United Way of Westchester and Putnam (UWWP), will host their 2026 Nonprofit Leadership Summit on Tuesday, April 21 at the Performing Arts Center at SUNY Purchase. The summit, themed Innovation and Intelligence in Nonprofit Leadership, is designed to empower nonprofit professionals across the region with fresh ideas, transformative practices, and collaborative solutions to deepen impact. More than 500 attendees from across the nonprofit sector are expected to attend.
The 2026 Nonprofit Leadership Summit will feature two distinguished keynote speakers at the forefront of the nonprofit sector and organizational leadership:
Ruchika T. Malhotra, best-selling author of Inclusion on Purpose: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work (MIT Press), will take the stage to kick off the morning sessions. Her latest book, Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Success (Penguin/Viking, 2025), challenges conventional definitions of success and advocates for more collaborative and fulfilling approaches in life and work. Malhotra is the founder of Candour, an inclusion strategy practice, and a regular contributor to The New York Times and Harvard Business Review.
Diane Yentel, President and CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits, the largest network of nonprofit organizations in North America, will bring her nearly 30 years of experience working for, with, and in support of nonprofits during her afternoon keynote address. Named Influencer of the Year by The Nonprofit Times in 2025, Yentel has been a leading national advocate and thought leader for the nonprofit sector, championing public policy wins and launching major initiatives to build public support for the vital work of nonprofits.
The Nonprofit Leadership Summit will also include a Q&A, breakout sessions, a vendor exhibition, breakfast and lunch, and networking opportunities.
“For 24 years, the Summit has been one of our United Way’s cornerstone capacity-building programs,” said Tom Gabriel, President and CEO of United Way of Westchester and Putnam. “Providing this low-cost professional development opportunity for the purpose-driven organizations of our community helps strengthen the sector and fosters innovation and collaboration—something we all need to embrace to be successful.”
Sponsors of the 2026 Nonprofit Leadership Summit include ARC Westchester Foundation, Association of Development Officers, Boys and Girls Club of New Rochelle, Child Care Council of Westchester, Con Edison, Feeding Westchester, Grassi Advisors and Accountants, The Hilb Group, Lifting Up Westchester, Mother Cabrini Health Foundation, New Rochelle YMCA, NewYork Presbyterian, Nonprofit Westchester, Pace University, Pro Bono Partnership, SPARC, , Westchester County Community College, TD Bank, Westchester Institute for Human Development, Westchester County, Westchester Library System, WestHab, and the Whipple Foundations for the Preservation of Putnam County.
Tickets are $75 per person, or $65 each for groups of five or more. For ticket information, contact Laurie Noel at lnoel@uwwp.org or 914.997.6700 ext. 740.
UWWP is located at 336 Central Park Ave., White Plains, NY 10606. Phone: 914-997-6700 Website: www.uwwp.org,
