Learn without leaving your desk.
During the school year, NBOA conducts a series of webinars on Thursdays. Our goal is to bring you the latest information that is most relevant to your job as an independent school professional, in an easy and accessible format.
All webinars take place at 4:00 PM ET and are FREE to NBOA Members and $89 for nonmember schools. To learn more about these presentations, as well as the system requirements to attend, please see our Webinar FAQs.
Please email programs@nboa.org or call 202-407-7140.
Watch Past Webinars
This service is available to NBOA members only.
Registration for the Spring Webinar Series will open in March. Check back here for more details.
This series is presented with generous support from FACTS.
Thursday, April 16, 2020 — 4 PM ET
This interactive case study will present the Thacher School’s recent debt refinancing process, including the thoughtful steps that led to a rating upgrade and the school’s decision to reduce its leverage. Learn how Thacher carefully considered its complete credit profile, weighed various financing markets and strategies, and used benchmarking to evaluate its capital structure and plan for a sustainable future. The session will include insights from S&P Global and Stifel on the ratings process and dual-track financing strategy. Speakers will also discuss the specific implications of COVID-19 on independent school financing, including short- and long-term planning considerations.
Field of Study: Accounting
Delivery Method: Group Internet Based
Program Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation: None
Recommended CPE Credits: 1.2
Recommended HRCI Credits: 1.0
HRCI Category: Business
SHRM PDC Credit: 1.0
SHRM BoCK: Business Acumen
Avani Parikh, Director and Lead Analyst, S&P Global Ratings
Avani Parikh is a director and lead analyst in the U.S. Public Finance Education Group at S&P Global Ratings. She leads the development and delivery of credit ratings, analyses and market insights for a diverse range of public and private higher educational institutions. Prior to joining S&P Global Ratings, Parikh served as controller for Irving Place Capital. She holds a B.A. from the University of Michigan and an M.B.A from Columbia Business School.
Jim Poulsen, Chief Financial Officer, The Thacher School
Jim Poulson is The Thacher School’s director of finance and operations. He has spent more than 20 years in independent school business operations, including at Northfield Hermon School as business manager and Middlesex School as assistant business manager. Currently located in California, Poulsen is originally from New Jersey and holds a B.A. from Williams College and an MBA from UMass Amherst.
Chad Christoff, First Vice President, Stifel Nicolaus & Company, Inc.
Chad Christoff is a vice president in Stifel’s Independent School Finance practice. He has spent more than 10 years working with educational institutions to prepare for, evaluate and execute tax-exempt debt financings. Christoff has served as the primary point of contact, provided analytical support, and managed transactions for a wide variety of recent independent school borrowers, including Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. He has presented at several industry seminars and conferences, including the NBOA Annual Meeting, and also serves as an ad-hoc member of the finance committee for Watershed School in Colorado. Christoff holds a B.A. in economics from Grinnell College and is a native of Donahue, Iowa.
Thursday, April 30, 2020 — 4 PM ET
As energy infrastructure ages, sustainability pressure mount, and budget pressures compound independent schools are increasingly approaching energy as an asset versus an expense. Independent schools are wrestling with finding solutions to managing 21st-century infrastructure, deferred maintenance, and new construction projects. What are some of the financial, cultural, and leadership challenges they will need to overcome to continue providing top-notch educational opportunities for students in a climate-conscious world? The session will explore innovative solutions and funding options, that are increasingly customizable and offer greater flexibility to address project needs and costs.
Field of Study: Finance
Delivery Method: Group Internet Based
Program Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation: None
Recommended CPE Credits: 1.2
Recommended HRCI Credits: 1.0
HRCI Category: Business
SHRM PDC Credit: 1.0
SHRM BoCK: Leadership and Navigation
Kailash Viswanathan, Vice President of Operations, GreenerU, Inc.
Kailash Viswanathan is GreenerU’s senior vice president and has spent more than 20 years working with energy efficiency groups to manage, develop and finance complex projects. Previously Viswanathan was project development manager at Johnson Controls Inc., and he has also worked on high-rise commercial facilities. Viswanathan holds a B.A. in engineering from Sardar Patel College of Engineering at the University of Bombay. He has lived and worked in five countries: India, England, Mauritius, Kuwait and the United States.
Mike Grossman, Chief Operating Officer, Fessenden School
Paul Griffin, Chief Financial Officer, Brooks School
Thursday, May 14, 2020 — 4 PM ET
Your mission is everything. From admissions and curriculum to your master plan and institutional advancement, mission drives your school’s decisions and investments, but is it the driving force behind your compensation and benefits package, which is the greatest “investment” a school makes each year? Or is your compensation system a relic of a bygone era, with employees getting an annual percentage increase on their wage and benefits based upon legal requirements? Learn about the elements of a strategic, mission-driven compensation and benefits system and begin envisioning one for your school.
Field of Study: Personnel/Human Resources
Delivery Method: Group Internet Based
Program Level: Basic
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation: None
Recommended CPE Credits: 1.2
Recommended HRCI Credits: 1.0
HRCI Category: HR (General)
SHRM PDC Credit: 1.0
SHRM BoCK: HR Expertise
Amber Stockham, Director, Human Resources Programs, National Business Officers Association
Amber Stockham, SPHR, is NBOA’s director, human resources and programs, and has over 15 years of human resources experience. She leads the development and delivery of human resources programs and serves as the expert on regulatory compliance, talent acquisition and management, organizational planning, and compensation and benefits at independent schools. Stockham came to NBOA after six years at Miss Hall’s School, an independent day/boarding school for girls in Massachusetts, where she served as the director of human resources. Before joining Miss Hall’s School, she worked in a variety of industries, including social services and manufacturing. She holds a B.A. in social sciences and psychology from Bard College.
NBOA is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its website: www.nasbaregistry.org.
NBOA is recognized by SHRM to offer SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP professional development credits (PDCs). Webinars that have met SHRM's criteria to be pre-approved for recertification credit will be noted above. For more information about certification or recertification, please visit www.shrmcertification.org.
NBOA is a recognized provider of recertification credits. Webinars that have met the HR Certification Institute's criteria to be pre-approved for credit towards aPHR™, PHR®, PHRca®, SPHR®, GPHR®, PHRi™ and SPHRi™ recertification will be noted above.