NPL Resources

NPLD 5610: Nonprofit Branding

NPL Elective | David Rhode and Scott Harkey

This half credit course will provide the tools and framework for helping to understand the role that marketing and brand building can play in the nonprofit sector. We will create a shared understanding of the key concepts that help define branding and the classic elements of marketing and crisis communication. We will identify the fundamental differences that non-profit organizations face in building their brands and how those challenges differ from traditional/for profit brand building.

0.5 CU | Fall 2026

Dates: 9/17, 10/8, 10/22, 11/5, 11/19, 12/3 | Thursdays, 3:30pm–6:30pm

NPLD 5730-001: Private Resources for the Public Good: Advanced Topics in Philanthropy

NPL Elective | Kat Rosqueta & Eileen Heisman Tuzman

Philanthropy plays a unique role in advancing social change. This class will examine key issues in contemporary philanthropy organized around three pillars: 1) Giving techniques and theories, 2) Internal infrastructure and tools, and 3) Global contexts and public policy environment. Each class will explore a different topic and include readings to promote classroom discussions and debate. In several classes, outside speakers who are experts in their field will present and there will be a facilitated discussion.

0.5 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Tuesdays, 10:15am – 11:45am

NPLD 5820: NGOs & International Development

NPL Elective | Dr. James Thompson

The first part of the course will offer a broad perspective on development, aid, and the role of NGOs. The latter half of the course will focus on issues in NGO management: problem analysis, solution design, fundraising, staffing (expatriate and local), monitoring and evaluation (including randomized controlled trials). The course is aimed at students with none to moderate experience in international development, but students with extensive work experience with NGOs or development work are encouraged to join.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Wednesdays, 10:15am – 1:15pm

NPLD/SWRK 5840: Transforming Evaluation: Empowering Stakeholders in Sense-making

NPL Elective | Sidney Hargro

The twofold purpose of social impact measurement is to assess and improve the impact of nonprofit programs and to offer actionable information for ongoing improvement. This course will offer an overview of leading social impact measurement methodologies and tools and field exercise experience. During the field exercise, student teams will develop an evaluation plan and associated instruments for a local nonprofit using one or more of the methodologies.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Mondays, 5:15pm – 8:15pm

NPLD 5980: Building Inclusive, Poverty-Informed Communities

NPL Elective | Sue Perls and Fernando Chang-Muy, Esq.

Poverty is fundamentally about scarcity—a lack of life’s basic human needs. This community-engaged/service-learning course examines Philadelphia place-based poverty, with variations in intensity and manifestation. Students will embrace a participatory and culturally humble approach to understanding root causes of poverty through a combination of lectures, immersive classroom experiences, site visits to local nonprofits, and service-learning placement assignments.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Mondays, 12:00pm to 2:30pm

NPLD 5890-002: Ethics and The Pursuit of Social Impact

NPL Core | Dr. Femida Handy and Scott Harkey

Leaders of organizations must often make difficult decisions that pit the rights of one set of stakeholders against another. This course will introduce the factors that influence moral conduct, the ethical issues that arise when pursuing social goals, and explore the best ways to promote ethical conduct within such organizations. The course will use specific case studies to analyze a variety of ethical issues including finance, governance, accountability, fundraising, labor, client groups, and service provision.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Tuesdays, 12:00pm to 3:00pm

NPLD 7010-001: Leadership Practicum

Sue Perls

The Leadership Practicum is an integral part of your NPL experience. Through a structured mentorship or mentorship and placement at an organization, you will have the opportunity to apply your classroom learning to your work. During the two-semester Practicum, you will enhance your understanding of the definitions and requirements of leadership and management; gain a better sense of your career goals; gain insight into the social impact sector; and achieve learning objectives mutually agreed upon with your mentor/organization.

Fall 2026

Fridays, September 4, October 16, November 6, December 4 | 12pm – 1:30pm

NPLD 7870: Leadership Theory and Practice

NPL Core | Dr. Meredith Doherty

This course will present the evolution of leadership theory beginning with classical trait theories and ultimately focusing on more modern perspectives such as adaptive, authentic, and shared leadership models that engage more critical understandings of traditional leadership theory. Readings will include a formal overview of leadership theory as well as contemporary feminist and futurist perspectives. The practice focus in on developing new relational capabilities that include deep listening, self-reflection, and adaptive problem solving.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Thursdays, 12:00pm–3:00pm

NPLD 7880: Social Impact Entrepreneurship Meets Mass Incarceration

NPL Elective | Dr. Thomas Duffin

This course is an integral part of the Penn Restorative Entrepreneurship Program (PREP) and will offer a group of previously incarcerated people intensive training on developing a new business. Students from SP2, Wharton, and Penn Law will work with returning citizens on teams throughout the semester which will learn to craft a viable business plan while also engaging in critical analysis of the limits of social impact entrepreneurship in addressing longstanding social problems such as mass incarceration.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Wednesdays, 5:15pm – 7:15pm

NPLD 7900-401: Social Finance

NPL Core | Bruce Boylston & Andy Lamas, Esq.

Economic analysis and financial accounting are like languages: fluency comes with practice. In-class review of case studies will enable students to test and develop their capacity for applying conceptual tools and analytical methods to sometimes messy and always complicated, real-life situations. The course objective is to develop theoretical understanding, critical judgment, and practical skills for sensitive and effective engagement with financial and economic matters of significance.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7; Oral exam: December 10–17 | Tuesdays, 5:15pm – 7:15pm

NPLD 7910: Leadership: Designing the Future

NPL Elective | Emily Sutcliffe & Jeff Klein

This experiential, discovery-based course provides opportunities for participants to create new insights that help them to reimagine their relationships with themselves, others, and the natural, man-made, and technological environments. NPLD 7910 is a 1.0 credit unit, in-person, experiential course that operates on the principles of discovery learning.

1.0 CU | Fall 2026

October 2–4 and October 16–18, 2026

NPLD 7960: Philanthropy and Fundraising Tools: A Survey Course

NPL Core | Eileen Heisman-Tuzman and Barrie Levine

This course reviews the tools and best practices that nonprofit executives and development officers need to raise funds from individuals and understand the scope of US private philanthropy. The fundraising/philanthropy profession has created a body of knowledge in the past thirty years that guides effective fundraising programs. The course will review the theory and practices that development professionals use daily in large and small organizations, including annual giving, major gifts, planned giving, cultivation of donors, making your case for support, the Seven Faces of Philanthropy, CRMSs, and prospect research.

1 CU | Fall 2026

August 25 to December 7 | Mondays, 3:30pm – 6:15pm

NPLD 5700: Understanding Philanthropy and its Intersection with Power, Politics, and Social Change

NPL Elective

Doug Bauer & Greg Goldman

Philanthropy is a powerful and contested force in American civic life. It funds schools and shapes curricula, drives policy advocacy, builds movements, and fills public service gaps. Yet it also raises questions about accountability, equity, and influence. This course critically examines philanthropy’s evolving role in social change—across the ideological spectrum—from civil rights and environmental justice to school choice and deregulation.

In light of the second Trump administration, we will explore how philanthropy continues to operate as a vehicle for competing political and social visions. Students will analyze how both progressive and conservative philanthropic institutions have invested in long-term societal transformation—with differing goals, tactics, and outcomes. Rather than frame one form of philanthropy as inherently “good” or “bad,” this course invites students to grapple with the structural implications of privately controlled capital shaping public life.

Using a mix of case studies, theoretical readings, and contemporary commentary, students will explore philanthropy’s moral foundations, strategic applications, and evolving critiques. Emphasis will be placed on understanding impact, power dynamics, ethical considerations, and competing visions of the common good.

0.5 CU | Summer 2026

May 26 to July 1
Synchronous sessions: Mondays, 5:15 – 6:45pm ET

NPLD 5710: Major Gifts: Strategies in Practice

NPL Elective

Greg Hagin, Christian Talbot, & Lauren Grow

There has never been a more important time for nonprofits to contribute to the common good. But nonprofits face a major challenge: With 1% of donors accounting for 49% of donations, in a $420 billion market, the philanthropic pyramid is looking more like the Eiffel Tower.

The answers, of course, lie in major gift strategy and tactics. This course will provide a framework for conceptualizing a major gift strategy and tactics. This course’s goal is to ensure that each student has a case for support and a pitch for use in the immediate future.

0.5 CU | Summer 2026

May 26 to July 1
Synchronous sessions: Wednesdays, 5:15pm – 6:45pm ET

NPLD/SWRK 7030: Impacting Government: Policy Analysis & Coalition Building 

NPL Elective

Steven Wilmot

This course focuses on developing a theoretical foundation for actionable skills in policy analysis and coalition building across a wide range of constituencies. The material begins with a structured focus on the ideological underpinnings of social welfare in the United States and the ways in which these perspectives shape our conception of equity, equality, and allocation of resources along the lines of race, class, gender, immigration status, and other identities. We will then utilize this basis for developing analysis frameworks, policy briefs, and media messaging that students will utilize when working with legislative bodies to advocate for and with the populations they serve. Distinct emphasis is placed on becoming conversant across differential systems, ideas, values, and assumptions while remaining grounded in relevant research and empirical approaches.

1 CU | Summer 2026

May 14 to July 1

Synchronous sessions: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5:15 – 7:45pm ET

NPLD 7870: Leadership Theory and Practice

NPL Core

Dr. Meredith Doherty

This course will present the evolution of leadership theory beginning with classical trait theories and ultimately focusing on more modern perspectives such as adaptive, authentic, and shared leadership models that engage more critical understandings of traditional leadership theory. Ultimately, we frame leadership as socially constructed, collective experience that is generated by complex group dynamics. We will examine leadership in nonprofit organizations, government, and social movements. Readings will include a formal overview of leadership theory as well as contemporary feminist and futurist perspectives. The practice focus in on developing new relational capabilities that include deep listening, self-reflection, and adaptive problem solving.

“There is nothing so practical as good theory” – Kurt Lewin, Organizational Psychologist

“All models are wrong, but some are useful” – George Box, Statistician

“To learn which questions are unanswerable, and not to answer them, this skill is most needful in times of stress and darkness.” – Ursula K. Le Guin

1 CU | Summer 2026

May 14 to July 1

Synchronous sessions: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:00pm – 9:00pm ET

NPLD 5640: Social Impact and International Development

NPL Elective

Dr. Ariel Schwartz

This class will offer students a grounding in and overview of the field of international development and practice. We will explore the evolution of goals, models, and assessment of development across history. We will explore the key debates in economic, political, and human development, the challenges of responsible intervention. Students will be challenged to explore impact creation in resource-constrained settings, especially outside of one’s home community. We will study ways to adapt solutions as a way of generating ideas and social entrepreneurship as a development model including challenges of participation, deliverability and distribution, revenue generation, uncertainty, and risk. Students will produce written and verbal reflections on the tensions of working in a developing context; insider-outsider identities and tradeoffs; and ethics, tensions, and opportunities of working in and out of one’s home community.

0.5 CU

Fall 2026

August 25 to October 2
Synchronous sessions: Tuesdays, 5:15pm – 6:45pm ET

NPLD 5660: Social Media Strategies

NPL Elective

Bruce Warren

This course is intended as an introduction to strategic use of social media for social ventures. Many of you already use social media platforms in your personal lives and have developed an intuitive understanding of how they work and use them reflexively. If you’re unfamiliar with various social media venues, that’s ok! Many social media platforms will be described briefly in the lectures, but the course is not intended as a how-to for using them. We suggest that, if you’re new to the various social media platforms mentioned, that you jump in and try them out! These platforms are designed for individuals with all levels of technical proficiency, and they’re designed to be inviting. You might find that with only a bit of effort that you become comfortable with them quickly.

We expect that, regardless of your skill level, comfort, and current personal use of social media, you will gain real value from this course. Much of this value relates to conveying an understanding of how to use these tools strategically, and on behalf of a social venture or a social cause that you care about. This sort of use of social media is significantly different than the way you would use it in your personal life. We hope, as you move through this course, you will wonder:

1. What does it mean to craft the voice of an institution?
2. What is it like to speak in the voice of an institution, instead of my own?
3. How could one possibly develop a strategic plan to organically and authentically engage a community?
4. How do you define, find and build community?
5. More than retweets and likes, what is engagement, how do you measure it, and how do you create engagement to spark social change?

0.5 CU

Fall 2026

November 9 to December 17
Synchronous sessions: Mondays, 5:15pm – 6:45pm ET

NPLD 5870: Empowering Nonprofit Leaders to Thrive

NPL Elective

Dr. Meredith Myers

NPLD 5870 is designed for interdisciplinary students interested in cultivating flourishing organizations, engaged stakeholders, and inspiring leaders across sectors and especially within nonprofits. NPLD 5870 focuses on both theoretical and practical insights that can be gained from cutting-edge research on how and when people thrive at work. This research can be applied to help practitioners enrich people’s experiences at work, in collaboration with various stakeholders, and beyond.

Additionally, NPLD 5870 is built upon a foundation of experiential learning, such that students can expect to experiment and apply course concepts in their own lives throughout the semester. Indeed, we intentionally start with ourselves as the first site of learning and development to promote greater authenticity and psychological safety.

The experiential learning community is enhanced throughout the course with highly interactive, live class sessions, in-depth feedback from the Teaching Team, and intentional practice with constructive peer coaching.

At the end of the course, students will feel a strong grounding in their own strengths and values, their own authentic leadership, their ability to connect with others in meaningful, supportive ways, and their capacity to surface opportunities that inspire constructive change at any level of interaction or organizing.

The learning objectives of the course provide students with:

1. Techniques and real-world experience in using positive leadership concepts to enrich one’s own career, relationships, and life;
2. Ability to identify opportunities to use positive leadership practices in the workplace to enhance stakeholder engagement, individual and organizational performance, and collective impact;
3. Tools for applying positive leadership concepts in nonprofits, as well as all other organizational domains (e.g., business, government, communities, the family, etc.);
4. In-depth experience in peer coaching and developing practical experiments to innovate and improve on a daily basis.

1 CU

Fall 2026

October 5 to December 17
Synchronous sessions: Tuesdays, 12:00pm – 2:00pm ET

NPLD 5890-001: Ethics and The Pursuit of Social Impact

NPL Core

Dr. Femida Handy and Scott Harkey

Leaders of organizations must often make difficult decisions that pit the rights of one set of stakeholders against another. Having multiple stakeholders or bottom-lines brings with it challenges when conflicts arise, with the perennial question of whose rights/benefits prevail? What trade-offs need to be made between multiple bottom lines? Does the mission of the organization prevail over the privileges of employees/clients? To what extent can large donors influence the mission of the organization? What is an appropriate social return on investment? This course will introduce the factors that influence moral conduct, the ethical issues that arise when pursuing social goals, and discuss the best ways to promote ethical conduct within such organizations. The course will use specific case studies, real and hypothetical, to analyze a variety of ethical issues that arise [including finance, governance, accountability, fundraising, labor (paid and unpaid), client groups, and service provision] among the multiple stakeholders and balancing multiple bottom-lines. This course is offered in the fall semester and will conclude by discussing ways that organizations can prevent and correct misconduct, develop a spirit of ethical behavior, and institutionalize ethical values in the organization’s culture.

1 CU

Fall 2026

August 25 to November 6
Synchronous sessions: Tuesdays, 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET

NPLD 7010-002: Leadership Practicum

Sue Perls and Vanessa Martinez Penn 

The Leadership Practicum is an integral part of your NPL experience. Through a structured mentorship or mentorship and placement at an organization, you will have the opportunity to apply your classroom learning to your work. The goal is to deepen your learning while making it practical. During the two-semester Practicum, you will enhance your understanding of the definitions and requirements of leadership and management; gain a better sense of your career goals; gain insight into the social impact sector locally, nationally, and/or globally; contribute to you organization through project work (if in a placement); and achieve learning objectives mutually agreed upon with your mentor/organization. Your cohort will meet monthly to discuss your practicum, career development, and applying what you learn in the program to your work. Meeting dates and times will be communicated at the beginning of each semester and will be posted on Canvas.

Fall 2026

Thursdays: September 3, October 15, November 5, December 3
7:00pm – 8:30pm ET

NPLD 7200: Introduction to Data Analysis for Social Impact

NPL Core

Dr. ChiaKo Hung

In today’s fast-paced world, practitioners, leaders, and researchers must stay connected with the latest cutting-edge research in their field. This course is your gateway to understanding the quantitative methods that drive social impact research. Through hands-on, lab-based activities, you’ll gain both the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to analyze real-world data. We’ll explore the dynamics of individual participation in the nonprofit sector, focusing on activities like charitable giving and volunteering.

This course is all about getting you comfortable with the nuts and bolts of handling and analyzing quantitative survey data. We’ll start with the basics – understanding statistical principles and using descriptive and exploratory methods to make sense of data. Then, we’ll dive into more advanced techniques like OLS regression and logistic regression, all within the user-friendly environment of STATA. Along the way, you’ll also tackle big-picture topics like theory testing, the philosophy of science, and the importance of replication in research.

Whether you’re looking to engage with existing social impact research or make your own original contributions, this course has something for you. And don’t worry – no  prior experience with statistics or programming is required. Just bring your curiosity, and by the end of the course, you’ll be equipped to make data-driven decisions that can truly make a difference.

1 CU

Fall 2026

October 5 to December 17
Synchronous sessions: Thursdays, 12:00pm – 2:30pm ET

NPLD 7840: The Nonprofit Sector: Concepts and Theories

NPL Core

Dr. Ram Cnaan & Lauren Graham

This is the course that provides a theoretical understanding of the nonprofit sector, its organizations, individual prosocial behaviors, and key actors. Nonprofit organizations are ubiquitous. They impact almost every area of society. From health care to homeless shelters, from education to the environment, nonprofits provide services, promote legislation, protect rights, and produce public and private goods. This class will survey the entire nonprofit sector, to gauge its vast scope and multiplicity. The course will also cover various concepts and theories related to the nonprofit sector. These concepts and theories come from a variety of academic fields, including economics, sociology, political science, psychology, law, and public administration. We will cover the basic voluntary behaviors associated with nonprofit organizations, such as volunteering and charitable giving. We will also cover the basic concepts associated with nonprofit management, like board governance and fiduciary duties.

1 CU

Fall 2026

August 25 to November 6
Synchronous sessions: Wednesdays, 8:30pm – 10:00pm ET

NPLD 7860: Strategic Management and Leadership of Nonprofits

NPL Core

Dr. Chao Guo & Lauren Graham

This course is designed to introduce students to the fundamental issues in strategic management and leadership of nonprofit organizations, with an emphasis on acquiring operational skills grounded in research and critical thinking. The course is designed for those who may have had years of experience managing other people and programs in the nonprofit sector but who want to develop a more systematic mastery of this challenge, as well as students from other sectors who aspire to a nonprofit leadership role. Most class periods will consist of a combination of discussion and lecture. Lectures will introduce new concepts; class discussion and group exercises will allow us to explore and apply those concepts. Guest speakers will share their insights and experiences. You should feel free to ask questions during lectures and are encouraged to engage in discussions. The course contains a team consulting project in which students will work together to tackle a specific strategic problem or address an opportunity to improve the work of a partner agency.

1 CU

Fall 2026

August 25 to November 6
Synchronous sessions: Wednesdays, 7:00pm – 8:30pm ET

NPLD 7900-001: Social Finance

NPL Core

Bruce Boylston & Andy Lamas, Esq.

Economic analysis and financial accounting are like languages: fluency comes with practice. In-class review of case studies (including in-person discussions with the representatives of diverse agencies and organizations featured in the case studies) will enable students to test and develop their capacity for applying conceptual tools and analytical methods to sometimes messy and always complicated, real-life situations.

The course objective is to develop theoretical understanding, critical judgment, and practical skills for sensitive and effective engagement with financial and economic matters of significance. Students will learn:

• Different ways of thinking about the economic foundations of social policy,
• The basic terminology, tools, and methods for analyzing the financial statements of a wide range of organizations, and
• Accounting procedures for evaluating business, government, and organizational operations, policies, and practices.

This course is at once macro and micro in its orientation. It provides a conceptual basis—derived from mainstream and alternative perspectives—for thinking about the economic dimensions of human development and social policy, and it introduces a set of core competencies for leadership and financial management of organizations, including conventional enterprises, consulting firms, research institutions, governmental agencies, philanthropies, cooperatives, and other third-sector organizations.

1 CU

Fall 2026

October 5 to December 17
Synchronous session times: Thursdays, 8:30pm – 10:30pm ET