Solenne Couraye du Parc (she/her), Executive Director at Sorbonne University Foundation, firmly believes in lifelong learning. In this interview, Solenne describes how being awarded a scholarship to the Spring Institute in Educational Fundraising was the perfect opportunity to keep learning, develop her expertise and raise her spirits!
What first influenced you to work in fundraising within higher education?
After first starting work in the music industry, which I guess was a childhood dream of mine, I then discovered fundraising in education with my second position at Ecole des Mines de Paris, one of the oldest universities in France. At first, it was an opportunity to discover a new industry, as it was still in the early years of fundraising within higher education in France when I started in 2009. But I quickly became deeply convinced of the importance of the sector and HE’s role in building a better society with concerned citizens. I think higher education presents the opportunity to build a life for yourself as a student; and is also the primary source of production for innovation, concepts, and disruption.
Ecole des Mines de Paris has a very strong alumni community and established relationships with industries, so it was a perfect context to learn the different aspects of fundraising. I enjoyed the multidisciplinary element of the role and took on everything from prospect research and creating communications for the annual fund, to building a development campaign and major donor strategy.
After 10 years I felt I needed to test my skills in a different context. I also wanted to take on more managerial responsibilities, as I enjoy passing on my energy and understanding to members of my team. So, after a short experience at Festival International d’Art Lyrique d’Aix-en-Provence, I joined the Sorbonne University Foundation as interim general manager in 2020 and am now the Executive Director.
Can you describe Sorbonne University Foundation's operation and give insight into the responsibilities of your role?
In the French system, the University’s advancement office is actually an independent Foundation, and our office is made up of 10 employees. Our fundraising efforts contribute to more than 60 projects covering the university’s main development priorities, including fundamental research in medicine, research and teaching chairs to address climate change, new equipment, and scholarships in support of undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD students.
As Executive Director, I am the Foundation’s representative on the University’s committees and other governance structures and report directly to the Dean. My role orchestrates the activities of the office, using the university’s private funding needs to guide our fundraising strategy and identify partnerships for major donors.
I also work closely with our alumni department to increase their contribution to the development of the university. We have 450,000 Sorbonne alumni around the world, so I believe they present a huge opportunity for growth.
How did you hear about the scholarship for the 2023 Spring Institute and what motivated you to apply?
Sorbonne University has been a member of CASE for many years, but due to a restricted office budget, I was never able to attend an in-person meeting. The Foundation office is only funded by the overhead we take on the gifts and a contribution from the university, so we try to keep our costs as low as possible. I remember receiving a conference reminder email from CASE which gave information on the scholarship opportunity. I thought the scholarship would be a great opportunity to experience real insight and have a better view of the quality of CASE conferences and training, to make better use of our membership in future years.
It was my first time winning a scholarship and you can’t imagine how thrilled and proud I was of getting it. And being a mother of three, I was thankful to have some me time! The weeklong learning and networking experience gave me the time to think about why I like my job, reflect on my self-development, and consider the next steps in my career.
What was your favourite element of the Spring Institute and why?
I’m a very curious person (which I think is a good trait as a fundraiser), so I enjoyed having the opportunity to take a step back from my day-to-day working life to meet new people and learn about their different life experiences, cultures, stories, and passions.
In France, we tend to have a permanent critical eye on everything, and I realised while talking to fellow participants that this approach has made me sceptical and, sometimes, a bit negative towards achievements at Sorbonne University. The fresh perspectives made me recognise that I must change my mindset and celebrate our victories–whatever the field or the size–to cultivate my team’s pride in our jobs!
What is your key takeaway from the conference and how will you apply this to your role?
I took a lot of notes, and shortly after the conference, I organised the different themes into a PowerPoint presentation to report back to my team. The sessions were well coordinated, with an inspirational story to start, useful bullet points, and interaction with the room including quiz elements - so I will definitely try to do the same in the future!
I’ve always appreciated having clear objectives and being able to see the result of my action, so I also compiled a to-do list for myself and I hope to look back at it again in a few months and realise what I’ve achieved.
What advice would you give to future CASE conference attendees?
Don’t take any work with you to a CASE conference (in fact some participants didn’t even take their laptops): be in the moment, listen, talk, think and laugh! The CASE team and faculty have organised everything so you can sit back, relax and enjoy the sessions and networking moments!