Major Gifting with Elizabeth Carter
by Barbara Barron | 12.1.21

Barbara here. A smidge of context for this unconventional “interview style” article. Elizabeth Carter is a former colleague of mine from our time together at a school several years ago. She currently works as a major gift officer at a hospital in the Northeast. We’ve stayed in touch and she recently let me know that she had secured a $600,000 major gift. I asked if I could interview her so we might all learn tips for achieving such success for our own organizations. With a few small edits, here is the entirety of that interview. Enjoy!

Barbara: Congratulations,Elizabeth! I’m thrilled for you.

Elizabeth: Thanks! Yes, this is truly a dream donor. And it’s funny but he is actually the exception to the guiding rule that your biggest gifts always come from donors you know well. Not the case here.

Barbara: Yes, that adage is nearly always true in the independent school world we know. Why not here?

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My name is Barbara Barron, and I’ve been working in the field of Independent School Advancement for nearly 20 years.

In that time, I’ve had the pleasure of creating and implementing successful Strategic Fundraising Plans for so many incredible schools. I’ve had the privilege of seeing real growth at The Carey School, Marin Primary & Middle School, Woodside Priory, Crystal Springs, Presidio Knolls and others. (Maybe we’ve met!)

I am proud to have raised over $20 million for schools where I have served as Director of Development.

I am honored to be a New York Times bestselling author, as well as speaker, and presenter who currently advises dozens of schools in various capacities. One of my favorite parts of the job is maintaining my "advancement blog", with my writing widely shared by professionals in development offices worldwide.

Nothing makes me happier than seeing a struggling school start to thrive. My hope is that you’re here to make a positive change as well. I hope my advice can be a part of that change.

Shoot me an e-mail if you want to swap tips, or share your voice here.

Let’s do this, together.