Nancy Wiersum moves from NCTV to Robert Crown

Nancy Wiersum was having a full-circle week at Robert Crown Centers for Health Education in Hinsdale, where she started as the chief marketing and business officer in early October.

The next day, she would greet students from Maplebrook Elementary School in Naperville at the center that teaches young people about puberty and their changing bodies, drug and alcohol prevention, and general health and obesity prevention. Wiersum remembered that 15 years before, she had come with a group from the same school as a parent chaperon.

“My own children came,” she said. “I'm very taken by the mission (of Robert Crown) because it's all about prevention.

“Our children have been gifted with one life,” Wiersum said. “If we can help them learn how to care for it and make good decisions about their health, we're really giving them a lifetime of good decision-making skills.”

Wiersum's enthusiasm and commitment, along with the knack she showed for forging successful business partnerships as Naperville Community Television's community development director for the past six years, are exactly why Robert Crown hired her, said Executive Director Kathleen Burke.

Burke said the new position was created specifically for Wiersum, a Naperville resident.

“She has a unique set of skills,” Burke said. “She'll be opening doors, bringing in new customers and new audiences.”

NCTV to Crown

A self-described people person, Wiersum is credited with playing a large role in helping NCTV grow from a typical public-access cable TV channel to an award-winning community television station. She found business sponsors to support quality programming and increased awareness of NCTV's presence in the Naperville community.

“A hallmark of what I do is collaboration,” she said. “I look to bring people together.”

Burke said she expects Wiersum to do the same for Robert Crown, a nonprofit organization that is the oldest and largest provider of health education for schoolchildren and young adults in the Chicago area.

“She's a quick learner and very committed to our mission and raising money for that mission,” she said.

Wiersum said her decision to leave NCTV came out of a desire to work on behalf of a broader mission.

“I absolutely loved my time at NCTV, and I'm still their No. 1 fan and always will be,” she said. “I was looking for a broader experience with an organization aligned with my personal interests.”

Wiersum will continue as the volunteer host for NCTV's “Spotlight on Naperville” as her schedule permits. She also taught lasting lessons to the NCTV staff who were sometimes so focused on production that they forgot to communicate with the public, said Liz Spencer, NCTV's executive director.

“She was always just so gracious and remembered to say thank you,” Spencer said. “Nancy's secret of success was she believed in NCTV and the product we had. She also really cared about people.”

Spencer initially agreed to hire Wiersum on an intern basis, but the position quickly grew into full-time. Even after deciding to leave, Wiersum remained so committed to the station that she negotiated a six-week interim period and sent cookies over to staff on the first day of her new job. Spencer said the two enjoyed a rare synergy.

“She was my partner and friend. That made the job so much easier and delightful,” Spencer said.

Finding partners

Wiersum brings the same team approach to Robert Crown, where a month after her arrival she had sat in most of the classes the center offers to better know the product it offers and was making appointments in the community.

Educators at the center teach the “Life Begins” classes at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and Wiersum said she'll be looking to develop additional partnerships with other organizations.

“My approach to marketing is very much like my approach to people. I'm looking for the best elements and bringing those forward,” she said. “A true partnership benefits both parties.”

Wiersum especially will seek to forge partnerships with businesses. The center receives 50 percent of its budget from grants and donations, and Wiersum will work on the other 50 percent “earned income” portion. The fees for the center's programs cover only about 20 percent of the cost, she said.

The center annually reaches between 85,000 and 90,000 young people in the eight-county Chicago metropolitan area. Sixty percent of the students attend classes at the Hinsdale center or a second Chicago Homan Square Campus in the North Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago. The other 40 percent of the students are reached by Robert Crown bringing its programs into their schools. Three years ago, the center also partnered with the city of Aurora and Aurora University to coordinate health education services at the Fred Rodgers Community Center in Aurora.

Wiersum said Robert Crown's commitment to reach students of all socio-economic circumstances is part of what attracted her to the center. Over the past six years, her family has befriended a formerly homeless mother and her now 10-year-old daughter from the inner city of Chicago.

“Hearing of their struggles did play a factor in my wanting this position, because the Robert Crown Center does reach some of the kids in their situation,” she said.

In addition to school programs, Robert Crown has a “Body Trek” summer camp that Wiersum hopes will be offered in Naperville next year and resources for parents. A new Parent Education Program provides online videos demonstrating effective ways for parents to talk with kids about puberty, relationships, sexuality and peer pressure.

The center also is in the second year of a three-year groundbreaking study on heroin use and prevention.

“It is a culture of innovation here,” Wiersum said.

Always innovating

Innovation suits Wiersum, who grew up in northern Indiana as the daughter of an entrepreneur. She earned an undergraduate degree in communications at Northwestern University and a master's degree in adult instructional management at Loyola University.

A lover of the arts, she said she learned about fundraising for nonprofits while serving as vice president of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Young Professionals Chapter. She met her husband, Ken, there and the couple moved to Naperville 23 years ago.

While raising their son and daughter, Wiersum was involved with Naperville Unit District 203 schools. She is active in Good Shepherd Lutheran Church and the former chairman of the nonprofit network of the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce.

Her son was a teen intern at NCTV six years ago when he walked into Liz Spencer's office and said, “Hire my mom!” Then, as now, Wiersum said she had the opportunity to craft a newly created position.

“I'm at my most creative when I have a blank page to work on,” she said. “I hope I can have a big impact.”

For information on Robert Crown Centers, contact (630) 325-1900 or robertcrown.org.