Ask Nicole Archives - Nicole Clark Consulting

8 Jan, 2025

Ask Nicole: Aligning Program Goals With The School Year

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2025-01-07T17:26:16-05:00January 8th, 2025|Categories: Workshop, Program, & Curriculum Design|Tags: Academics, Ask Nicole, program design, School|0 Comments

Have a question you’d like to be featured? Let me know.

Whether you’re running a K-12 after-school tutoring program or a college-level leadership initiative, aligning your goals with the academic calendar can be game changing.

The school year is full of built-in milestones—like holiday breaks, midterms, and the start of new semesters—that naturally shape your planning and communication. Depending on how the program is structured (whether it’s year round or semester based), you have enough flexibility to be in tune with your school’s schedule, making it easier to pivot when surprises pop up, without losing sight of what you set out to accomplish.

Here are some tips for adjusting your program goals to the school schedule, and how you can use the school year as a framework to stay on track to meet your program goals.

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3 Sep, 2024

Ask Nicole: Balancing Participant Feedback & Staff Capacity

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2024-12-23T14:42:45-05:00September 3rd, 2024|Categories: Workshop, Program, & Curriculum Design|Tags: Ask Nicole, program design, program evaluation, staff capacity|0 Comments

Have a questions you’d like to be featured? Let me know.

In order to evaluate a program, I start by speaking to staff in charged of running the program.

This helps me understand why the program exists, the ideal participants, program goals, activities, outreach, etc. This helps to develop an evaluation process that’s appropriate to the program’s goals.

This process also helps in providing programmatic recommendations. Even though participant feedback is key to program improvements, so is understanding staff capacity to make these changes.

Navigating grantee-funder relationships while staying true to your mission is complex.

Similarly, it can be a balancing act when staff have to prioritize program participant feedback.

Here are five recommendations to help programmatic staff balance participant feedback with their capacity to implement changes:

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7 Aug, 2024

Ask Nicole: The Four Keys to Flexible Programs

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2024-08-07T12:51:39-04:00August 7th, 2024|Categories: Workshop, Program, & Curriculum Design|Tags: Ask Nicole, program design|0 Comments

In the ever-changing landscape of community needs, having a solid yet adaptable framework is crucial for organizations aiming to make a significant impact.

What is a framework?

A framework is a strategic guide that outlines clear goals, structured plans, and collaborative efforts while leaving room for flexibility. This helps organizations remain focused and organized, ensuring that all activities align with their mission.

More importantly, a well-designed framework supports organizations’ ability to quickly adapt to emerging challenges and opportunities, fostering resilience and sustained community engagement.

There are four keys to building flexible programs:

Assess community needs and resources
Design adaptable program structures
Build robust community partnerships
Monitor, evaluate, and adapt for improvement

Let’s start with the first key:

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3 Jul, 2024

Ask Nicole: Do We Need a MOU for Our Partnership?

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2024-07-02T22:13:07-04:00July 3rd, 2024|Categories: Strategic Planning & Sustainability|Tags: Ask Nicole, Community Partnerships|0 Comments

As your organization builds partnerships with other organizations, engaging the right partners is crucial to facilitating a process that’s mutually beneficial.

The success of these partnerships hinges not just on the shared vision but also on the clarity and structures.

One of the most effective ways to establish this foundation is through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

An MOU is more than just a formal agreement—it’s a strategic tool that delineates roles, fosters accountability, and enhances communication among partners.

Here are seven reasons why incorporating an MOU into your community partnerships can make a significant difference in ensuring their success and sustainability.

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7 Jun, 2024

Ask Nicole: Reflecting on 8 Years of Full Time Consulting

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2024-06-07T10:32:31-04:00June 7th, 2024|Categories: Consulting|Tags: Ask Nicole, consulting, Reflections|0 Comments

Once upon a time, I wanted to be a professional violinist. Then I wanted to start a nonprofit.

Today, I’m reflecting on the journey of being a consultant, 8 years after leaving my full time job.

Social workers aren’t taught about self-employment or being consultants (at least this was the case during my MSW school years). If we are, it’s usually related to starting and running a therapy practice.

After 8 years, the lessons I learned after my first year as a consultant are still present, and I also feel the same as I did at the five year mark.

During the five-year mark, I wanted better work-life balance. Now, I realize what I really want is work-life alignment.

There’s various definitions of work-life alignment, but what this means to me is my work and my life are in harmony with each other, with my work being positioned to support the life I want.

This has me thinking about not only where I see my business at the 10 year mark, but also at the 20 year mark and beyond.

It makes me think of legacy.

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Ask Nicole: Aligning Program Goals With The School Year

Ask Nicole: Balancing Participant Feedback & Staff Capacity

Ask Nicole: The Four Keys to Flexible Programs

Ask Nicole: Do We Need a MOU for Our Partnership?

Ask Nicole: Reflecting on 8 Years of Full Time Consulting

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