Just because Pumpkin Spiced Everything is inescapable (and mostly gross – Pumpkin Spiced Frosted Flakes? Sick.) and we’d all like a break from the 90+ degree temperatures of the last few weeks doesn’t mean that fall is here. That’s not official until September 22, so you can all put away your chunky sweaters for the moment. Too soon. There will be plenty of time for fleece.

What it does mean is that school is back in session, and the CVC is back in the saddle with training. We have to wait until everyone comes back from hiking, fishing, and RV’ing before we ask them to sign up for one of our outstanding offerings.

As I’m sure you’re aware, the CVC provides professional development to our local nonprofits so they don’t have to spend their nonexistent training and travel budgets on learning best practices. At a Nonprofit Support Group meeting this winter, we were talking about topics the other nonprofit directors were interested in. AI (artificial intelligence) came up instantly. Some attendees said they already used it for social media posts. Others said it helped them write copy for brochures. Others (me included) said they didn’t use it because they were scared of it, didn’t understand it, or felt that using it seemed like cheating. The rest just wanted to learn more.

So, thanks to Ryan Landis (Operations Director at The Hub on Smith), who introduced us, AI expert and nonprofit and for-profit entrepreneur Daniel Ross will be coming to Sheridan on October 3rd from Jupiter, FL. He’ll show us how AI can integrate tools into their operations to become more efficient, strengthen relationships with donors, and tailor communication to best tell their organization’s story. We’ve spent time with Daniel via Zoom and have already declared him a friend and expert. He’s so down-to-earth, helpful, and completely engaging. He has “I’m here to help you” written all over him.

It occurred to us that if we were going to all the trouble of bringing Daniel to the wilds of Wyoming (our access to excellent fly fishing was a huge bonus for him), why limit the fun to nonprofits? Thanks to Daniel’s expertise and flexibility, we’re also going to host a Business-centric AI workshop the day before our nonprofit version on October 2nd.

Thanks to generous underwriters and sponsors, registration isn’t too expensive, even for tiny nonprofits and small businesses. All attendees should bring their laptops, and they’ll be able to work on their own projects with Daniel and some of his special guests available to help.

So many of us are utilizing AI and don’t even realize it. How many of you write emails, and the rest of the sentence is suggested to you? What about grammar edits? Those are just two AI services I lean heavily on. Much like at the advent of the internet, there were people who declared they would never darken its door. They had no use for it. How many of those are now Facebook addicts or Amazon Prime members? Yeah, probably most. AI isn’t going away. Either you harness its power for good and utilize it to improve your nonprofit or business or you ignore it and hope it goes away. Best of luck with the latter.

Daniel quotes an AI guru with this cautionary view: “AI isn’t taking your job. The person who can use AI is taking your job.” Let’s figure out how to make it work for us. Registering feels way more empowering than ignoring it and hoping it will go away.