By: Tammy Pitts, Chief Communications Officer, MNA

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and on this day—the morning after the horrific tragedy in at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas where 19 students and their two teachers were brutally killed in the classroom—many are heartbroken, devastated, and angry.

By: Tammy Pitts, Chief Communications Officer

The days of making the commute into the office five days a week are long gone for many. In fact, 2019 feels like it was a lifetime ago. Flexibility is now the name of the game.

By: Tammy Pitts, MNA’s Chief Communications Officer

We’re celebrating Women’s History Month this March to the fullest by honoring the women of Michigan Nonprofit Association including our president and CEO, Kelley Kuhn. She takes over the reins from former president and CEO, Donna Murray-Brown who stepped down last December to relocate to Kentucky with her family. Kelley is among the many women making a significant impact on Michigan’s nonprofit sector. While she has a new title, she isn’t a new face to MNA or the sector. In fact, as you’ll read here in the debut of her new series, “Keeping up with Kelley”, —she’s been passionate about nonprofits her entire life.

By: Mariah McAnallen, MNA Communications & Branding Manager

Cybersecurity experts say the prospect of cyberattacks is increasingly likely due to the war in Ukraine and advise consumers and organizations to brace for that possibility and take precautions.  So, what exactly can nonprofits do right now to prepare?  Turns out, quite a lot, actually. 

On the Feb. 9th episode of TTFromtheD Podcast, Michigan Nonprofit Association's Kelley Kuhn chats with host Teresa Creggett Moore about her career, motherhood, finding balance and everything in-between.

(Photos: ©risingafrica.org)

Mark Dean - Computer engineer, scientist, and inventor

Dr. Mark Dean co-created the IBM personal computer in 1981—helping to modernize the computers many of us use today in homes, schools, and offices. Dean holds three of the nine patents that IBM received  for its orginal personal computer. Dean also helped develop the first color PC monitor and the first gigahertz computer processor chip which sped up the computer. Because of his trailblazing work, he became the first Black person to be named an IBM fellow in 1999—the highest honor given to a person for technology contributions to the company.

By: Tammy Pitts, MNA Communications & Marketing Director

Late author and Nobel laureate Toni Morrison once said, “Black women are the touchstone by which all that is human can be measured.” As a Black woman on the leadership team at Michigan Nonprofit Association, I was so honored to interview a trailblazer in Southeast Michigan: Priscilla Perkins, president, and CEO at Accounting Aid Society and current MNA member. When she popped on the Zoom screen for our interview, I was immediately captivated by her bright smile which lit up the entire screen. There was also an infectious energy that I could feel even in a virtual format. The following is an excerpt from our conversation.

(Photo: ©Biography.com)

Garrett Augustus Morgan - Inventor, Entreprenuer, and Businessman
On this first day of Black History Month, we are celebrating the many accomplishments and contributions by African-American Inventors starting with Garrett Augustus Morgan (1877-1963) who saved countless lives with his inventions.

The son of freed slaves, Garrett was born in Paris, Kentucky in 1877 during the Reconstruction era. Garrett was a boy with big ideas and blazed a trail for Black inventors with his patents which included an improved three-position traffic signal, a hair straightening product and a breathing device for firefighters.  He moved to Ohio when he was just 14 years old and in 1895, he found work as a sewing machine repairman at a company in Cleveland. He saved all of his earnings and was eventually able to open his own repair shop in 1907. But that wasn’t his only business, Garrett Morgan also started the Cleveland Call newspaper which featured stories important to the Black community.