This summer, we've been focusing on our infrastructure at Common Ground and have made a few changes that will add benefit to the overall client experience. We've created a part-time operations position and entered into contractual relationships with a few key consulting partners. Working for us, these partners will enable Common ground to offer even more specialized social profit services. We're also migrating all of our clients into a cutting-edge, web-based project management tool in order to improve efficiency and better manage our client services.
I thought you might be interested in learning a little more about our first employee! We're excited to have someone with John's passion, experience, and commitment.
John Palinski recently received his Master of Public Administration Degree from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. While at Maxwell, John served as a John Ben Snow Fellow in Nonprofit Management. This fellowship allowed him to work several days a week at the Central New York Community Foundation on various neighborhood leadership, high school transition and environmental grantmaking initiatives. Prior to returning to school, John served as the Washington, DC Program Director for the Youth Service Opportunities Project (YSOP), a New York-based Nonprofit dedicated to introducing young people to volunteer service through work with hungry and homeless people. Prior to running YSOP's DC operation, John had the good fortune to graduate from Grinnell College with a BA in Economics, serve as a Public Allies AmeriCorps volunteer in Chicago at the National Runaway Switchboard and travel extensively. John is committed to a career in the national service realm, though he continues to anxiously await his call up for service with the US National Soccer team.