News Room Archives

Denton, Texas (September 22, 2009) United Way of Denton County is pleased to announce the launch of its board training and certification program, Project Blueprint. Project Blueprint is designed to train seasoned volunteers to become knowledgeable board members of not-for-profit human service organizations.

The 20 people slated to participate in the program come from a variety of diverse backgrounds. Those chosen to take part in the inaugural class of Project Blueprint are: April Cain, CPA, Merki & Associates; Tim Chambers, Vice-President of Sales and Marketing, STMicroelectronics; Carol Christian, Vice-President, First State Bank; Deb Conte, Psychologist, Self-employed; Tamara Cuthrell, Private Investor; Marisol Espinal, Employment Specialist, Christian Community Action; Michael Foster, CPA, Merki & Associates; David Horton, AmeriCorps Member, Arc of Denton County; Katie Klein, Senior Pastor, Cooper Creek United Methodist Church; Cara Leising, Owner Representative, Quality Inn and Suites; Katrina McPherson, Director of Resource Development, Good Samaritan Society – Denton Village; Teresa Mercado, Community Volunteer; Justin Newland, Realtor, Newland Real Estate; Kelly Phillips, Owner and Agent, Farmers: Kelly Phillips Agency; Judy Reid, Board of Directors – Vice President, Denton County Friends of the Family; Alyson Gregory Richter, Attorney, Gregory Family Law, P.C.; John Steinman, Regional Bank, Private Banker, Wells Fargo; Hillary Talatzko, Program Coordinator, University of North Texas; Mary Kay Walker, Community Volunteer.

The training will consist of seven meetings that will cover material from five different aspects of board membership. The five modules will cover a topic that each candidate is expected to understand at the conclusion of the series. The modules are:

• Governance, instructed by Michael A. (Mike) Conduff, who is President & CEO of The Elim Group, a motivational speaking and organizational consulting firm. Conduff has extensive leadership, management and governance experience, having served as the City Manager of four different University communities, and most recently as the City Manager of Denton, Texas.
• Board Operations, instructed by Bette Sherman, who volunteers her time and talents in a number of ways, including serving as the current Chair of the Denton Animal Shelter Foundation. Sherman is a previous Board Chair for United Way of Denton County and Past-President of the Denton Benefit League.
• Board and Agency Relations, instructed by Sherri Gideon, Executive Director of CASA of Denton County and Gary Henderson, Chief Executive Officer of Communities In Schools of North Texas.
• Finance, instructed by Pamela Barnes, Chief Financial Officer at AIDS Services of North Texas and John Baines, MBA, CPA and Owner of John E. Baines, P.C. Baines is also Treasurer of the Denton Black Chamber of Commerce.
• Marketing and Fund Raising, instructed by Tim Crouch, President of The Crouch Group, which is a Marketing, Public Relations and Advertising Agency; Ellen Painter, Director of Marketing at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton and Margaret Chalfant, Executive Director of the Greater Denton Arts Council.

Participants are required to attend the five training modules in order to obtain certification upon completion of the program.

United Way of Denton County formed the Project Blueprint Committee earlier this year to develop the training modules and goals for the program. The Committee is Co-Chaired by Carrell Ann Simmons, Vice President of Business and Community Development at Wells Fargo Bank and Debby Grigsby, Vice President at Meridian Bank Texas. Other Committee members include Ellen Painter; Linda Ratliff, Director of Economic Development for City of Denton; John Cabrales, Public Information Officer for City of Denton; Gilda Garcia, Vice President, Institutional Equity and Diversity, University of North Texas; Sherri McDade, Deputy CEO, Denton Housing Authority and Richard Huckaby, retired, Municipal Assistance Project, LLC.

“I knew that United Way had been looking at this program for a while and when I was asked to Co-Chair the Committee, I was so excited because I know there is such a need for trained and qualified board members for the various non-profits in Denton County,” Simmons said.

Project Blueprint is a partnership between United Way of Denton County and local sponsors Meridian Bank Texas, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton, UNT, TWU, Wells Fargo, Merki & Associates and Wood, Thacker and Weatherly.  

Project Blueprint kicks off this evening with a “Meet and Greet” in the Community Room at the Denton Civic Center. For more information on Project Blueprint or to download a copy of the application, visit www.unitedwaydenton.org. The next series of Project Blueprint classes begin in March 2010.

United Way of Denton County is working to advance the common good by focusing on education, income and health – the building blocks for a good life. Through the work of our partner agencies, it is our goal to: help families have financial stability, build healthy communities and help children and youth achieve their potential.