Annual Conference on Stewardship and Donor-Centered Advancement Header

Program

Day 1: Monday, June 13 

12:00 – 1:00 PM ET 

Registration 

Welcome to Ft. Lauderdale! Please stop by the registration desk starting at 12:00 p.m. to check in and pick up your conference materials. 

1:00 –1:15  

Welcome, Faculty Introductions and Conference Overview 

1:15 – 2:15  

Plenary

Donor Panel: Do You Remember Your First Donation? Why Donors Give 

Moderator: Liza Winklejohn, Executive Director, Development and Volunteer Leadership, University of Miami

Join us for the opening session of the conference as we meet local alumni, donors, and friends who will speak on their philanthropy and how they detail the appreciation and experiences that bring them the greatest joy and offer the largest impact.  

2:15 – 2:45 

Refreshment Break 

2:45 – 3:45 

Elective Sessions

  • How to Be a Fixer Without the Scandals!

    Sandy Yates, Senior Director, Administrative Operations & Donor Relations, Morehouse College 

    Great donor relations requires nimble responses to some challenging situations. This session will focus on strategies that fundraisers can use to keep their supporters happy and engaged and protect their institutional reputations. The ultimate goal is to avoid the scandals that will leave you wondering if you are a fundraiser or a political fixer. Sandy Yates, CFRE, philanthropy veteran with more than twenty years of direct experience with donors in small- to medium-sized colleges, will lead and facilitate group discussions on how to handle and overcome the challenges that hurt building and fostering strong relationships with donors.

  • Flip Flops Optional: Zoom vs. Picking up the Check 

    Emily Rankin,     Assistant Vice Chancellor, Development, UC Riverside 

    Join us for this interactive workshop where we will consider the following questions: How are we taking advantage of today’s workforce and creating a work environment to foster innovation and creativity? Are zoom interactions as effective as face-to-face meetings? Stewardship is the key to donor engagement and future giving. Let’s consider maximizing the impact of the interaction.  

3:45 – 4:00 

Stretch Break 

4:00 – 5:00 

Elective Sessions

  • Cognitive Impairment in Donors: Are You Prepared? 

    Tara Adams, Assistant Director of Advancement, University of Illinois College of Law 

    There are around 60 million people aged 65 years and older in the United States, and over six million are showing signs of cognitive decline. As our donor population ages, the likelihood of dementia and other cognitive impairment increases, which can create ethical and legal issues for stewardship, frontline fundraisers, and other advancement staff when they encounter this in their interactions with donors. Is your institution prepared for this inevitable scenario? This session will teach attendees about the prevalence of cognitive impairment in donor populations as well as suggest strategies on how best to manage these issues through an ethical and legal framework of best practices that was codified and adopted at the University of Illinois system. 

  • Reframing the Scholarship Recipient Experience 

    Monika Moore, Director, Donor Relations and Stewardship, Scripps College 

    As equity, inclusion, and social justice have risen to the forefront of global issues, it is essential that we view every element of our work through this lens. This includes the way we as institutional actors reframe relationships between scholarship donors and the students who are the recipients of this philanthropic support. How do we facilitate a dynamic that is focused on creating community, rather than reinforcing a narrative of the haves (donors) and the have nots (scholarship recipients)? What are the ways in which we can partner with students, faculty, and staff to demonstrate philanthropic impact to our donors without relying on outdated “poverty porn” tactics? And finally, what are tools and resources for obtaining buy-in from institutional leaders, gift officers, and of course, the donors? 

5:00 – 6:00 

Networking Reception 

Join conference faculty and your colleagues to network and unwind after Day 1. Complimentary hors d'oeuvres and drink tickets will be provided. Don't forget your business cards! 

6:00 PM 

Conference Adjourns for the Day 

Dinner on your own (sign ups for group dine-arounds available)



Day 2: Tuesday, June 14 

8:30 – 9:30 AM 

Continental Breakfast / Roundtables 

9:30 – 10:30 

Plenary

On the Horizon: Innovations in Stewardship and Donor Relations

Dr. Reshunda Mahone, Assistant Dean for Advancement & Alumni Engagement, Goizueta Business School, Emory University 

What is on the horizon for stewardship and donor relations? In the way that Zoom, Teams, and Ring revolutionized how we conduct advancement work, what innovations will impact stewardship and donor relations? How can your organization and institution be ready and at the forefront of the future? Join us for an interactive discussion and be ready for what's ahead. 

10:30 – 10:45 

Coffee Break 

10:45 – 11:45 

Small Group Sessions

  • Avoiding Burnout: Focus on Who We Are As Stewardship Officers

    Monica Moore, Scripps College

    Let’s talk about our profession and the expectation that we cover the     miscellaneous items as assigned. What should be expected of stewardship officers and how can we maintain boundaries and be successful in our roles? 

  • Acknowledgement Styles and Best Practices

    Sandy Yates, Morehouse College

    Let’s talk about acknowledgements! What are the best practices that you are incorporating in your shops? Be prepared to share your successes and your cautionary tales.      

  • Not a Scholarship Luncheon

    Flora Fox, University of Miami and Jennifer Rodriguez Sanabria, University of Miami

    Let’s talk scholarship events! Considering ways to revive your traditional     scholarship luncheons? Hear how UM revamped their 2022 scholarship luncheons to events that revitalized the donor and student experience. 

  • International Relations 

    Emily Rankin, Assistant Vice Chancellor, Development, UC Riverside 

    What does stewardship and the donor experience look like on a world stage? Whether you are an international organization or an organization with donors who live abroad, join this session to share best practices on how to convey the story of impact globally.

11:45 AM – 1:15 PM 

Lunch on your own 

1:15 – 2:15 

Elective Sessions

  • Strategic Collaborations: Stewarding Various Donor Segments 

    Darlene Rebello-Rao, Associate Vice President, Campaign and Strategic Initiatives, University of Miami, and Heather Kopec, Assistant Vice President, Philanthropic Giving + Digital Engagement, University of Miami 

    Strategic collaboration is more deliberate than workplace acquaintances and building relationships is central to being successful in any industry. Stewardship officers and fundraisers have so much in common and there is power in collaborating with teams throughout your advancement house. This session will discuss why strategic collaboration is so crucial for broadening the reach of your donor relations operation, for solving issues, and addressing maxed out bandwidth. In this interactive session, participants will share stories and learn about leveraging strategic collaboration to serve different donor segments, from major and principal gifts to annual giving. Key takeaways include creative ways to partner with fundraisers at your own institution in order to activate the broad reach of donor relations in the fundraising cycle. Perfect for small teams, and anyone searching for new ideas or just starting out in advancement.

  • Leadership Is Key: Make Your Trustees Part of Your Advancement Team 

    Moderator: Ray Witkowski, Cathedral Corporation  

    Are you challenged with engaging your board and increasing their support in your annual appeal or campaign? You’re not alone. According to Raise Funds, boards should account for 20-30% of your total annual gifts. Yet, many trustees underappreciate the significant impact that their support and leadership can have on an institution’s development success. In this session, we’ll address this challenge and provide keen insights and tactics on engaging your board and, ultimately, helping them become more active members of your advancement team. 

2:15 – 2:45 

Refreshment Break 

2:45 – 3:45   

Elective Sessions

  • Hybrid Programming: How (and when) do we do it? 

    Monika Moore, Director, Donor Relations and Stewardship, Scripps College 

    While the pandemic presented innumerable challenges, our institutions’ shift to virtual programming opened an opportunity to engage constituents who had been neglected when our focus was primarily on in-person engagement. As we look ahead to the “new normal”, many of our constituents are anxious to be together again in person, and others are wondering how to remain engaged at a distance. In this session, we will explore the strategies and tools needed to conceptualize and execute hybrid programs that combine the best of both pre-pandemic and quarantine creativity, and how you can set yourself and your team up for success. 

  • From $5 to $5M, How Do We Steward From the Smallest Gift? 

    Emily Rankin    , Assistant Vice Chancellor, Development, UC Riverside 

    There is the old adage, the only small gift is no gift at all. And the same can be said for stewardship gestures—the only small thank you, is no thank you at all. How are we planning to express our gratitude for philanthropic gestures that resonates on every level? How many times do we have to offer thanks for a gift so that the donor feels the impact they have made on campus? Plan to attend this interactive session as we explore all of these questions.

3:45 – 4:00 

Stretch Break 

4:00 – 5:00 

Plenary 

Donor Jeopardy 

Do you know your CASE facts? Do you know your CRD from CMT? Are you well-schooled in national fundraising trends? Join us for a rousing session of Donor Jeopardy and put your knowledge to the test. There will be prizes—and bragging rights! 

5:00 

Conference Adjourns for the Day 

Dinner on your own (sign ups for group dine-arounds available)

 

Day 3: Wednesday, June 15 

8:30 – 9:30 AM 

Continental Breakfast / Roundtable Topics  

9:30 – 10:30 

Restrictions Gone Wild: Bringing Donors (and Frontline Fundraisers) into Alignment with Institutional Priorities 

Sharilyn Berry, Executive Director of Foundation and Donor Relations, UC Riverside 

Monika Moore, Director, Donor Relations and Stewardship, Scripps College 

We all have our favorite stories of outdated, impractical, or just plain insane donor restriction on endowed funds. These types of funds are often a legacy of long-ago times. But how do we make a convincing case to our current and future donors to avoid creating more un-awardable funds for future donor relations professionals to manage? In this session we’ll discuss strategies for educating donors (and frontline fundraisers) on both the legal restrictions and institutional priorities that should guide their philanthropic choices. We’ll also share some of the policies and procedures you can implement to ensure that fund restrictions and reporting requirements align with your institution’s resources. Come prepared with your own stories of “restrictions gone wild”! 

Small Group Session Repeats 

  • Not a Scholarship Luncheon 

    with Flora Fox and Jennifer Rodriguez Sanabria, Donor Experience, University of Miami 

    Let’s talk scholarship events! Considering ways to revive your traditional scholarship luncheons? Hear how UM revamped their 2022 scholarship luncheons to events that revitalized the donor and student experience. 
  • Best Practices for Independent Schools and Community Colleges  

    How do stewardship and donor experiences vary for donors and alumni of these organizations? This is a time for you to come together and network with colleagues from similar institutions to see who is doing it best—and who has cautionary tales to tell.  

10:30 – 10:45 

Coffee Break 

10:45 AM – 12:00 PM 

Plenary & Closing Q&A

Faculty Panel: What Are The Chances We Want To Take? 

Moderator:  Emily Rankin, Assistant Vice Chancellor, Development, UC Riverside 

Faculty: Heather Kopec, Assistant Vice President, Philanthropic Giving + Digital Engagement, University of Miami; Monika Moore, Director, Donor Relations and Stewardship, Scripps College; Sandy Yates, Senior Director, Administrative Operations & Donor Relations, Morehouse College 

Join the faculty of this conference as we answer your questions and consider the ever-evolving world of stewardship and donor centered advancement.   

12:00 PM 

Conference Adjourns 

Thank you for attending!