Communications Masterclass

Thursday, September 3 & 10, 2026 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Build an effective external communications plan – building off of what you currently have in place at your organization – to market your value for others to buy into what you do. Topics include web and digital assets, using in-house marketing or vendors, effective storytelling, marketing principles, building strategic partnerships, positioning your organization in the community, and capitalizing on word-of-mouth.

Facilitator: Gabrielle Schreib

Gabrielle Schreib is a strategic planner and creative partner dedicated to bringing businesses and mission-driven organizations to life through intentional, strategy-first marketing. With experience supporting nonprofit brands, fundraising initiatives, donor engagement, and community-centered campaigns, Gabrielle understands how to translate purpose into powerful storytelling and measurable impact. Her work sits where strategy meets creativity, guiding companies and nonprofits from concept to execution across campaigns, content, digital platforms, events, and identity development. Blending big-picture vision with thoughtful execution, she helps organizations clarify their story, amplify their voice, and create authentic brand experiences that not only capture attention, but resonate with the audiences and communities that matter most.

Learning objectives:

1. Assess your current communications ecosystem
2. Develop an external communications plan
3. Craft compelling organizational messaging and storytelling
4. Evaluate and prioritize communication channels
5. Apply relationship-centered marketing principles
6. Create a realistic implementation roadmap

Thursday, September 17, 2026 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Develop a strategic internal communications approach to attract, onboard, and engage employees while strengthening your organization’s culture. Topics include communicating with candidates and new hires, creating clear and consistent internal messages, fostering psychological safety, building feedback and recognition practices, and empowering employees to become authentic ambassadors for your mission.

Facilitators: Valencia Saint-Louis and Ian Sebbowa

Valencia Saint-Louis is a communications professional and program manager with over five years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She has supported youth development, education, and mentoring organizations, helping them strengthen their teams, programs, and partnerships through strategic communication. She has recruited and onboarded staff, managed employees and dozens of volunteers, developed training and communication materials, and collaborated with community partners to support programs serving hundreds of students. Having guided organizations through every stage of the employee experience, Valencia understands how intentional communication strengthens organizational culture, increases employee engagement, and maximizes mission impact. A graduate of Adelphi University with a B.A. in Communications, she draws on her real-world nonprofit experience to help professionals build stronger teams, foster engagement, and create organizations where people feel inspired to contribute in ways that have a lasting impact.

Ian Sebbowa is a recruitment and program strategist who helps mission-driven organizations build teams that reflect and sustain their culture. His path to this work has spanned three continents: studies in East Africa and Europe, and an MBA earned at Adelphi in the United States. That path, moving between different educational systems, workplace cultures, and ways of communicating, gave him firsthand insight into what it takes to help someone feel oriented, supported, and genuinely welcomed in an unfamiliar environment. That same instinct for meeting people where they are shaped his early work supporting neurodivergent students, helping them build executive functioning skills and access accommodations that let their strengths lead. Ian now channels these experiences into his work, translating organizational mission into recruitment messaging that resonates across audiences, and designing onboarding and communication systems that help diverse teams operate with clarity and trust.

Learning objectives:

1. Create a recruitment strategy that attracts exceptional talent by turning your organization’s mission into clear, role-specific messaging.
2. Design an onboarding communications plan and toolkit that speeds understanding while promoting commitment and early wins.
3. Develop an internal communications strategy that increases retention by building trust, psychological safety, and shared ownership so employees become informed, engaged ambassadors for your organization.

Thursday, September 24, 2026 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Learn how to communicate with confidence during moments of organizational change, from leadership transitions and funding shifts to program changes and unexpected disruptions. Participants will explore how to build trust through transparent communication, align internal and external messaging, address the needs of different stakeholders, and make values-driven decisions when the path forward is uncertain.

Facilitator: Shakira Polite

Shakira Polite is a Brand and Culture Advisor based in New York. Her work sits at the intersection of brand strategy, cultural research, and contemporary art grounded in the belief that culture is the connective tissue between people, ideas and systems. She has advised global brands including Delta, Nike, Walmart, and Diageo. Alongside her industry work, Shakira presents and lectures at institutions including Barnard College at Columbia, The University of Rochester and Hofstra University, where she serves as Entrepreneur in Residence at the Zarb School of Business. Her industry affiliations include Global Ambassador at D&AD, founding member of Entrepreneurs @ADCOLOR, and board advisory at Women of Culture and Green Bronx Machine.

Learning objectives:

1. Assess communication risks and opportunities during organizational change
2. Build a stakeholder communication strategy that strengthens trust and alignment
3. Craft clear, values-driven messages using a strategic communication framework

Thursday, October 1 & 8, 2026 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Learn how to use AI tools to your advantage when communicating with your audience without losing the authentic voice behind your brand. Topics include AI tools, the dangers of over-relying on AI for communications, when to use AI and when to solely rely on humans to communicate your message, the best generative prompts to use, digital marketing, and video podcasts. This module gives nonprofit professionals a practical, hands-on introduction to AI tools that can immediately change how they communicate, plan, and execute. No technical background required. It is positioned as the closing module of the Communications Masterclass. By the time participants reach these two sessions, they have already worked through strategy, team building, and messaging. This module shows how to amplify all of it with AI.

Most AI trainings survey every tool on the market and leave participants more overwhelmed than when they started. This module goes deep on one platform, Claude, because the instructor does not just teach it. He builds real AI tools with it for clients across healthcare, nonprofits, and professional services. Participants get practitioner knowledge, not theory. By the end of the module, every participant will have:

• A custom Claude Project set up with their own organization’s voice and documents
• At least one AI tool connected to their existing email, calendar, or file system
• A 30-day content calendar and donor outreach sequence drafted using AI
• A working understanding of how to prompt AI effectively for nonprofit communications
• A clear picture of which AI tools are right for their org and how to get started

Facilitator: Theodore Massillon

Theodore Massillon is the Founder and CEO of NOM Media and NOM Studios, a full-service creative marketing agency and professional content production studio based in Garden City, New York. He teaches AI and digital marketing at Adelphi University and works with clients across healthcare, professional services, and the nonprofit sector. Theodore does not consult on AI from the outside. He builds with it, connecting tools like Claude to Gmail, Google Drive, Notion, and Google Calendar for real client workflows, and building custom AI applications for contractors, healthcare providers, and nonprofits. His approach pairs hands-on implementation with a clear sense of where human judgment stays essential, helping mission-driven teams adopt AI without losing the authentic voice behind their brand. NOM Media holds NYC MBE certification and is a registered NYC Department of Education vendor. NOM Studios is a state-of-the-art podcast and video production facility supporting impact storytelling and donor communications.

Learning objectives:

1. Compare the leading AI platforms and choose the right fit for your organization
2. Build a custom AI workspace trained on your organization’s voice
3. Write effective prompts that produce usable, on-brand content
4. Decide when to rely on AI and when human judgment must lead
5. Use AI to plan, create, and repurpose digital and video content
6. Protect your data and authentic voice while working with AI