Gift of Life Spearheads Innovative Educational Initiative with Two of the World's Leading Business Schools

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Mar 21, 2017, 08:30 ET

PHILADELPHIA, March 21, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Gift of Life Institute, the international training center for organ and tissue donation and transplantation professionals, is partnering with two of the world's leading business schools, the Aresty Institute of Executive Education at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and Fox School of Business at Temple University, to present "The Art and Science of Leadership: Driving Results for Donation and Transplantation Professionals." This multi-faceted certificate program will combine on-site classes, virtual training, and one-on-one project plan coaching from organ/tissue donation and transplantation executives. The eight-month program is geared towards both emerging and experienced leaders who are looking to increase their management skills and strategic perspective.

"The Art and Science of Leadership" launches with classroom trainings led by Wharton faculty March 22-25, followed by six monthly webinars from April to September with Fox School of Business, and concludes with additional on-site training in October at Wharton. The sold out 2017 program will be attended by 30 registrants and 15 coaches from 15 states. Due to the overwhelming response, the program will be offered again in 2018 and 2019, and on a continuing basis.

"We look forward to partnering with Wharton and Fox on this important program. Gift of Life Institute is committed to providing the highest level of education available to the donation and transplantation community," said Howard Nathan, President and CEO, Gift of Life Donor Program and Founder of Gift of Life Institute. "This partnership will expand on the Institute's valuable educational initiatives through the incorporation of the world-renowned expertise of leading business professors. We expect this program to have significant impact, influencing organ procurement organizational leadership and increasing life-saving organ and tissue donations across the United States."

Matthew Bidwell, Associate Professor of Management, Wharton School added, "We are very excited to work with the Gift of Life Institute. At Wharton, we work with a very wide range of different organizations on topics around building organizational effectiveness. We are particularly pleased to be able to support Gift of Life's unique mission. Our goal is to bring new insights that can help them further develop in their work and better serve their communities."

Michael Rivera, Managing Director of the Center for Executive Education at Fox School of Business, Academic Director of Executive MBA Programs and an Associate Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, stated, "We are thrilled to partner with the Gift of Life Institute and to work with this key group of employees to develop skills to help them be more effective managers. The Center for Executive Education, as part of Temple University's Fox School of Business, has a long history of providing high-quality education to executives and emerging leaders in Philadelphia and beyond, and continues to lead the way in creative and interactive online learning technology. We look forward to a productive partnership and are proud to play even a small role in supporting organ donation in the U.S."

Founding Sponsors for this certificate program are The Living Legacy Foundation of Maryland, Gift of Life Donor Program, DCI Donor Services, Inc., Donor Alliance, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network, LifeShare of Oklahoma, LifeSource, Mid-America Transplant, NJ Sharing Network and Midwest Transplant Network.

Established in 2004, Gift of Life Institute is an international training center for donation professionals, offering comprehensive, interdisciplinary resources for skills-based learning, continuing education, collaborative research and consulting services. The Institute is the international leader in organ and tissue donation education, training close to 9,000 professionals from 37 countries since its inception. Through its affiliation with Gift of Life Donor Program in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, one of the most experienced OPOs in the nation, the Institute has the unique opportunity to provide learners with real-world and real-time instruction.

Founded in 1881 as the first collegiate business school, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania is recognized globally for intellectual leadership and ongoing innovation across every major discipline of business education. With a broad global community and one of the most published business school faculties, Wharton creates economic and social value around the world. The School has 5,000 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students; more than 9,000 annual participants in executive education programs; and a powerful alumni network of 95,000 graduates.

Established in 1918, the Fox School of Business, Temple University has a distinguished tradition of preparing business leaders, professionals and entrepreneurs for successful careers. Today, it is the largest, most comprehensive business school in the greater Philadelphia region, and among the largest in the world with 8,000 students, nearly 195 full-time faculty and more than 65,000 alumni. Accredited by AACSB International - Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business - the Fox School offers BBA, MBA, Executive MBA, MBA/MS, MS and PhD programs on campuses throughout the region and around the world.

SOURCE Gift of Life Donor Program