Grand Rapids Goodwill Offers Young Professionals Leadership Opportunities

Goodwill Industries of Grand Rapids (MI) is celebrating its seventh year of hosting Leadership Goodwill, formerly known as Young Leaders. The program has evolved from previous years to develop future leaders as advocates for Goodwill and to cultivate a pool of young professionals from which the agency can draw future board members.

Leadership Goodwill accepts applications from area young professionals to become part of the program. Once selected, participants explore Goodwill’s entire business in order to get the full picture of how the agency benefits the greater Grand Rapids community through job training and placement services, business engagement and partnerships, as well as recycling initiatives.

Approximately eight to 10 young professionals “graduate” each year with broad knowledge of Goodwill. This pool of graduates serves as officers and will be developed as future potential board members. The program also provides a networking opportunity with previous graduates and members of the board of directors, foundation trustees and Goodwill staff.

The current Leadership Goodwill class launched last month and goes through May 2015. The group will participate in monthly meetings, each focusing on different aspects of the Grand Rapids Goodwill, such as the ACHIEVE program, store tours and financial reporting, as well as board relations and governance. This year’s class includes young professionals from a diverse number of backgrounds and businesses from around the community.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for young professionals in the Grand Rapids community. Not only do they get a chance to network and gain crucial knowledge that will help them in the future either as a Goodwill Board Member or on a board elsewhere but they get to really understand the work that Goodwill is doing all over the greater Grand Rapids area”, said Steve Harney a former Co-Chair of Leadership Goodwill.