What does being a finalist for this award mean for you and your organization? 

This award validates the hard work of our talented, dedicated, and passionate board members. The DC SCORES board is intentionally composed of diverse leaders from many different backgrounds, including award-winning poets, professional soccer players, innovative educators, and groundbreaking policy-makers. But they all share one thing in common: they care deeply about young people and the future of D.C.  

That is our strength. Bringing together expert leaders from many communities, lived experiences, and professional backgrounds allows us to incorporate the best practices from a range of sectors, discover untapped opportunities, and ensure that the communities we serve are represented in our leadership, but our common goal remains the same: to serve the youth of our city.  

Receiving this award is confirmation of our approach and we’re humbled and honored to be considered. 

What have you learned through the application process for the Board Leadership Award?  

I have learned how much I appreciate our board and how we intentionally, strategically work together to strengthen the organization. I feel fortunate to be working in partnership with such a diverse collaborative board. Many times we take for granted the people and structures that create strong organizations, but this award process allowed us to stop and celebrate the work we have done together. There is power in a strong board taking the time to stop and reflect on the work of both the staff and board to get to this place and how we continue to intentionally structure our work together.  

What advice would you offer for other organizations/board members striving for excellence in board leadership? 

  1. Strategic recruitment is worth it—For small nonprofits in particular, proactive, strategic board recruitment may seem like a nice-to-have that there’s no time for, but it’s always worth it. Do the work of assessing your gaps and needs, whether that’s a skill set (finance, legal, marketing, etc), a specific company or affiliation, or a specific network. Consider diversity in multiple forms, not just demographic, but also in the types of board members you have (strategic/doers vs. corporate/partners vs. fundraisers). Build your pipeline accordingly. 
  2. Leadership succession is critical—Having a great board chair and committee leads has been a key part of successful board leadership, but we also prioritize proactive succession planning. For us, that means allowing for an additional board year for members in leadership roles (especially board chair) so that we can create an overlap year for incoming and outgoing chairs, and maintaining an active Advisory Council (junior board) and Emeritus Council to provide both a strong leadership pipeline and a readily available group of past board members and chairs whose experience we can call on.