The Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation will hold their first Nonprofit Link and Learn Seminar of the year, “Board Governance: Building Better Boards,” led by former CRCF Executive Director Karen Niemic Buchheit and former CRCF Board President Skip Wilday on Thursday, June 6.

This session will equip attendees with knowledge of and best practices for how to better recruit board members, how to better define the role of the board and its responsibilities and how to better manage volunteer board members, all with the goal of building a stronger board. 

Attendees will also explore what a meaningful and productive relationship between a board chair/president and a nonprofit’s staff and CEO/executive director look like, as well as the tools an organization needs to provide a board chair for effective leadership.

The session will be held on Thursday, June 6, from 12 – 1 p.m. at the Laine Place building, 301 North Union St. in the third-floor Sr. Margaret Carney Training Room.

Leading this session will be former CRCF Executive Director Karen Niemic Buchheit and former CRCF President Skip Wilday.

Karen served as the first-ever full-time executive director of CRCF and led organization for 12 years before retiring in 2023.

She has committed her career to aiding nonprofit organizations through her expertise in grantmaking, capacity building services and education programming. She has also taught multiple seminars and led workshops on nonprofit management, board development and fundraising.

Karen also served on the boards of AFP Western NY Chapter and the Bradford Creative & Performing Arts Center.

Wilday served as the CRCF board president from 2021 to 2022. Prior to being elected the board president, he served as a charter board member, with years of service from 1994 to 2016.

After a year off the board, Wilday returned to the board in 2017 and has since led and sat on multiple committees.

In addition to being the former board president of CRCF, Wilday also served as the vice chair of the Gow School board of trustees. He was also the former president of the Olean Food Pantry and currently serves on the association board for the YMCA of the Twin Tiers.

“We are thrilled to host our first Link and Learn Seminar of the year,” said Kirk Windus, CRCF executive director. “This session promises to provide invaluable insights and practical strategies for board leadership, ensuring that organizations can achieve their missions with integrity and efficiency.”

The seminar will be held from noon to 1 p.m. Registration for the seminar is open at cattfoundation.org/nonprofit-link-and-learn-series.

The workshop will be held in-person only.

The Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation is the area’s supportive, responsive and trusted community foundation. Established in 1994, CRCF is growing good by connecting donors to the causes they care about most in the region. Grants from the foundation support many areas, including education, scholarships, health care, the arts, community development, human service, and youth development. To learn more, call (716) 301-CRCF (2723), email foundation@cattfoundation.org, or visit online at www.cattfoundation.org. CRCF is also on Facebook (facebook.com/cattfoundation) and Twitter (@CattFoundation).