2. The mission of Allegheny Valley School is to provide quality programs and facilities to
help the individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities entrusted to our
care to live with purpose and dignity, and to provide opportunities and choices for our
clients to grow and function at their full potential as independently as possible.
Allegheny Valley School (AVS) is a private, non-profit organization established in 1960
to care for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Founded by Patricia
Hillman Miller, with help from friends Bob Prince and Doug Hannah, AVS provided
care for 10 children with intellectual disabilities who were left without a home when The
Pittsburgh Home for Babies orphanage closed.
Since 1960, Allegheny Valley School has grown into a multi-faceted organization with
programs and facilities serving more than 900 children, adults and senior citizens. Most
of the residents are diagnosed with severe or profound intellectual disabilities; most also
have multiple physical disabilities, medical complications and some have behavioral
management needs.
Allegheny Valley School is known for its outstanding community residential
environments and therapeutic programs for children and adults with intellectual and
developmental disabilities. We currently operate more than 125 programs and facilities
in the following 9 Pennsylvania counties: Allegheny, Beaver, Bucks, Butler, Dauphin,
Lebanon, Mercer, Montgomery and Philadelphia. AVS employs more than 2,300 people.
On May 30, 2008, Allegheny Valley School was acquired by NHS Human Services.
Allegheny Valley School remains committed to providing quality programs and facilities
to help those with intellectual and developmental disabilities to reach their fullest
potential.
3.
4. Allegheny Valley School faces many
internal and external challenges. As a
non profit organization it can become
a struggle to raise money to pay for
the care of the students. In doing so,
it can not only be extremely difficult
and expensive, but it can potentially
not bring in a profit if it isn’t planned
correctly.
5. One of the first areas of every
business that need to be
assessed immediately is the
happiness of the employees. If
the employees are happy then
everyone will be happy. If they
have an incentive to increase
their level of performance and
capabilities while at work then
the patients/residence will most
likely express the same feeling
of happiness. This is something
I’m sure most of us know from
experience. As an employee if
we aren’t satisfied with the
treatment from our employers
or something along the lines of
the benefits we receive then
nobody is going to be happy.
6. Secondly, giving insight on
marketing fundraising events to
provide quality programs and more
facilities to children and adults can
also affect the organization overall.
This is an area that can offer
tremendous value to Allegheny
Valley School. Being able to provide
leadership skills on how to raise
money to afford new programs,
materials, and facilities for the
special needs adults and children
need to be taken into consideration.
Developing a plan to acquire other
schools and businesses to make
donations and save Campbell soup
labels which can be turned in for
money towards new supplies and
equipment will improve the quality
of the school and lives of the
disabled.
7. There are many ways to raise
enough money to achieve an
organizations goals. To create a
better learning environment for the Collecting Campbell’s Soup labels for
disabled I am helping to assist in new equipment.
planning events that I feel will bring
in a huge profit. Having the Donations from surrounding businesses
information available to create to break new grounds.
exquisite marketing and fundraising
events could potentially provide Fundraisers for the children including
quality programs and additional farm animals, face painting, games etc.
facilities for both the adolescent and
adult groups which can also affect Community car washes on when the
the overall significance of the weather is nice.
organization. Building relationships
with other businesses and schools Classic car show with an admission fee
throughout the area can offer
tremendous value to Allegheny
Valley School as well. The more
AVS gets to know the surrounding
neighborhoods, schools, and
businesses the more often they will
receive donations.
8. What challenges are
we likely to face in
developing leadership
in organizations?
What steps should
organizations take to
improve the
effectiveness of their
leadership
development
initiatives?
9. Leadership responsibilities should be The Truth-Teller. Keeps the network
distributed throughout the organization honest; identifies half-truths, cheaters,
liars, and spinners in the networked
Exemplar. The role model that others organization; exemplifies independence,
transparency, accuracy, and candor in the
e
imitate; exemplifies the assessment
criteria and sets the standards for face of tremendous pressure.
becoming a member of a network;
important in setting the tone and culture The Fixer. Knows how to get things done;
of the organization. pragmatic and results oriented; creative
in solving problems, and often bends
The Gatekeeper. Understands the criteria rules and works through informal
for being included, retained, elevated, networks.
and excluded from a network; decides
who is in and who is out; denies The Connector. Participates in multiple
admittance to, and weeds out, those who social networks; has numerous friends,
fail to meet the standards of the network. contacts, and connections; critical to
identifying and accessing new resources
The Visionary. Determines what is and helping get a message out.
limiting about the present and shows
what is possible for the future; imagines
new possibilities and plays a critical role The Facilitator. Creates sub-networks or
in moving the networked organization in communities that provide network value
new directions. and benefit an entire group; plays the role
of a "community coordinator" in
The Enforcer. Uses coercion and pressure communities of practice; vital to
(perhaps physical, but more likely peer or coordinating and enabling other actors
psychological) to compel adherence to and decision-makers.
rules and network standards.
10. Campus Living
Community Group
Homes
Adult Training
Family Living
Supported Living
Community Living
Sensory Programs
11. Implementing action plans Strategic planning steers an organization
on the path to success. It is the framework
that determines where an organization is
It is helpful for quality action plans going over the next year or more, how it’s
to be linked to other organizational going to get there, and how it will know
plans, so that action can be if it got there or not.
prioritized and budgets agreed.
More specifically, a strategic plan
identifies the mission, vision and/or
Identify each stage of the tasks values of an organization, the goals to
work toward the mission, the strategies to
achieve the goals, and how to plan for
delegate responsibility to an action. Strategic planning increases
indentified person or people effectiveness, efficiency, productivity,
and accountability within a non profit
organization.
have a realistic timetable
Strategic planning pushes your team to
keep a written record of action. focus on the future and the commitment
that it will take to make the organization
a success. It shows that the organization
is committed to a plan of action that will
sustain and develop the organization to
better serve the community.
12. Throughout the last few weeks I
have been communicating
back and forth with quite a Adopting procedures that ensure
few of the employees and financial accountability,
volunteers from Allegheny eliminate
Valley School. We misunderstandings, and that
collectively decided our
main focus was trying to protect the organization’s
figure out how to bring the assets and viability was the
most essential values to the first step. Being able to
organization in the timeliest provide leadership skills
manner and least costly on how to raise money to
way. I started by asking afford new programs,
questions about different materials, and facilities
aspects of the organization
such as what they felt they for the special needs
need the most and who adults and children need
would benefit from these to be taken into deep
ideas. I wanted to make sure consideration.
that if I helped raise funds
for the school they would be
put to good use.
13. Nonprofit organizations support a wide By creating a case statement which
variety of causes that rely, almost is a written document that tells
entirely, on donations. Many
companies and individuals assist prospective donors how their
nonprofit organizations by donations will be used and how the
providing financial and other types donation will positively impact the
of contributions. However, most community or cause will increase
people who work for and raise
money for nonprofits understand the amount of donations.
that action must be taken to ensure Research companies that give
regular donations. charitable donations or that might
benefit from donating to your
Use mailers, such as direct-mail and
e-mail requests, to solicit donations organization.
from individuals and companies. Offer online contests. For example,
a nonprofit designed to teach
Host events to raise money-- literacy might host an online short
luncheons, formal dinners, golf story contest. Individuals could pay
tournaments and carnivals.
a contest fee, submit a story and
potentially win a prize. To reduce
Also requesting grants from the
government or from other costs to the nonprofit, donations
businesses will increase donations. from local companies could be
requested for prizes for the contest.
14. Allegheny Valley School gave me an I sent a formal letter to Allegheny Valley
opportunity to share my thoughts School thanking them for letting me share
on what I felt would be the right my ideas and giving me the opportunity
tools to improve the areas of the to meet with some of the departments of
organization that needed the most the school to set up different fundraisers
improvements. The managers of and plan other events that will
not only took my ideas into continuously encourage surrounding
consideration but they were passed businesses and other schools in Western
along to a regional director to be Pennsylvania to make donations. ( I
looked at further. Being that my
grandfather did the microfilming for didn’t just do this as an experiment for a
Allegheny Valley School they school project I turned it into something I
realized I had enough knowledge could actually do to help the disabled. I
from many prior years of reading helped raise enough money to take the
documents on the residence and children at AVS to the zoo. ) After
students to be able to make a sending my letter I didn’t think I was
decision on the different ways to going to receive a response but, I did. I
help the non profit organization received a phone call from the manager
make a profit to change some of the of the activities department thanking me
way things are being done and be for all of my help and kind consideration.
able to afford new buildings and She asked me if I would be able to
equipment.
volunteer with AVS more often and I
agreed. This was a wonderful
opportunity and I hope that I could
someday turn it into something better.
15. Leadership in non profit organizations-Excerpted with permission
from "Developing Leaders & Leadership in Organizations," by David A.
Cole, LILA Insights, July 2005.
http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/leadership/leadership003b.html -
On July 1, 2012
Non-profit organizations- How to learn and improve from your quality
assessment. by CharitiesEvaluationServices — last modified Jul 19,
2010 05:33 PM
http://knowhownonprofit.org/organisation/quality/quality/learning -
On July 2, 2012
How to get donations for a non-profit organization- Jakob Nielsen's
Alertbox, February 16, 2011
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/nonprofit-donations.html
On July 6, 2012
