Board Fellows: making an impact and growing managerial skills

Johnnie Mobley discovered the UW Business and Economic Development Center Board Fellows Program during his second year as an evening MBA student. Mobley was looking for an opportunity to make an impact in his community, learn about the process of becoming a board member and develop his leadership potential. In 2010, the Rainier Chamber of Commerce selected him as their board fellow.

During his fellowship Mobley was able to acquire executive management experience by having a direct and hands-on impact on how programs operate and help mold a community. He adds, “If there was ever a time for creativity, it is when you are serving a non-profit organization. If you want to be creative and innovative, serving in a non-profit organization is the place for you because there are goals that need to be met and there are extremely limited resources. I think that anyone who wants to be in management and is looking to further their career should serve on a non-profit board because it is a place where you can see if you have what it takes to be in management.”

The UW BEDC Board Fellows Program has been an integral component of the UW Foster MBA experience for the last 12 years and since 2009 of the UW Evans Masters in Public Administration program. As a board fellow, graduate students are provided the opportunity to serve for one year as non-voting members of local non-profits’ board of directors.

Mobley graduated from the Foster MBA Program in 2012 and currently works for Boeing. Upon graduation from the Board Fellows Program he was officially invited to join the board of the Rainier Valley Chamber and is now serving as treasurer. The Board Fellows Program is supported by Wells Fargo Bank and UPS. Learn how to nominate a nonprofit to become part of the Board Fellows Program.