About the HNN

About the HNN

The Healthy Nonprofit Network (HNN) is part of the Emory Centers for Public Health Training and Technical Assistance at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health.  

We help community-based organizations (CBOs) grow stronger and make a lasting impact. 

We offer education, comprehensive assessment, training and coaching. Our focus areas are:

Organizational Development and Process Improvement:

We provide training, support and technical assistance to ensure financial and operational stability to keep your nonprofit running smoothly and compliant with appropriate regulations.

Workforce Development:

We help you maintain a qualified and competent workforce by assessing learning needs among your staff, addressing service gaps, and providing evidence-based strategies to develop and sustain a supportive work environment.

Partnership Development and Engagement:

Our team of subject matter experts will help you build and maintain strong, effective partnerships to support reaching the goals of your programs and address the needs of your clients.

How We Work

We offer comprehensive assessments, training, and coaching. Here’s how:

Data-Driven Approach:

We start by understanding the issues within your organization and use evidence-based strategies to assess needs. 

Tailored Support

We meet you where you are, tailoring our support to your needs and context. We engage meaningfully with the communities most impacted.

Nationwide Network

We connect you with alliances and partners who can help solve real-world challenges.

Proven Models:

We use successful models of organizational change and technical assistance, and we keep refining new ones.

Knowledge Sharing:

We evaluate our work and share what we learn about effective nonprofit leadership.

who we serve

We offer free services to all health-focused CBOs nationwide. But our heart is with small nonprofits in the rural South.

We prioritize small nonprofits in rural areas and under-resourced communities because these organizations often face the biggest challenges — and the fewest resources.

 

Why this focus?

Southern CBOs have historically received less funding compared to other regions of the US, and the effects of underinvestment remain  (Johnson Center, 2024; Shapatava, 2018). 

A report created for the CDC (COMPASS, 2023) highlighted seven primary roadblocks to building sustainable, high-performance HIV-related services organizations in the US South:  

  1. insufficient access to resources, especially in rural communities
  2. limited support for harm reduction and syringe service programs
  3. access to funding
  4. limited access to TTA services at the organizational level
  5. the ramifications of stigma
  6. navigating the political landscape, and
  7. insufficient attention to populations at greatest risk for adverse health outcomes

Meeting these needs is crucial to creating community conditions where everyone has a chance to be as healthy as possible.

our team

Our team has advanced expertise in organizational capacity building, training, technical assistance, and evaluation. Many of us have direct service experience as former CBO leaders.

Neena Smith-Bankhead

For more than 28 years, Neena has served as an educator, trainer, advocate, advisor, mentor, researcher, supporter, and ally to help reduce the number of new HIV infections and support access to quality care for people living with HIV, particularly among women, people of color, and within LGBTQ+ communities.

Read Neena's Bio

Carissa Beatty

For over a decade, Carissa has helped mission-driven organizations learn from one another, strengthen their work, and navigate complex challenges. Her expertise includes program and project management, partnership development, strategic communication, and data-informed decision-making.

Read Carissa's Bio

Helen Singer

Helen joins Emory Centers for Training and Technical Assistance as a Health Educator in the Engaging Communities and Organizations Ready for Excellence (EnCORE) subcenter. Her work focuses on translating research to practice across the public health landscape

Read Helen's Bio

We also have a roster of expert consultants skilled in organizational development and process improvement. This allows us to provide deep, flexible support to meet the varying needs of organizations. 

WATCH OUR LAUNCH WEBINAR to meet some of the coaching team and learn more, or REQUEST SUPPORT.