III. Building Blocks and Positioning
Chapter 9. Fundraising from Soup to Nuts
Dr. Ed Ray
Chapter Overview
There are best and worst practices, dos and don’ts, for both public and private colleges and universities for success in fundraising. The purpose of fundraising is to bring resources to the institution. Those resources include the engagement, talent, and service of donors as well as their financial support. What are the characteristics of appropriate stewardship of current and potential donors? Donors increasingly want to designate the uses of their contributions. The art of the development effort is to match institutional needs and aspirations to donor investment passions, while achieving categorical and overall fundraising goals. Increasingly, public and private institutions are launching college or university-wide fundraising campaigns. Setting feasible overall and specific program goals, creating a development and leadership team to meet priority needs and exceeding publicly announced goals and monitoring campaign progress are essential. What are best practices for a fundraising campaign?
- Planning, implementing, and closing out a college/university fundraising campaign.
How does one develop a feasibility study for a fundraising campaign? How are program and institutional goals set? How does an institution create a compelling narrative to garner donor support? What happens when the campaign is over?
- Fundraising in support of strategic planning and institutional aspirations.
How aligned are fundraising and the strategic planning goals of the college/university? Strategic planning requires a long-term perspective. How does donor stewardship contribute to long-term fundraising success?
