October 28, 2012

The Nebraska Cooperative Development Center offers board of directors training sessions, which can help start-up cooperatives learn more about a board’s responsibilities.

The training program has three levels, each exploring a different, increasingly in-depth aspect of establishing a cooperative.

“We talk about what they have to do, what they should do, and sometimes what they should not do, and then just good business practices,” said Jim Crandall, the Outreach Program Coordinator for the center.

The center works with different types of co-ops, including alternative agriculture co-ops.

“It’s important for them to fulfill requirements and stay in compliance,” Crandall said.

On November 29, the center will host a Level II training session at the Nebraska East Union. Check-in begins at 8:30 a.m. with the program continuing until 3:30 p.m. Sessions will cover the roles and responsibilities of a board, the legal foundations of LLCs and cooperatives, and a small business case study.

Presenters will include

• Mike Turner, UNL professor emeritus in the Department of Agricultural Economics;
• Ed Woeppel, education and program director for the Nebraska Cooperative Council;
• Rocky Weber, an attorney who has represented several new cooperatives; and
• Mike Hilderbrand, who frequently works with small businesses at Gothenburg State Bank.

Registration

Register by noon on November 19 at http://go.unl.edu/directortraining. Completion of Level I training is not required to take Level II.

Kristina Jackson
IANR News