AGENDA

All session details & descriptions can be found on this page. 


Session Descriptions

 Session details will be added below as they are available. Click the + sign to view all details for a specific session.

8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Start your day by picking up your name badge, enjoying a light breakfast, and connecting with fellow attendees. Mingle with nonprofit leaders, visit sponsor booths, and get energized for an inspiring day ahead!

9:00 AM - 9:30 AM

Location:  TBA
Join NAM staff and board members as we officially kick off the 2026 Nonprofit Summit of the Midlands! Celebrate the past year’s nonprofit achievements, enjoy special entertainment, and hear updates on the sector’s economic impact. We'll also cover key conference info and what to expect throughout the day.

9:30 AM - 10:15 AM


10:15 AM - 10:30 AM

Grab a refreshment, stretch your legs, and connect with fellow attendees as you transition between sessions.
10:30 AM - 11:30 AM

Speaker TBA
Speaker TBA
Location:  TBA
Session Description:
Join advocates as we discuss the new political landscape, both at a state and federal level, following the election. This session will outline who the elected officials are following the November election, what the Unicameral makeup will be for 2027, and opportunities that may arise with these new elected officials. To support this conversation, advocates will engage the audience in coalition work as a means of raising public awareness of changes and providing accountability to informing elected officials of policy impacts. This session will provide opportunities to learn more from coalitions who are engaged in the advocacy space and work to share and brainstorm tactics on how to be effective with your own individual and organizational advocacy. 

Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

Anne Meysenburg, Emersa Advisors
Location:  TBA
Session Description:
Budgets are tight and funding is shifting, and the strongest organizations are treating this as a moment to think ahead rather than react. Knowing your collaboration options before you need them is simply good governance, yet the conversations feel heavy and most organizations put them off.

This session is a low-stakes way to explore the full range, from sharing a back office to aligning programs to deeper structural partnerships, so you understand the field before any decision is on the table. It offers a way to weigh those options honestly by separating two things we tend to fuse: the mission, the change the organization exists to make, and the container, the organization carrying it right now. Pull them apart, and collaboration becomes a set of choices you can judge on the merits.

You won't leave with a decision, or any pressure to make one. You'll leave with a self-guided tour to explore your options on your own terms.

Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

Keyosha Atwater, ReflectED
Location:  TBA
Session Description:

Artificial intelligence is changing how organizations communicate, make decisions, and build trust. As information becomes easier to create and harder to evaluate, nonprofit leaders face a new challenge: determining what deserves their trust, attention, and action.

In this interactive session, participants will explore how AI is reshaping traditional signals of credibility and why discernment is becoming a critical leadership skill. Through real-world examples, collaborative discussion, and the practical COMPASS Framework, attendees will learn how to evaluate information, navigate uncertainty, and make mission-aligned decisions in an increasingly AI-driven world.

Participants will leave with actionable strategies, a practical decision-making tool, and one concrete step they can take immediately to strengthen trust, leadership, and responsible AI use within their organization.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

11:30 AM - 11:45 AM

Grab a refreshment, stretch your legs, and connect with fellow attendees as you transition between sessions.


11:45 AM - 12:45 PM

Location:  TBA
Enjoy a delicious lunch while we celebrate leadership and impact in our sector. NAM will announce the 2027 cohorts for the Nonprofit Executive Institute and Rising Leaders Institute, and reveal the 2026 Catalyst Award awardee. Join us in honoring the individuals shaping the future of the nonprofit community.

12:45 PM - 1:00 PM

Grab a refreshment, stretch your legs, and connect with fellow attendees as you transition between sessions.

1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Matt Evans, Matt Evans Finance
Location:  TBA
Session Description:

You are across the table from a major donor. The meeting is going well. You make the ask. Then they ask: "How did you arrive at that number?"

Most nonprofits cannot answer that question specifically. This session changes that.

Learn how to turn your financial reality into a story that funders trust. We will work through the three questions every sophisticated funder is asking, in person and on every grant application: How much do you need? When do you need it? What will it do?

You will leave able to diagnose where your financial discipline stands, build the artifacts that produce a credible plan, and translate that plan for the three audiences that matter most: your board, your donors, and your grantors.

Strong organizations do not apologize for their numbers. They lead with them. This session shows you how.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

Lori Thomas, The Wellbeing Partners
Location:  TBA
Session Description:

“Humans, Not Resources: Rethinking Workplace Culture” explores the urgent need to shift from traditional, compliance-driven management to a human-centered approach. Attendees will learn why empathy, psychological safety, and belonging are essential for engagement, retention, and innovation. The session provides practical strategies for fostering empathetic leadership, open communication, flexibility, and recognition, supported by real-world examples and research. Participants leave with actionable steps— including a 30-60-90 day plan—to pilot and scale people-first practices in their organizations, driving measurable business outcomes and creating a culture where people thrive.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

2:00 PM - 2:15 PM

Grab a refreshment, stretch your legs, and connect with fellow attendees as you transition between sessions.

2:15 PM - 3:15 PM

Rachael Kros, Best Care EAP
Brian Turille, Best Care EAP
Location:  TBA
Session Description:

Strengthen your team’s communication and accountability through more effective feedback. In this session, you’ll build a solid foundation for peer-to-peer feedback, including how to set clear expectations and create a culture where feedback is seen as a tool for growth, not criticism. Participants will explore what it takes to confidently give and receive feedback and learn a practical framework for navigating constructive conversations with clarity and purpose. Whether you’re looking to improve collaboration, reduce misunderstandings, or increase follow-through, this session provides actionable tools your team can immediately apply in the workplace.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

Tim Williams, Food Bank For The Heartland
Eric Savaiano, Nebraska Appleseed
Location:  Windsor III-IV
Session Description:

Join advocates as they discuss changes to SNAP because of HR 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. This session will outline what these changes mean for individuals and families looking to access SNAP and other safety net programs affected by HR 1. Speakers will be able to highlight how Nebraska and Iowa have implemented changes to date and what to expect moving forward. To support this conversation, advocates will engage the audience in the power of supporting explore coalition work as a means of raising public awareness of changes and providing accountability metrics to informing elected officials of policy impacts. This session will provide opportunities to learn more from coalitions who are engaged in the advocacy space and work to share and brainstorm tactics on how to be effective with your own individual and organizational advocacy.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

Taylor Goulbourne, TMG Consulting
Location:  TBA
Session Description:

Your organization is already collecting data. The question is whether that data is telling the full story of the difference you make.

This session offers a practical framework for getting a clear picture of what you're currently measuring, what meaningful next steps might look like, and how to move from reporting activity to demonstrating impact. Through a real-world case story and a hands-on activity, attendees will explore what success actually looks like for their organization and what it would take to measure it. Whether you're just starting to think about measurement or looking to strengthen what you already have, you'll leave with a concrete next step and a field-tested tool to take back to your team. No evaluation background required.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!

Candias (Candi) Jones, Coaching with Candi
Location:  TBA
Session Description:

In nonprofit work, we are often expected to carry everything, our teams, our communities, our missions, and sometimes even the emotional weight of the people we serve. We are told to be compassionate, resilient, innovative, and always available. But too often, that comes at the cost of ourselves.

In this honest and practical session, Candi Jones shares what it means to lead with purpose without losing your identity, boundaries, or well-being in the process. Through personal storytelling, reflection, and real leadership strategies, participants will explore how to balance compassion with accountability, navigate pressure with clarity, and create healthier, more sustainable ways of leading. This session is about redefining leadership so that caring for people also includes caring for yourself, lessons she teaches as she learns.


Session Survey: Coming Soon!
Session Materials: Coming Soon!