Through surveys, focus groups, and community gatherings, the Foundation has consistently heard from grantees, grant applicants, and partners in the nonprofit community that they would welcome greater opportunities to participate in leadership development programs.  

To address this need directly through our capacity building efforts, we have enhanced our ELI program curriculum and learning outcomes with:

• A focus on capacity building in the social impact sector (nonprofit, public sector, and social enterprise) that the Foundation serves and supports through our grantmaking and beyond-grantmaking activities.
• A cohort size that allows for deeper engagement in ELI workshops and with program facilitators, coaches, speakers, and fellow participants.  
• Six, topic-focused seminars and trainings held at the Rhode Island Foundation and aligned with a well-defined and robust curriculum.
• An emphasis on providing more specific leadership development strategies and tangible skills.  
• Individualized, one-on-one coaching that builds upon the learning from program workshops and seminars. 

As part of our focus on providing capacity building and leadership development opportunities to grantees, grant applicants, and nonprofit organizations across the state, beginning in 2025, the Rhode Island Foundation will be partnering with the Institute for Nonprofit Practice (INP).

Through this partnership, individuals working in Rhode Island’s social impact sector (nonprofit, public sector, and social enterprise) will be eligible to apply to participate in either INP's Core Certificate Program designed for mid-level career candidates, such as nonprofit and public sector managers and social entrepreneurs, or INP's RISE Program, designed for those who may be earlier in their career in the social sector. Through financial support from the Rhode Island Foundation, those selected through the competitive application process to participate in INP’s programs will be able to do so at no cost.

As part of ELI+ cohort members will be dual enrolled in the INP Core Certificate Program. ELI+ will continue to provide a safe and supportive space for participants to learn together, identify their leadership goals, and share their unique experiences as leaders of color in the social impact sector. And ELI+ cohort members will also be equipped with the additional tools, skills, and networking opportunities offered through participation in the INP Core Certificate Program.

The Foundation has coordinated with INP to provide a single, streamlined application process for ELI+ candidates. 

Application Period

• The application period closed on April 25, 2025.

Who Should Apply

• ELI+ is open to mid-level career professionals and/or managers who work in the social impact sector (nonprofit, public sector, social impact) in Rhode Island, and who identify as people of color.

Program Schedule

• Six ELI+ learning sessions will be held between July 2025 and April 2026 from 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. at the Rhode Island Foundation.
• ELI+ cohort members will be dual enrolled in INP Core. INP Core programming will include a mix of two to three in-person sessions at the Rhode Island Foundation along with weekly 4-hour virtual sessions spanning September 2025 to May 2026.
• Executive coaching sessions will be scheduled once per month for each ELI+ member.
• We anticipate the ELI+ cohort members will devote approximately 175 hours, over the course of 10 months, to the learning opportunities that are planned. This includes six day-long ELI+ workshops at Rhode Island Foundation and associated preparation time, as well as five to six hours weekly between the Management Seminar, Practice Seminar, and class preparation for the INP Core program.

Cohort Size

• The ELI+ cohort will be comprised of up to 15 participants.
• INP Core programming will include the ELI+ cohort as well as participants that are not members of ELI+, for a total of between 24 to 36 students.

Curriculum and Learning

• The ELI+ program focuses on social impact management and leadership skill building, and is designed for mid-level career candidates, such as nonprofit and public sector managers, and social entrepreneurs. Topics of learning include:
  • Knowing your management style and behaviors;
  • Understanding, utilizing, and managing your emotions and those of others;
  • Enhancing critical thinking skills – interpreting and analyzing information;
  • Public speaking – learning to articulate ideas confidently and credibly;
  • Personal branding – defining and expressing personal value
  • Financial management;
  • Strategy, growth, and evaluation;
  • Team development and leadership;
  • Organizational culture and change management;
  • Strategic marketing and communications;
  • Appreciative Inquiry;
  • Governance and leveraging your board;
  • Development and executing fundraising strategies; and
  • Self-care, mindfulness, and healing.

The Foundation’s enhanced approach to the ELI+ program was developed in response to feedback and opportunities that were surfaced through more than a year conducting surveys, focus groups, and community gatherings, including input from ELI alumni, Steering Committee, and Advisory Council members. Updates to the ELI curriculum and the new partnership with INP are designed to strengthen the program, provide greater clarity of purpose, and to more closely align outcomes with the needs of the nonprofit sector that the Foundation serves through our charitable giving, community investments, convening, advocacy, and capacity building.  

If you have questions about the ELI+ program or your eligibility to participate, please contact Lisa Maddox, Equity and Inclusion Officer for the Rhode Island Foundation at lmaddox@rifoundation.org or (401) 427-4030.