Anniversaries are a time to revisit the past, celebrate, and look to the future. In marking the 50th anniversary of CASE’s founding, we are doing all three!
As we take stock of what CASE has accomplished in 50 years, we can imagine and plan for the significant opportunities for serving our membership in the decades ahead.
Part of that future focus is nurturing and welcoming our newest generation of advancement professionals, who bring greater diversity, curiosity, passion, and new skills to our work.
We were all there once; we each had a moment of being the “newbie.” We likely made some mistakes, but we found our footing and our passion in advancement with the help of colleagues, mentors, and CASE connections forged at conferences or through our talent initiatives like the CASE Advancement Internship and Graduate Trainee Programme. (Read more about this on page 38.)
I meet with our many institute participants, interns, and trainees each year, and I enjoy sharing with them how amazing this profession is, how you have to love people and building connections. I share how they will, with consistency, have those “tingle” moments when they close that major gift that will fund a new academic institute; when they meet that first-generation scholarship recipient who would not otherwise have been able to pursue higher education; when a communications piece or marketing activity they contributed to comes out and achieves the intended impact; or when they meet with a graduate who is keen to reconnect and engage with their institution.
Sometimes, I’ll tell them about my own beginnings in advancement. When I started at the University of St Andrews in 1998, I attended my first CASE conference in Belfast, in Northern Ireland. I don’t remember the programming as much as I remember the connections I made—connections that became lasting, sustained, and the foundation of my soon-to-be global CASE network.
I remember being in a session with Henry Drucker (from the U.S. and credited as a pioneer in European fundraising) and Iain More (another pioneer for the sector, an experienced advancement professional in Europe, and founder of More Partnership). It was an interactive session with role-playing. Having a theatre background, I put my hand up and played the role of the advancement professional attempting to get past a stern personal assistant, played by Iain, to meet with a potential donor. I somehow accomplished that goal, and in the end was pleased that I had volunteered. The experience has stayed with me and informs advice I like to share with young professionals: Raise your hand. You will make connections.
After St Andrews, where I worked as Director of External Relations, I went on to become Director of Development at Christ Church, Oxford (one of the Oxford Colleges) and then for the University of Oxford. Thereafter I was fortunate to join the University of Melbourne as Vice Principal for Advancement. All the while, my career was buoyed by my CASE volunteerism, wonderful mentors, and my growing CASE network.
As I look back during CASE’s 50th anniversary year on my advancement journey, and as we as an association are inviting perspectives on the future of advancement over the next half century, my advice is to nurture relationships. If you are new to the field, raise your hand for every opportunity availed to you. Volunteer for CASE. It is a great way to connect with mentors and a lifelong community of colleagues and friends. And if you have your own history in the profession, remember to meet, support, and encourage our early-career colleagues. Those relationships are at the heart of what makes CASE so special, and remind us why we chose a career in educational advancement.
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September - October 2024
Celebrate CASE's 50 anniversary! Explore CASE's history, global journey, and signature activities that serve the profession, like research, training, mentoring, and more.