Jeffrey Shields Innovation in School Business Operations Award

This award recognizes NBOA member schools that have demonstrated innovation in school business operations, through approaches, programs and/or practices that may serve as a model in our independent schools community. Innovation may be demonstrated in the areas of strategic finance, long-term sustainability, tuition modeling, fundraising, information technology, human resources, facilities, operational efficiency and expense reductions.

Criteria

Awarded projects will demonstrate:

• The innovation’s long-term effects for recipient schools and their constituents, which could be students, faculty, staff, community, parents or the campus itself.
• Projects that positively "shake up" organizations by implementing new ideas, creating new models of management, and transforming organizational culture.
• Potential for far-reaching impact, appeal to multiple stakeholders within and across the organization and/or the community.
• The measurability of benefits in terms of current and future marketplace demands as well as school needs.

Nomination Questions:

• Share in your own words why this nominee program is deserving of the Jeffrey Shields Innovation in School Business Operations Award. Please make sure to include how impactful the innovation has been on the school or its constituents and how the innovation serves as a model for other schools to replicate. Please give specific examples.

Recipients

The award may recognize multiple schools in any given year. To accompany the award recognition, each school will be given a monetary prize in support of their annual fund or selected gift category. The award(s) will be presented at the NBOA Annual Meeting.

2024 Recipient

La Salle Academy & Rhode Island Hydro Power Alliance Members

Rhode Island

The Rhode Island Hydro Power Alliance Members, with leadership from La Salle Academy, came together to develop the Remote Net Metering Credit Consortium, a partnership of seven independent schools and an arts education center to create a hydroelectric power consortium. All parties entered into a 20-year remote net metering agreement, taking advantage of Rhode Island’s Clean Energy Grant Incentive Program. This initiative has already saved member schools a combined $390,000 since the program began producing credits in March 2022. Participating schools include La Salle Academy, the Gordon School, St. Andrew’s School, Wheeler School, The Grace School, Lincoln School and Highlander Charter School, as well as The Steel Yard, a nonprofit industrial art center.

NBOA members can read about this project in Net Assets magazine: Creating a Clean Energy Consortium. 

Past Recipients

NBOA has given out the Innovation in School Business Operations Award since 2021. View the award's past recipients.

Sponsors

The following business partners have generously sponsored the award:

About Jeffrey Shields

Jeffrey Shields, FASAE, CAE, has served as President and CEO of the National Business Officers Association (NBOA) since 2010. Jeff, an active member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), is a member of the 2008 Class of ASAE Fellows (FASAE) and earned the Certified Association Executive (CAE) designation in 2002. Under his leadership, NBOA has expanded its membership, strengthened the breadth and depth of professional development programs and cemented its standing as one of the most prominent associations serving business officers, controllers, human resource professionals, facilities professionals and other business office staff at PK-12 independent schools. He currently serves as a director for the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), as well as, a trustee for One Schoolhouse, an innovative online school offering supplemental education to independent schools, and he formerly served as a trustee for Georgetown Day School. He holds a BA from Shippensburg University and an MA from The Ohio State University. In 2020, the NBOA Board of Directors created this award to recognize his 10 years of exemplary leadership of the association.