by Barbara Barron | Posted September 9th, 2026 | Subscribe to this newsletter
For so long, we lived with our development and admissions departments operating in silos.
They grew, as so many things do in schools, out of caution. This one the possible perceived conflict that might arise if the admission and development offices were too cozy.
What admission decisions might development unduly influence?
What awkward conversations might occur if the admission office mentioned giving in any way?
Certainly, we all know of those tricky moments. Some schools deal with them almost daily. Applying parents coming to the school for an interview with a check in their pocket. Or the hint dropped about how “generous” they are elsewhere and will be once their precious child is admitted. Good admission pros know how to handle those moments — but even if they do, no one likes them.
So, what evolved were these silos. Admission in its world, striving to meet crushing expectations and hit stellar yield numbers. Development in its, flying blind about the new families enrolling until far too late in the process to do their best work. And never -or rarely – did the two mix.
Today, I’ve seen (and argued for) more collaboration and transparency. I see it happening, albeit slowly. The addition of the communication office helps. In fact, I’ve written about the ways those three offices can work better together. That’s here.
But this article is about how we in development/advancement can partner with admissions, without stepping on toes.
So let’s get into that:
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Partnering with grace
- Like most everything, I advise to invest in the relationship first. It was early days at my new gig in San Francisco when I met with the long-standing admission director. I said something that made her eyes light up: that I only wanted to be helpful. So simple. And yet, it set a tone that served our evolving, and ultimately trusting and successful partnership well. I spent many of our standing, weekly meetings listening to her talk about her history at the school, learning about the political landscape among peer schools, and coming to understand the challenges she and the school faced in a highly competitive market.
- With that foundation beneath us, I was able to ask for more information about incoming families, a bit sooner. Not the first year. But it happened. We began to meet in the spring rather than the late summer to review the list of new folks. She knew what kinds of wealth indicators to look for but she hadn’t made a habit of recording it. But as she began to share that information with us earlier, we were able to do our research and then set up much earlier meetings with promising prospects to ask for their support.
- Once I left that job to start my consulting business, I took that good experience, as well as the unsatisfying ones I’d had elsewhere, to my clients. I clearly remember the first client who took me up on my recommendation to collaborate with admission to create a “Guide for Giving & Getting Involved”. That was six years ago. Recently, I was delighted to see a slew of schools sharing their versions of that tool. Not taking credit for it! Just love when a good idea has legs and gets shared between schools.
- Helping admission officers talk about philanthropy and what new families can expect is a solid gift you can give your admission partner because that’s not generally where their experience lies. And remember, they’ve been warned against getting near that subject for the reasons I mentioned above. Finding shared language about the ways families can expect to be invited to join, participate, and give is only right and proper. And respectful. Why would we NOT let families know what’s coming?
- Finally, and back to relationships, I advise making it a priority to find ways to support the admission office in their work. That might be attending open houses to welcome and register families. Or maybe help create valuable and fun new parent events. We in development tend to know who to host. Use your skills to gloss up those events and at the same time, get a chance to meet new people early on, without any agenda. Seeing your friendly face early in their experience will serve those parents and you as well when the time comes to reach out to talk about the school’s giving program.
It must be said that the other key ingredient in this recipe for success is your Head of School. Hopefully, they understand the value of a good partnership and will support the time and resources needed to create and sustain it. If there is resistance, share this article. Maybe use my expression of wishing to “be helpful.” And be patient. Some silos are harder to dismantle than others.
Thank you for everything you’re doing!
Barbara Barron
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BARBARA BARRON is one of the most respected and highly sought-after independent advancement professionals in the country, having worked with dozens of schools in every corner of the United States.
She has raised over $20 million for schools where she served as the Director of Development. Barbara is a New York Times bestselling author, speaker, and presenter who currently advises dozens of schools in various capacities. She is considered a thought leader in the world of advancement, with her writing widely shared by professionals in development offices worldwide.
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