"Edgewater Kites", by Jon Abrahamson, Envisioning Cleveland Photo Contest

About the Program | Course of Study | Career Opportunities | Faculty | Admission Requirements & Financial Aid | Contact | Printable (pdf) brochure | MNAL Student Handbook

Welcome to the Master of Nonprofit Administration and Leadership (MNAL) at the Levin College of Urban Affairs.

Nonprofit organizations are distinct from business and government in that they blend private structures with public purposes. Effective managers need an understanding of how nonprofits interact with public and private institutions.

The Master of Nonprofit Administration and Leadership (MNAL) is a two-year degree designed to prepare students with knowledge of core management functions and competencies such as fundraising, financial management, human resource management, philanthropy, proposal writing, program development, program evaluation and applied management.

Nonprofit management, administration, and leadership is a rapildy growing career field in high demand. This degree draws on the strengths of leading scholars and practitioners with expertise in human resources, volunteerism, philanthropy and the political character of nonprofits in civil society.

The MNAL is an interdisciplinary collaboration of the Levin College of Urban Affairs, the College of Business and the School of Social Work as well as other programs at Cleveland State University. This degree provides students with the tools to build management skills and knowledge of nonprofits in order to improve their employment opportunities, advance in their organization, or to make a career change.

Students complete a total of 39-51 semester hours. A full-time student can complete the program in two academic years. The nonprofit core consists of seven classes (26-27 credits), and three elective classes (12 credit hours). Students may complete an internship for elective credit. All students complete a required Nonprofit Capstone (PAD 656) prior to graduation.

Prerequisite Courses: 0-8 Credit Hours

• NAL 601: Applied Quantitative Reasoning (or equivalent)
• NAL 603: Public Finance and Economics – Microeconomic Theory (or equivalent)

Core Courses: 26-27 Credit Hours

The following courses were selected in accordance with curricular guidelines established by the Nonprofit Academic Centers Council (NACC).

• NAL 510 Proposal Writing and Program Development
• NAL 550 Fundamentals of Nonprofit Administration and Leadership
• NAL 602 or SWK 675 Applied Quantitative Reasoning II
• NAL 604 Organizational Behavior
• NAL 630 Public Human Resources Management
• NAL 651 Fundraising and External Relations for Nonprofit Organizations
• NAL 652 Financial Administration of Nonprofit Organizations

Electives: (non-exhaustive list); 3 courses; 9-12 Credit Hours

• COM 542 Communication and Technology
• LAW 722 The Law of Nonprofit Corporations
• MKT 501 Marketing Theory and Practice
• MKT 601 Marketing Management
• PAD 634 Ethics in the Public Sector
• SWK 673 Community Organization and Planning
• UST 572 Negotiation and Conflict Management
• NAL 593 Special Topics

  Required Nonprofit Capstone: 4 Credit Hours

  • NAL 656 Capstone in Nonprofit Management and Leadership

  Graduate Certificate and Transfer Credits
  

  Levin College graduate certificate and transfer credit hours may apply towards the MNAL degree.

  Transfer credits for required courses are subject to department approval. For further information contact the Levin College Student Services Graduate Advisor at (216) 523-7522 or email urbanprograms@csuohio.edu.

The Northeast Ohio area has one of the highest concentrations of nonprofit organizations nationally with more than 6,000 nonprofits in Cuyahoga County. In a 2005 Monthly Labor Review, the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that the nonprofit sector was the only source of employment growth in U.S. cities between 1995-2003, growing at a rate of 16% over this period.

Studies by organizations such as the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Bridgespan, a nationally recognized nonprofit policy institute, project that the demand for senior managers in the nonprofit sector will quadruple over the next two decades.

Careers in Nonprofit Administration and Leadership:

• Public Policy
• Planning and Community Development
• Museums
• Health Care
• Education
• Arts
• Civic
• Social Service
• Environmental
• Professional Associations

The Levin College enjoys a national ranking and nationally recognized faculty whose academic credentials, scholarship and diversified educational experiences have contributed to the success of its academic programs. Faculty come from such diverse academic areas as political science, economics, sociology, psychology, law, public management, and environmental management.

Dr. Jennifer Alexander, Associate Professor of Public Administration, Director of Master of Nonprofit Leadership Administration and Development, and Co-Director, Center for Nonprofit Policy & Practice
Dr. Jeffrey Brudney, Professor of Public Administration and Albert A. Levin Chair of Urban Studies and Public Service
Dr.Christine Ledvinka, Assistant Professor, Levin College.
Dr. Stuart C. Mendel, Assistant Dean, Levin College, and Co-Director, Center for Nonprofit Policy & Practice
Dr. Nancy Meyer-Emerick, Associate Professor
Steven A. Minter, Executive-in-Residence and Fellow, Center for Nonprofit Policy & Practice, Levin College
Dr. Jessica Sowa, Assistant Professor
Dr. Camilla Stivers, Distinguished Professor of Public Administration

Admissions
A complete application consists of:

• CSU graduate application
• Application fee
• Official transcripts
• Two letters of recommendation
• GRE Scores—General Section only

All application materials should be sent to:
Graduate Admissions Office
Cleveland State University
Rhodes Tower West, Room 204 (Campus Box G)
2121 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44115-2214
For more information on admission requirements visit: http://www.csuohio.edu/admissions.

International student applications and information can be found at Cleveland State University’s Center for International Services and Programs at http://www.csuohio.edu/internat/.

Financial Aid

Cleveland State University has financial assistance programs covering all of the major Federal and State grants and loans. The mission of CSU is to help meet the direct educational costs for a large number of the student population. Levin College of Urban Affairs provides some scholarships, fellowships, endowed internship funds, graduate assistant positions, and paid internships to qualified students.

For more information on financial aid contact the Levin College Office of Student Services at (216) 687-3884, or the CSU Office of Student Financial Assistance at (216) 687-3765.

Levin College Graduate Advisor
Telephone: (216) 523-7522
E-mail: urbanprograms@csuohio.edu Fax: (216) 687-5398

Dr. Jennfier Alexander, Associate Professor, Levin College, Director, Master of Nonprofit Administration and Leadership, and Co-Director, Center for Nonprofit Policy & Practice
Telephone: (216) 687-5011
E-mail: j.k.alexander@csuohio.edu