2007 AIM for Excellence Award Winners Announced

January 23, 2008

The Fuel Fund of Central Maryland took top honor at this year's AIM for Excellence conference, held at the Tremont Grand Conference Center. The other award winners were, the Students Sharing Coalition and the Maryland Mentoring Partnership. Each agency received an unrestricted grant in honor of their executive directors.

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Fellows Program Announces the 2007 AIM for Excellence Award Winners

Fuel Fund takes the top honor.

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Fellows Program named the Fuel Fund of Central Maryland the winner of its annual AIM for Excellence Award, during its annual AIM for Excellence conference, held at the Tremont Grand Conference Center.

The AIM for Excellence conference culminates with the announcement of the AIM for Excellence Award. The 2007 winner, the Fuel Fund of Central Maryland, received an unrestricted grant for $20,000 in honor of its executive director, Mary Ellen Vanni, for results achieved through the organization's collaboration with BG&E and city-based community outreach agencies. The project allows people in need of Fuel Fund assistance to apply for aid through a variety of social service providers. A Web-based application, developed and maintained by Constellation Energy, lets applicants know immediately if they are eligible for fuel payment assistance; those who are eligible receive immediate assistance with BG&E payments.
"The Weinberg Fellowship Program challenges executive directors to be more collaborative, efficient and productive," Vanni said in accepting the award. "I am grateful to the vision of the trustees at the foundation for developing this effective program and the award which will be a tremendous help in fulfilling our mission."
Other AIM winners for 2007 were, the Students Sharing Coalition and the Maryland Mentoring Partnership, each received an unrestricted grant for $10,000 in honor of their executive directors, Linda Federico Kohler and Linda Stewart. Both agencies successfully utilized the knowledge and expertise they gained from the program to implement positive change within their organizations. The Students Sharing Coalition expanded the role of network partners and its number of volunteers to increase the outreach of its Halloween for Hunger program. The Maryland Mentoring Partnership applied key concepts and knowledge from the program in its executive director transition process.

The conference’s keynote speaker, Dr. Randal Pinkett, winner of NBC’s hit reality show The Apprentice, gave an entertaining and informative presentation, A Tale of Two Sectors: Perspectives on Nonprofit Capacity Building from a For-Profit Social Entrepreneur. Following his keynote address, Pinkett led an interactive breakout session, Using Technology to Build Communities. Fellows broke into teams and were then given a case study to work through, “hearing the different case studies allowed me to understand some of the technology challenges in our community,” commented several of the participants.

Breakout sessions continued throughout the day and were lead by experienced speakers: Dr. Berit Lakey, of Board Source, Michele Wolff, Director, Shriver Center, UMBC, and Donna Butts, Executive Director, Generations United. The sessions focused primarily on intergenerational differences between board members, staff and volunteers. The conference closed with a well-attended resource fair and networking event. “This has been a terrific opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of our AIM Awardees and expand fellows’ knowledge about intergenerational engagement.” Commented, Schaefer Center Director and Weinberg Fellows Program Director, Ann Cotten. “The addition of Weinberg Fellows’ board members and staff members has allowed the program to further enhance the fellows’ organizations.”




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