Board Fellow Profile: Jason Outcalt, MBA ’26

Jason Outcalt, MBA ’26, served as a Michigan Ross Golub Capital Nonprofit Board Fellow at Washtenaw Camp Placement, which offers summer camp scholarships to underserved youth. The nonprofit invited him to join the board as a voting member during his second year at the Ross School of Business. He talked about what he learned about communication and leadership through his fellowship.

Can you tell us about your background — where did you grow up, and where did you go to college?

I grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. I went to Vanderbilt University, where I studied economics and history.

What was your professional experience prior to Ross?

I spent four years at Epic Systems, a healthcare software company in Madison, Wisconsin. I worked on software used by hospitals and health systems, leading teams focused on quality and testing. A big part of my job was helping improve how software was developed and tested, while also mentoring colleagues on best practices. It gave me a strong foundation in managing complex projects and working across different teams.

What appealed to you about the Board Fellows program?

When I think about my future career and how I plan to spend my time, I’d like to have something that allows me to give back and help the community in addition to my job. I thought a nonprofit board fellowship would be a good way to get some of that experience before I actually joined a board.

When I looked into the program, I saw there was a nonprofit called Washtenaw Camp Placement, which provides scholarships for underserved children to attend summer camp for free. Their mission really drew me in because I went to a summer camp for five years when I was young, and then I worked at a summer camp for three years. So I know firsthand that a summer camp experience is something that can be really influential on the development of a kid, especially a young kid. I saw this organization as a good way to give back and help kids who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to go to summer camp. That solidified my desire to be a part of the nonprofit board fellows program.

What was the focus of your Board Fellows project?

I worked with the leadership team in looking into the composition of the board and trying to think of ways to increase board diversity. It was a homogenous and aging board that was not truly reflective of the population that they serve. My project was to try to find strategies to get more people interested in joining the board. Many people don’t really understand what board service entails, so I was trying to break down that barrier to explain board service and the time commitment involved. That meant helping to make the role more approachable for a wider variety and diversity of people, in terms of race, socioeconomic and professional background.

What did you learn from attending board meetings?

It was really helpful to see an organization manage itself in real time. Working to complete our project, then explaining the rationale, objectives and outcomes to the board, was a valuable learning experience. I also gained a much better understanding of how a nonprofit operates, which I’ll carry with me throughout my career.

How did the fellowship help you grow?

I would go back to the communication piece – that was a big area where I grew. The project was perfectly clear to the three of us who were working on it — the executive director, one board member and me – but not everyone else initially understood what I was doing or why I was there. By communicating my role during my interactions with other board members and then communicating the results of my project to them, that helped me improve those soft skills.

After your fellowship, Washtenaw Camp Placement invited you to join its board. Why did you decide to accept the role?

I was happy to pitch in and remain on our board. I’ve been spending a lot more time looking through the nonprofit’s financial statements each month, which I find interesting. As a business student, that’s something I’d like to be more adept at identifying and thinking through the financing of the organization from a managerial perspective.

Looking back, where does the Board Fellows program fit into your overall MBA experience?

It’s definitely a bright spot. I enjoyed the board fellows that I met in the program, and I found it so rewarding to work with the board and everyone else at Washtenaw Camp Placement. It’s something I’ll absolutely look back on positively.