IoD NZ announces inaugural scholarship recipient

29 October 2013

IoD NZ announces inaugural scholarship recipient

The Institute of Directors in New Zealand (IoD) is pleased to announce the winner of their inaugural Not-for-Profit Scholarship – Elaine Bliss from Interactionz Lifestyle Trust in Hamilton.

The scholarship aims to encourage governance best practice within the New Zealand not-for-profit sector and recognises that many not-for-profit organisations want to provide governance training but lack the financial resources to do so. As the winner of the scholarship Elaine receives a place on the IoD Not-for-Profit Governance Essentials course in Hamilton.

IoD Waikato branch chair, Margaret Devlin said, “We are delighted to award the scholarship to Elaine. She is about to take on the role as board chair at Interactionz Lifestyle Trust so this is a great opportunity for her to receive some formal governance training. We are fortunate that there are so many people in the Waikato community like Elaine who give so much of their time and energy to the not-for-profit sector which was reflected in the number of applications we received. We look forward to hearing how Interactionz Lifestyle Trust have been able to improve their governance as a result of Elaine’s attendance on the course.”

The Not-for-profit Governance Essentials course is one of the many courses the IoD offer for directors, boards and committees and is the fifth of six training courses offered in the Waikato area this year.

Scholarship recipient, Elaine Bliss said, "I feel very excited and privileged to have been selected for this scholarship on behalf of my organisation. Participating in the course will provide an opportunity for me to fill some of the gaps in my working knowledge of governance so that I can step confidently into my new role as Board Chair. My colleagues on the board acknowledge that the learning I take away from this course will have positive flow-on effects for the entire organisation."

IoD CEO, Dr William Whittaker said, “The IoD recognises that many not-for-profit organisations want to provide governance training to employees but may lack the financial resources. This scholarship is designed to help address that. The IoD is committed to increasing the standard of governance throughout New Zealand and this is just one way we can help in the not-for-profit sector. We were very pleased with the response we got to this pilot scholarship in the Waikato and will now review and make a decision on whether we roll it out nationally.”

More information about the scholarship and IoD training please visit our website www.iod.org.nz

ENDS

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