معرفی
Paul Thelen serves as an Adjunct Instructor at the University of Iowa College of Law and Director of the Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center. He specializes in building leadership, governance, and management capacities for Iowa's 31,000+ nonprofit organizations, which employ 1 in 11 Iowans and engage over 740,000 volunteers annually.
His educational background includes a BA and BFA from Creighton University and a JD from the University of Iowa College of Law. As a first-generation college and law school graduate raised on a western Iowa farm, he brings practical experience to his academic role.
Thelen's research focuses on nonprofit management across diverse sectors including arts, culture, economic development, education, environment, health, and human services. He designs workshops on board development, strategic planning, and executive transitions, serving 874 entities statewide in FY2023. His teaching integrates real-world applications through two annual nonprofit courses featuring nationally recognized guest speakers.
His publication record centers on policy analysis, exemplified by his 2001 study of congressional arts funding. This work reflects his ongoing interest in legislative impacts on nonprofit sustainability, though his primary contributions remain practice-oriented through direct sector engagement rather than theoretical scholarship.
Thelen actively shapes Iowa's nonprofit ecosystem as co-founder and vice-president of the Iowa Nonprofit Alliance, planning committee member for the Iowa Nonprofit Summit, and advisor to the university's Master's in Public Affairs Program. He directs the Center's Summer Research Associate Program, attracting top undergraduate and graduate students since 2020.
Through the Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center, he leads projects for organizations at all development stages—from emerging entities to established institutions—while serving on the Iowa Commission on Continuing Legal Education to bridge legal and nonprofit practice.
