions for supporting the YNPN San Diego Professional Development Series!!!

YNPN Board Member Feedback

Board Member, Megan Lim, shares feedback about YNPN:

I’ve been in the fortunate position to be hiring a position at work right now. Reading over resumes, I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the number of people who list YNPN San Diego on their resume. Particularly impressive are those individuals who are Committee members (automatically indicating a certain level of commitment) and translate their volunteer responsibilities at YNPN into examples they can talk about in an interview regarding projects in which they hold a leadership position or have overcome a challenge.
I know YNPN San Diego Committees are currently recruiting. Check them out on the website. If you do happen to be currently looking for work, substantive volunteer work is a great place to spend some time. You’ll grow your network and develop some new skills you can take to your next interview.

June 18 Meet and Greet

YNPN San Diego Announces Next Meet and Greet on June 18th!

Announcing the next Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) San Diego Meet and Greet! Join YNPN San Diego for our next fantastic networking event where you will have the opportunity to connect with professionals in the San Diego nonprofit community and learn more about what we have been up to at YNPN San Diego. Register here and look for more details on the YNPN San Diego website, the YNPN San Diego Facebook Group, the YNPN San Diego blog, and the YNPN listserv.

Register here for the YNPN San Diego Meet and Greet for June 18th. You are welcome and encouraged to invite more people to this event. Nonprofit professionals of all ages are welcome - the more the merrier! Join the movement along with over 400 nonprofit San Diego professionals.

• Who: Anyone and everyone involved in the nonprofit community, from volunteers to staff to board members- all ages are welcome!
• When: Thursday, June 18th from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
• Where: Bar Basic, 410 10th Ave, San Diego, CA 92101
• Why: To connect with nonprofit professionals and volunteers in the San Diego community. This is a great way to meet new friends, learn about other organizations, build alliances, and learn about YNPN SAN DIEGO!
• Cost: FREE at the door! Featuring drink and appetizer specials too!

We will also have a drawing for a special gift from YNPN San Diego and one of our partners, so make sure to bring your business card. Those who make a donation will be in the running for a drawing for one of our fantastic gifts. This event is open to everyone, so please spread the word by forwarding this email!

YNPN San Diego services are free to the San Diego nonprofit community, but there are still costs to running this all-volunteer organization. Please consider making a donation of any size at our event. The suggested donation (optional) is $15. To learn more about our mission, programs, and opportunities, visit www.ynpnsandiego.org.

Register here with complete details and feel free to spread the word. If you have any questions or comments, please email sandiego@ynpn.org. We hope to see you there!!!

April Meet and Greet Highlights

From Lenise Andrade, Meet and Greet Committee Co-Chair and Advisory Board member...

I often call myself a ‘Recovering Events Girl.’ I started my career in nonprofits mostly doing event planning, starting with small poetry readings to large sit down dinners for 1000 of my organization’s closest friends. But, after moving to San Diego, I thought my event coordination days were behind me. So, it still surprises me how much fun I have being co-chair of YNPN SD’s Meet & Greet committee.

Emily Bhatti and I have a great time planning the events, getting to know the businesses who are kind enough to host us and coordinating our wonderful committee who all pitch in to make these events such a success. It really is a team effort, as one person will make contact with a venue, someone else will create the email invitation, another volunteer will write a press release for the event, while yet another volunteer will track rsvp’s and registration. Everyone does their part to pitch in, and in the end we are able to create a fun atmosphere for our members to meet and socialize.

Coordinating the last Meet & Greet was especially fun, as we were able to look back on the last year of events. And being at Hard Rock Cafe made it perfect, as we were able to go back to the first venue to ever host us. Once again, the Hard Rock Cafe team was a treat to work worth and provided us with a great space, some delightful food and beverages and a fun atmosphere for all. Thank you to our wonderful event partners for the May Meet and Greet!


It was also great to be there with fellow board and committee members. Just thinking back to the last year, as we’ve come to know each other, as colleagues and as friends, and that it was events like this that made it all happen, made it that much sweeter. Growing YNPN SD has been a lot of work and it was great to celebrate the first anniversary with those who make it happen.

We hope everyone has enjoyed the Meet & Greets so far, but welcome any suggestions for upcoming events. We’re looking into ways to highlight members and their organizations and how to connect those in similar organizations. We’re also looking into ways to connect those looking for jobs right now, as we know how hard that can be, especially in this time. If you have any other ideas, please let us know!

And if you’d like to join the Meet & Greet committee, we’re always accepting applications through the website. Having a variety of volunteers from different organizations and parts of town make the team that much stronger. We do a majority of our work via email and usually have committee members handle just one or two tasks per event. We know how busy everyone is and welcome all the help our team can spare.

You can see a link to pictures here or on our website.

And we have already set the date and location for the next event: June 18th at Basic downtown! More details to come, but for now, save the date and hope to see you there!

YNPN San Diego is a Superhero!

YNPN San Diego was recognized this month as Volunteer San Diego's Superhero of the Month. Usually this feature is for individuals, but YNPN San Diego was nominated as a GROUP of leaders in the field. Thanks for the nomination and the recognition! You can nominate someone and support Volunteer San Diego by visiting their website. Below is the article from their recent newsletter.

From Volunteer San Diego...

"This month we would like to recognize Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) San Diego Volunteers. YNPN San Diego promotes an efficient, viable, and inclusive nonprofit sector that supports the growth, learning, and development of young professionals. They engage and support future nonprofit and community leaders through professional development, networking and social opportunities designed for young people involved in the nonprofit community.

"YNPN volunteers are all nonprofit professionals who are either employed in or seeking employment in nonprofit organizations. Their volunteers are responsible for managing the "behind-the-scenes" activities of YNPN San Diego as well as their in-person networking and professional development programs. We are also in the middle of a visioning process, fundraising planning process, and communications planning process, as well as creating a board manual, which is a significant amount of work for a small group of amazing volunteers who are delegating and leading other volunteers from the same community."

Have a story about YNPN San Diego to share that highlights their great work? Feel free to leave a comment here or email us at sandiego@ynpn.org.

YNPN SD Welcomes New Board Members!

San Diego's Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN) is excited to welcome seven new members to its Advisory Board. Jaci Feinstein, Holly Gilbertson, Gypsy Walukones, Joe Buehrle, Amy Thoe, Laura Stein and Mariel Berry join the nine previous Advisory Board members that have steered San Diego YNPN chapter through its incredibly successful first year.

Our new Advisory Board members bring forth passion, diverse experiences, extensive knowledge of the nonprofit sector, and fresh ideas that will further the growth and development of YNPN in San Diego. Less than two months into their new positions, our new board members have jumped right in! They are already chairing committees, streamlining our online communication tools and planning upcoming member events. They are fully committed and dedicated to strengthening the next generation of leaders in San Diego!

With an extremely successful first year under our belt and over 400 members throughout San Diego, the new Advisory Board looks forward to growing our network while promoting an efficient, viable and inclusive nonprofit sector that supports the growth, learning and development of young professionals.