Advancement Articles
It's my sincere hope these articles help you work through any big questions you may have about the wonderful work we do.
If you don't see your question answered below, I encourage you to send it my way via email.
Most Recent
The Board of Trustees
Aug. 17, 2020
How Do We Thank Trustees?
Feb. 23, 2022
How Can We Help Boards Overcome Campaign Jitters?
Aug. 08, 2022
The Board of Trustees at The Nirvana School
Feb. 17, 2023
Selecting Good Trustees: 6 Ways to Make Sure the Newest Addition is a Good One
Feb. 23, 2023
11 Ways to Make Sure Your School’s Newest Trustee is Prepared for the Job
Mar. 30, 2023
How to Build a Great Advancement Committee
Changing the Culture
Jun. 13, 2018
How Do We Create a “Culture of Philanthropy” At Our Schools?
Mar. 13, 2019
How Do We Become Schools That Truly Value Teachers?
Feb. 19, 2021
Ignoring “The Gap” and Moving Away from a Scarcity Mindset
May. 19, 2021
How Can We Fit In at Our School?
Aug. 10, 2021
Moving Beyond Conflict Between the Development & Business Offices
Feb. 06, 2023
Sacrificing Sacred Cows: Some Reflections on CASE-NAIS ’23
Jul. 25, 2023
How Can We Set Priorities that Serve Us and Our Programs?
Aug. 14, 2023
Why Participation is Not Worth Fighting For
Sep. 20, 2023
Is Technology a Crutch?
Oct. 20, 2023
Why Do We Need a Feasibility Study Before We Start Our Capital Campaign?
Nov. 06, 2023
What Good Are Trade Secrets If We Don’t Share Them?
The Development Team
Ending Things
Engaging with Donors
Sep. 27, 2017
How Do We Write a Really Good Annual Fund Letter?
Nov. 08, 2017
What Are Some Low-Cost High-Impact Gifts We Can Give Our Donors?
Mar. 07, 2018
How Do We Prepare for the Biggest Ask of Our Career?
Aug. 08, 2018
How Do We Write a Welcome Letter to the New Parents at Our School?
Sep. 12, 2018
How Can We Get Better at Asking Parents for Gifts?
May. 08, 2019
How Do We Create Word-of-Mouth Buzz With Our Donors?
Sep. 06, 2019
What Should We Do When We Make a Donor Angry?
Feb. 12, 2020
What Are the Dangers of Having an Angel Donor?
Apr. 16, 2021
What We Can Learn From Banks – and Then Do Very Differently
Apr. 10, 2022
The Best Question You Can Ever Ask a Donor
Jul. 26, 2022
How We Can Get Rid of That Terrible Thank You Letter
Apr. 05, 2023
How to Create a “Guide to Giving and Getting Involved” for New Parents
May. 26, 2023
How Can You Make Sure Your School is Ready for the New Millennial Super Donor?
Dec. 04, 2023
Why Are Your Donors Not Participating?
Fundraising Tactics
Jan. 10, 2018
How Can We Create a Strategic Fundraising Plan That Actually Works?
May. 09, 2018
How Can We Make Sure Our School’s Annual Report Isn’t a Scam?
Nov. 07, 2018
How Do I Get Rid of My School’s Phonathon and Raise More Money?
Dec. 12, 2018
How Can We Make Our School’s Annual Auction More Successful?
Aug. 14, 2019
How Do We Get a 100% Return On Our Annual Fund Appeal Letters?
Jan. 07, 2020
How Can You Know if Your School is Prepared for a Capital Campaign?
Jun. 01, 2020
How One School Reimagined its Gala and Raised Over a Million Dollars
Sep. 30, 2020
How Do the Recent Tax Changes Impact Giving?
Oct. 06, 2020
How to Quickly Create a Legacy Program at Your Independent School
Jan. 24, 2021
How to Use Permanent Life Insurance to Help A Donor Make Their Largest Gift –Ever
Feb. 04, 2021
Giving Circles Taken to the Next Level
Feb. 19, 2021
Ignoring “The Gap” and Moving Away from a Scarcity Mindset
Nov. 30, 2021
Major Gifting with Elizabeth Carter
Aug. 08, 2022
How Can We Earn the Opportunity to Make That Big Ask?
Oct. 03, 2022
What Makes a Great Case for Support?
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The Head of School
Interviews
The Nirvana School
Summer Projects
Unsexy Money
