Amanda Mayer was a graduate student in the MPNL program in 2013, the program’s inaugural year, and is a member of the Editorial Board for PANL Perspectives. She’s been with the Lawson Foundation as Program Director and Chief Operating Officer since 2014. Previous roles include Manager of Governance & Executive Office at Imagine Canada and Director of Operations & General Coordinator of the National Alliance for Children and Youth. Last month, on the 10th anniversary of the MPNL program, she spoke with PANL Perspectives about her years in the program and the relevance of the program to our sector. (The interview has been shortened and edited.)
Q: Why did you apply to the MPNL program?
Mayer: What attracted me to the MPNL program was the opportunity to learn the theory behind the practice — and the fact that it provided a sector-wide and national view of our philanthropic sector. It also brought together experienced and aspiring professionals and had the potential to help professionalize our sector, and by that, I mean help to acquire the specialized skills and knowledge that professionals require to lead organizations.
Q: You were working full-time at Imagine Canada while enrolled full-time in the MPNL program. How was that?
Mayer: It was challenging, but there was lots of flexibility in the sense that a lot of courses were offered online, so you didn’t necessarily have to go in, and that helped with scheduling things. Also, Imagine Canada was very good at allowing space for me to take part in the Masters, so that helped to balance work, the program, and my personal life.
Q: What were the strengths of the program?
Amanda Mayer co-teaches an MPNL course on governance & leadership during the program’s two-week Summer Institute.
Mayer: I felt like I excelled during my Masters. The program helped me to develop critical thinking skills and challenged me to bring an academic perspective to the way I thought about the work I was doing, how I could make a difference, and how I could go about shifting the status quo. It also increased my capacity to understand and leverage research to make decisions and helped me to obtain the confidence to be a strong leader, but also, to be seen as one by my peers and colleagues.
Q: How is the MPNL program relevant to your career and our sector?
The fact that we’re celebrating the 10th anniversary of the MPNL program is proof enough of its relevance.
Mayer: In my opinion, it continues to play a key role in the growing professionalization of the sector and also, in attracting top talent, and research and, most importantly, resources to support our sector. Canada’s philanthropic sector has particularities that make it unique and, I’d say, deserving of the value of the sector-specific training that the MPNL program offers.
Also, the sector is diverse, and so, when you look at the people in the class, for MPNL, the diversity is there, and that’s one of the strengths of the MPNL program. Everyone’s coming at it from a different perspective, and that’s helpful and eye-opening — and something that’s a strength in this program.
Amanda Mayer delivers care packages for the frontline staff workers of a local palliative care home.
Specifically, for me, the program provided time, space and a community of practice to better understand things like emerging trends and issues in this complex world of philanthropy. Overall, I’m proud, honoured and humbled to be an alumni of the inaugural class of the MPNL program.
Amanda Mayer is a 2013 MPNL graduate and is Program Director and Chief Operating Officer of the Lawson Foundation. She can be found on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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Wednesday, January 18, 2023 in Alumni, News
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