May 23-24, 2023
Agenda (Coming soon)
The Leadership in Public Service (LPS) program is a two-day program that will be held at Annenberg Presidential Conference Center, on the campus of Texas A&M University. The program is hosted by the Center for Nonprofits & Philanthropy (CNP). Attendees can anticipate educational workshops led by high regarded academicians and public service practitioners at the Bush School.
Information – Public Sector Leadership Course
The LPS program also known as Public Sector Leadership Course is geared for
- managers and executives from the nonprofit and public sector;
- graduate degree holders and current master-level students planning for a nonprofit and/or public sector career; and
- for-profit and corporate sector leaders who have, or plan to, transition into a career of service in nonprofits or public sector organizations.
The two-day program is intentionally designed as a triadic learning experience that allows managers and executives to share knowledge and learn from one another, while also including facilitated learning from scholars in the discipline. Past participants of the LPS program have included professionals from the nonprofit sector, educational settings, federal/state/local government employees, faith-based organizations, and professionals focused on public policy, all with one goal in mind—advancing professionally.
Program Highlights
- Educational workshops led by highly regarded academicians and public sector practitioners
- Relevant leadership assessments
Program Benefits
- Gain research-informed and practice-proven leadership and management competencies
- Explore and advance personal leadership capacity
- Deepen professional network
Who Should Attend
- Managers and executives from the nonprofit and public sector
- Graduate degree holders and current master-level students planning for a nonprofit and/or public sector career
- For-profit and corporate sector leaders who have, or plan to, transition into a career of service via nonprofit or public sector organizations
Program Fee
- General Registration: $695
- Group Discount: 3 or more registrations $625 per person.
- Registration Deadline: August 1, 2022
Sessions
Sessions include the following:
- Performing as a Leader in Turbulent Times
Regardless of the work environment, being a good leader is hard work and so goes the manta of if it was easy everyone would be viewed in that manner. That perspective coupled with operating during the crisis of our lifetime certainly doesn’t make things any simpler. Academic literature on the study of leadership is consistent that two things should come from exceptional leaders…the enhanced development of subordinates and heightened organizational performance. Session will explore and focus on the critical personal tasks of leaders to help ensure they are (1.) addressing the items important to staff development and (2.) the crisis tasks executives are/should be responsible for in our current operating environment. Participants will be provided time to identify those tasks specific to their organizations, report and share with program cohorts, and receive relevant feedback to utilize in their workplace. - Maximization of Leader Strengths: StrengthsQuest
Can you imagine what the world would look like if we spent more time focusing on what we are naturally good at instead of trying to fix everything that’s wrong? Over fifty years ago, Dr. Don Clifton began researching a new area in psychology called positive psychology. The focus of positive psychology is on identifying and developing areas of strength and talent. From the beginning, the Gallup Organization was leading the way in research and application of the strengths philosophy, which eventually led to the development of the StrengthsQuest online assessment. Based on your input, you are provided a listing with your top five areas of talent (from a total of thirty-four signature themes). Once you learn about your individual areas of talent, you can begin working to develop them into strengths. This workshop will provide you with a basic understanding of the theory and will expose you to a variety of interactive activities and reflection exercises to help you understand your strengths. - Leading Diversity within Public Service
This workshop will provide participants with relevant human differences that exist within public sector and nonprofit organizations with regard to race and ethnicity, economic and social class, and gender. The session will specifically address and examine strategies for building consensus across the differences referenced above. Participants can expect to explore the advantages and challenges of diversity in the workplace and leave with leader strategies that will contribute to positive outcomes for employers/employees/other stakeholders. - Making the Ask for Major Gifts
Fundraising has reached a new level of challenging, leaving many nonprofits wondering how to move forward with fundraising during a pandemic. This session will give some perspective from historical giving data, and will discuss strategic approaches that can be used to continue raising money and using all aspects of the funding cycle to prepare to raise more when donors are ready to give. - How to Get Your Board Involved in Fundraising
This session will teach participants how to equip their boards to be effective fundraisers. It will cover best practices for board engagement and how to help them understand the professional fundraising process. Participants will learn strategies to involve board members in all stages of the fundraising cycle. - Conversations in Leadership
There are a vast number of ways to define leadership and research tell us there are almost as many definitions of leadership as there are people who have tried to define it (Stodgill, 1974). This panel-driven discussion is facilitated by distinguished leaders with military, city/county, private business, and academic backgrounds. During this session, panelist will reflect and share about their varying degrees of leadership experiences, all while providing key takeaways instrumental to succeeding in public service settings. - The Art of Strategic Direction in Uncertain Times
Session will explore and discuss the essence of effective strategic thinking and planning with an emphasis on adaptability to ensure your organization builds the learning muscles and foresight necessary to thrive and add value to the people and communities it serves. Workshop will also incorporate the core strategic building blocks with easy tools that you can adapt to your environment. Participants will explore the practice and benefits of scenario planning, stakeholder engagement, and success measures to help reality-test your planning and nurture an adaptability mindset and culture. - Social Media Marketing for Public Service Organizations
Social media marketing is one of the most efficient ways to market and grow an organization. For public organizations, the advantage is, the cost is insignificant and in some cases free – yet many professionals don’t really understand how it works. This workshop will cover all of the most important aspects of social media marketing and how to use the free and paid platforms to drive results and keep you on the leading edge of your public organization. - Working Together: Collaboration Builds Resilient Communities
Session will explore the relationship between local government and nonprofit organizations. Participants will reflect on and be provided with both, essential tools and practical strategies for growing relationships between the two and constructing more resilient communities. Workshop will introduce the constructs of Patience, Perseverance, and Pragmatism as a framework for application in community-building while underscoring Richard Florida’s advancement of the 3 T’s…Talent, Technology, and Tolerance.
Facilitator Biographies
Kenneth Anderson Taylor, Director of Outreach & Professional Development
Dr. Kenneth Anderson Taylor is an Assistant Professor of the Practice, the Director of Outreach and Professional Development within the Center for Nonprofits and Philanthropy, and holder of the Younger-Carter Endowed Practitioner-in-Residence. He routinely leads the Public Service and Administration Consulting Capstone Seminar, has taught a variety of nonprofit management courses, and has developed and delivered several workshops on the study of leadership. He earned his MBA from Bellarmine University’s Rubel School of Business and also holds a BA in sociology from the same institution. His PhD in leadership studies is from Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, and his dissertation research investigated leader behavior and job satisfaction within nonprofit organizations.
Before arriving in College Station, Dr. Taylor founded and launched the Nonprofit Leadership Studies (formerly Youth and Nonprofit Leadership) program at Murray State University and held the appointment of Academic Program Director and Assistant Professor within their College of Health Science & Human Services.
As a true practitioner, Dr. Taylor has more than twenty years of leader experience inside, and working on behalf of, nonprofit organizations. His self-defined career highlights include the twelve consecutive years he served the mission of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America and the five years he spent as a self-employed consultant. He is also a State of Texas Credentialed Mediator.
Years ago, when Dr. Taylor set his sights on transitioning into academia with a vision of developing tomorrow’s social sector leaders, he put the Bush School at the top of his list. He defines landing at Texas A&M as an “honor” and is simply here to mightily contribute to the School’s commitment to President George H. W. Bush’s philosophy of educating principled leaders for public service.
Brian Nakamura, Assistant Professor of the Practice
Brian S. Nakamura joined Department of Public Service and Administration as Assistant Professor of the Practice in September 2019. He earned his B.A. in Economics from California State University in 1992, and a Master of Public Administration and Doctorate in Public Administration from the University of Southern California in 1995 and 2002, respectively.
Nakamura previously taught for the Departments of Political Science, Fay Jones School of Architecture, and Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. He held other academic appointments at the University of California-Riverside School of Public Policy, and was an adjunct professor in the Master of Public Administration Program a California Baptist University. He also served as a mentor and adjunct faculty member at the University of Southern California’s School of Public Policy.
Nakamura’s research interests include the “fiscalization” of land use and the social and economic impacts on sustainable communities as well as public finance and budgeting, taxation and equity. Nakamura has presented his research work at the American Society of Public Administration, League of California Cities, shared publications and white papers, and has been referenced in Shelly Kirkpatrick’s book, Build a Better Vision Statement. Additional research and practice interests are dedicated to constructing and facilitating relevant local, regional, state, and Federal government internship and fellowship opportunities for emerging public service leaders to advance effective, efficient, and equitable governance and government. The Western Riverside Council of Government’s Public Service Fellowship Program developed and implemented in 2017 is one such notable example.
His research expertise proved useful in his role as city manager in numerous California cities and one in the State of Oregon. He also served in local government as a director of public works and budget and grants manager. As a city manager Nakamura implemented policy strategies to establish environmental and business partnerships and worked to preserve and enhance economic and societal viability, implementing resilient and sustainable land use and zoning objectives, collaborating with elected officials to insure citizen participation, and local, regional, state, and Federal government collective action and cooperation. He has also served as an Executive Board Member for the National Alliance for Youth Sports, three different Chambers’ of Commerce, Temecula Preparatory School Board, Folsom Lake College Foundation, and keynote speaker for several nationally recognized organizations.
Angela Seaworth, Director of Philanthropic Initiatives & Capacity Building
Angela D. Seaworth holds a Ph.D. in Philanthropic Studies from Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy where she researched nonprofit governance and leadership. She earned her MBA from the University of Chicago, a Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA), and a B.A. from Denison University.
Seaworth was the founding director of the Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership at Rice University where she designed curriculum and managed educational programming for nonprofit executives and board members, eventually growing the program to more than 800 enrollments annually. As a Lecturer for the Texas A&M Bush School of Government and Public Service, she teaches Management and Leadership of Nonprofit Organizations and Fundraising in Nonprofit Organizations.
As a practitioner, she has more than 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector as a professional fundraiser and consultant. She has worked as a fundraiser at the University of Chicago, the University of Houston, and as the chief development officer at two independent high schools. She also worked in the Analytical Solutions practice for Marts & Lundy, Inc. where she was responsible for capacity analyses, benchmarking studies and feasibility study design.
Seaworth is an Advanced Certified Fundraising Executive (ACFRE) and held the Certified Fund Raising Designation from 2002-2011. To promote the fundraising profession, she served on the ACFRE Credentialing Board for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) International and as a Subject Matter Expert for CFRE International, preparing questions for its fundraising certification exam. Locally, she served on the the Greater Houston AFP Chapter Board as the VP Professional Advancement and was awarded the M. Anne Murphy Award for Professional Advancement.
Zillah Fluker, Higher Education | Social Media | Diversity
Dr. Zillah Fluker joined Central State University as Vice President of Institutional Advancement in August 2020. She is a seventeen-year leader in corporate America and higher education. In 2018, she founded and launched activate|elevate, LLC, a social media and marketing firm. Since 2016, activate|elevate has managed a portfolio of institutions of higher education, small businesses, municipalities, nonprofits, and private individuals’ social media and marketing strategies across the United States. The competitive advantage that activate|elevate has is a research and data collection methodology that develops case studies from client activity and benchmarked data that is regularly presented and reported at professional and academic conferences. Fluker also founded the Why Not Win Institute, a targeted nonprofit for leadership development, and serves as its inaugural Executive Director.
Fluker holds four degrees from Purdue University and Alabama State University: a PhD in educational leadership, policy, and law and a bachelor of arts in history from Alabama Sate and a master’s in business administration and master of arts from Purdue University. Her primary areas of research are social media, diversity, and organizational and leadership development.
Most recently, she served nearly a decade as the Vice President of Institutional Advancement at Alabama State University (ASU) and Miles College in Alabama. During her time at ASU, she was responsible for bringing in the University’s two largest individual planned gifts and the largest individual cash donation in the history of the University. She also led the ASU 2025 Strategic Plan and was appointed Chair of the Inauguration of the 14th President and the University’s Sesquicentennial.
Prior to beginning her career in higher education, Fluker was in corporate America for thirteen years. She held global positions of increasing responsibility in diversity, marketing, university relations, executive search, and human resources with Motorola, Inc., United Technologies Corporation (Carrier Corp.), and Honeywell International.
Fluker has been recognized as a member of Hartford Magazine’s Top 40 Under 40 and was elected President of both the Hartford, CT, Young Professionals and the Montgomery, AL, Young Professionals. She has served on the Urban League of Greater Hartford, Hartford Boys and Girls Club, Montgomery Chamber of Commerce, and the Kershaw YMCA Boards of Directors. She has been a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., for twenty-four years. Originally from Zimbabwe, Africa, and raised in London, England, and Birmingham, Alabama, Fluker is married to her college sweetheart, Kwame, and they have two sons, Coleman (10) and Anderson (8).
Holly Kasperbauer, Assistant Director of the Public Service Leadership Program
Holly J. Kasperbauer joined the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University as Assistant Director of the Public Service Leadership Program in February 2012. Her passion for leadership comes from her background and personal experiences, including leadership-related curriculum development, workshop facilitation, and teaching.
Ms. Kasperbauer is a native of Iowa and received her BS in agricultural education and a minor in horticulture from Iowa State University and her MS in agricultural education from the Department of Leadership, Education, and Communications at Texas A&M. She is currently finishing her PhD at Virginia Tech, where she is studying college student leadership development and critical thinking in the Department of Agricultural and Extension Education. Prior to working on her PhD, Ms. Kasperbauer taught high school agriculture and worked in curriculum development for an agricultural nonprofit organization. She has taught several courses that included topics on leadership theory, team development, leadership and popular culture, and oral communication.
At the Bush School, Ms. Kasperbauer works with faculty and staff to inspire students to become principled leaders and encourage them to identify and use strategies to continue developing their leadership identity. This is accomplished through the use of workshops, leadership assessment facilitation, and individual coaching sessions. Ms. Kasperbauer provides the students at the Bush School with opportunities to reflect on their personal values and to assess their leadership attributes, knowledge, and skills to become more self-aware as they set goals for personal development.
Ken Hubbell, Founder and President of Ken Hubbell & Associates
Ken Hubbell is Founder and President of Ken Hubbell & Associates, a consulting firm and ActionCraftCompany both based in Little Rock, Arkansas. Since 1992, Ken Hubbell has provided effective strategic services in organizational development, change coaching, and strategic planning. We incorporate visual concepts and system dynamics into our work to help clients unlock breakthroughs.
Our clients include hospital systems, charitable, regional and community foundations, nonprofit organizations, city governments, state and federal agencies, educational institutions, and select private technology companies. Many of his engagements addressed the social determinants of health for clients including W. K. Kellogg, Northwest Area, Winthrop Rockefeller, Walton Family foundations, the Foundation for the Mid South and hospital foundations in St. Paul, MN and Hamilton, Ontario. Hubbell provided strategic consulting and storytelling to national nonprofits including PBS Broadcasting network and MDC, Inc. in North Carolina, to develop more high-leverage strategic responses to opportunity for lower income families and communities.
Ken Hubbell has over twenty years of experience developing resilient organizations and communities. KHA specializes in highly visual strategy tools and systems thinking. Ken has a wide range of experience with multi-stakeholder collaboration, social innovation, economic development, and equitable approaches to grassroots civic participation and poverty alleviation. He has worked in urban neighborhoods, rural regions, and in Namibia (in southern Africa). In partnership with Tom Peterson, Ken has facilitated for UAMS a serious of local conversations in Little Rock in 2016 with key stakeholders working in the field of homeless health and well-being. ActionCraftCompany is currently helping the Little Rock School District engage the community to build new consensus on a learning facilities blueprint for the city.
Ken has experience designing social solutions to complex problems (Native leaders and private foundations collaborating on social enterprise and governance in Indian Country across the upper Northwest; empowering vulnerable communities to redesign the future and long-term health of their neighborhoods; and coaching collaboration among diverse stakeholders to accelerate Latino student success across the U. S.), adapting organization strategy to impact whole systems (ecosystem and force-field mapping, scenario building to rehearse futures and test strategy for foundations and natural resource, health, arts, and food relief organizations), and facilitating new leadership development and learning for social sector organizations in Canada and the U.S.
Ken is the author of The Art of Change: A Handbook for Leading Effective Social Change (2012) a Field Guide to Community Coaching (2010) and “What’s Love Got to Do with Philanthropy” and other insightful scenario essays on the future of nonprofit organizations for monographs edited by Gary J. Hubbell focused on discovering new meaning in the application of philanthropy in our times (http://www.garyhubbellconsulting.com/ghc-conversations/ghc-conversation-2012).
Frank B. Ashley III, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Senior Professor
Dr. Frank B. Ashley III is the Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. He came to the Bush School from the College Board, where he was Senior Vice President of Membership and Higher Education Engagement. The College Board is a mission-driven, not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity.
As Senior Associate Dean, Dr. Ashley oversees graduate education and research activities as well as strategic planning, faculty affairs, student affairs, program development, diversity, assessment, communications and external relations, student services, and extended education programs in the Bush School. Dr. Ashley earned his bachelor’s degree from Louisiana College and a master’s and doctorate from the University of Alabama. He began his academic career as a science teacher and coach. His previous appointments include faculty positions and service as Dean of the College of Education and Interim Provost-Vice President for Academic Affairs at Texas A&M University-Commerce as well as Director of Admissions and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies and Teacher Education at Texas A&M University’s College of Education.
From 2007 to 2010, Dr. Ashley served as Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for the Texas A&M University System, where he served as Chief Academic Officer for the System and represented the System at the state level on all academic issues. In 2010, he was named Vice Chancellor for Recruitment and Diversity and Chief of Staff. In this position, he collected and analyzed System data on diversity and assisted System universities and agencies in recruiting and retention of diverse students, faculty, and staff.
A former College Board trustee, Dr. Ashley also has served on boards and committees for numerous other organizations, including the North American Society for Sport Management, the Commerce Independent School District, and the Development Education Subcommittee of the P–16 Education Council of the Texas Education Agency. He was also a member of the editorial board of both the Journal of Applied Research in Coaching and Athletics and the International Journal of Sports Management.
BG Joe E. Ramirez, Jr. ’79, USA (Ret.), Vice President For Student Affairs
Brigadier General Joe Ramirez, Jr. is a native of Houston and a graduate of Texas A&M University, where he was a member of the Texas Aggie Band in the Corps of Cadets. He received his commission in the United States Army Field Artillery from Texas A&M in 1979 as a Distinguished Military Graduate.
During his 31 years of military service, General Ramirez commanded soldiers around the world and served in leadership positions in various joint and operational commands. He was the Deputy Chief of Staff for United States Central Command during Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom and was the Deputy Division Commander for the 2nd Infantry Division in the Republic of Korea. His most recent assignment was Deputy Director for Strategy, Plans, and Policy for US European Command in Stuttgart, Germany.
Prior to being named Vice President for Student Affairs, General Ramirez served as the 45th Commandant of Cadets at Texas A&M from 2010-2021. As the Commandant, General Ramirez oversaw the largest collegiate Corps of Cadets outside of the three military academies. Under his leadership, the Corps of Cadets experienced the largest growth it has seen since the early 1970s, increasing in size from 1800 cadets to over 2550 cadets in just 7 years. In addition, the overall cumulative Corps GPA increased during his tenure as Commandant from an overall 2.6 his first semester to a 3.2 in 2021. Under his leadership, the Corps also increased in diversity. During his tenure, the Corps of Cadets has had its first African American Corps Commander, first female Corps Commander, first female Mascot Handler, first female Commander of Parsons Mounted Cavalry, and the first Hispanic Yell Leader. In addition, he helped oversee the largest number of officers commissioned into the Armed Forces from Texas A&M since the Vietnam War in the early 1970s.
General Ramirez holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Physical Education from Texas A&M (1979); a Master’s Degree in Management from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri (1993); and a Master’s Degree in Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania (2000).
Doug French, Owner & Chief Executive Officer
Doug French, Owner and Chief Executive Officer of Stylecraft, chose to make a career in his family business after earning a Master’s in Business Administration from Baylor University with honors, and previously earning his undergraduate degree from Texas A&M Magna Cum Laude. Doug’s passion for equipping and developing strong employees has helped continue to define Stylecraft’s reputation as a company dedicated to integrity and quality. In addition to his leadership at Stylecraft, Doug is dedicated to community involvement. He is a past Board Chair for United Way, the acting Board Chair for SOS Ministries, a board member of the Blinn College Advisory Committee, a member of the Advisory Council serving in other volunteer positions. He and his wife Kara enjoy traveling, watching Aggie sports, and spending time with their daughter and son.
Elsa A. Murano, Director of the Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture, Professor and President Emerita, Texas A&M University
A graduate of Florida International University (B.S. in Biological Sciences) and Virginia Tech (M.S. in Anaerobic Microbiology and PhD in Food Science & Technology), Dr. Murano began her career as an Assistant Professor in food microbiology at Iowa State University in 1990, where she conducted research in food safety. In 1995, she joined the faculty at Texas A&M University as Associate Professor, leading the university’s Center for Food Safety as Director. She has received funding since 1990 of over $9 million for her research in foodborne pathogens, and has published more than 50 scientific articles and 7 book chapters in the field. In 2001, Professor Murano was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve as Undersecretary for Food Safety at the Department of Agriculture, the highest ranking food safety official in the U.S. government.
In 2005, Dr. Murano returned to Texas A&M, where she was appointed Dean and Vice Chancellor of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the largest such program in the nation. During her tenure, she reversed the declining enrollment in the College, secured increased funding from the state for the agriculture agencies, and rebranded the agencies to better reflect the important role of agriculture in the life sciences. In 2008, Dr. Murano became the first woman, and first Hispanic president of Texas A&M University. Her initiatives resulted in an increase in state funding, remodeling of the Memorial Student Center and Military Walk, construction of the Agriculture and Life Sciences buildings, and the rise in the university’s rankings by U.S. News & World Reports from 24th to 21st among public universities. Since June of 2012, Dr. Murano has been serving as Director of the Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture, which boasts a research project portfolio of over $40 million being conducted in Asia, Latin America, Sub Saharan Africa, and the Middle East. In addition to her teaching and research duties, she serves on the Board of Directors of Hormel Foods Corporation, the International Life Sciences Institute for North America, and the Food Processors Institute Foundation.
Contact
- Contact Denise Parker at the Center for Nonprofits & Philanthropy with any questions.
