Transcript Best Practices Plus’

‘Best Practices +’
Exploring additions to community
college development programs
Copyright, charley ansbach 2010
Prepared by
Charles J. Ansbach, CFRE
Managing Partner
West Coast
Summary
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We are in the midst of a global recession;
California was hit hard.
This will end.
However, ‘the earth moved’ under the nonprofit
sector.
The crisis accelerated changes in nonprofit
fundraising, management and donor relations.
California community colleges have the core
directions for building and growing an effective
development program clearly presented in the
“Realizing the Potential of California Community
College Foundations” report.
Individual colleges continue to demonstrate how
to personalized that core concept.
Meanwhile, before the recession, the interests
and concerns of donors to community nonprofits
started to change, creating an environment that
can and likely will impact college donor relations.
Understanding those changes and using what is
valuable for community colleges
to augment campus development
is focus of this discussion.
Campus Development
is Constantly Evolving
“Fund-raising by public colleges and
universities has been important in their
founding and operation throughout U.S.
history….Fund-raising methods appear to
differ little from those used in other nonprofit organizations, particularly in
cultivation of donors and donor
involvement in the institution.”
Public University Fundraising, Janet Herrmann & Siegfried Herrmann
What’s Happening in the
Nonprofit Community?
“Business as usual (for
nonprofit organizations) is
out…..This is the time for
creativity and innovation.”
Diana Aviv, President
Independent Sector in
Chronicle of Philanthropy
April 27, 2009
It Wasn’t the Recession
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Donors started to push back
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Ceaseless and ever-increasing asks
Growing redundancy among organizations
Little or no improvement in the issues
Results were undefined and too costly
Growing desire for direct personal involvement to get
measurable results
The recession accelerated the process
Donor demands are causing a surge in:
 Business-like
management
 Measurable outcomes
 Sustainable income models
 Capacity building
Change Concepts
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Mission re-focus
Business models
Value propositions
Return on investment
Social enterprise
Public/private partnerships
New uses of technology
Program Related Investments (PRI’s)
Social mission-based for-profit investments
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Output versus Outcomes!
An organization must
produce something of
measurable and meaningful
value to the community
and donor/investor it serves.
Donors (& Other Funders) are on
the Move
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On-line giving & social
networking
Personal engaged philanthropy
& strategic giving
Venture philanthropy
Foundation program related
investments (PRI’s), loans &
multi-year grants
Corporate social responsibility
& value based partnerships
Social mission for-profit
investing
….PLUS traditional giving
Social Entrepreneurs
J. Gregory Dees, author of Enterprising Nonprofits,
describes social entrepreneurism as:
“(Social enterpreneurism) combines the passion of a
social mission with an image of business-like discipline,
innovation, and determination commonly associated
with, for instance, the high-tech pioneers of Silicon
Valley….Major social sector institutions are often viewed
as inefficient, ineffective, and unresponsive. Social
entrepreneurs are needed to develop new models for a
new century.”
Venture Philanthropists
Venture Philanthropy is the practice of making
grants to non-profit organizations in the style of
a venture capitalist: with high engagement, clear
objectives, measurable progress, often targeting
organizational growth (via capacity building).
Funding for general operating purposes (rather
than only specific projects) shows trust in the
investee. From: The Reuters Digital Vision Program
A Few Examples:
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Pride Industries
MicroCredit Enterprises
Greyston Bakery
Teach for America
Fair Trade Coffee
Rubicon Programs, Inc.
Jaipur Foot
Auralabs Eye Care
World of Good
Reach the Children
…and many more
Corporate Partnerships
(Value Propositions)
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Name recognition
alone now has
minimal value.
Value propositions
have eclipsed
donations &
sponsorships
Public/Private Partnerships
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Public/private partnerships bring both
sectors together to accomplish something
of public value that neither could have
accomplished as well or easily alone.
For nonprofits, this can mean the public
sector supports overhead costs while the
private nonprofit provides the service.
There are countless variations.
College Development
is also Changing
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Vision & strategy
Perceived relevance (Brand) & performance
Campus-wide buy in & communication
Donor-centric cultivation/solicitation/recognition/
communication/continuation
Affinity groups, scholarship focus, faculty
involvement, and student involvement
Community engagement
Accountability & reporting
Faculty & Students Play Growing
Roles
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Faculty
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Ambassadors
Inspiration
Community involvement
Engagement, training, mutual benefit
Students
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Word-of-mouth promotion
Social networking online
Community involvement, showcase projects
Earned Income/Social Enterprise
are Already Part of Campus
Funding
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Bookstores
Dorm rental
Ticket sales
Research services
Certificate programs
Travel services
Technology transfer and licensing
…and more
What can Community Colleges Learn & Use
from Changes in Nonprofit Fundraising?
The Basics Remain Vital
in Times of Crisis
"This (recession) is not the time to retreat or
retrench … On the contrary, fundraisers should
be spending more time with donors, sustaining
and building relationships that will endure when
the economic situation has stabilized."
John Lippincott
President
Council for Advancement
and Support of Education
Lessons from the Nonprofit
Community
Some initial take-a-ways can include:
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New methods to personalize donor involvement
New ways to recognize donor contributions
Methods for engaging venture philanthropists
Developing value propositions for corporations
Developing effective new ways to quantify
program outcomes
Identifying more social enterprise and earned
income opportunities
Sample Exploratory Questions
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Can the current economic stimulus program be used to
provide funds and student learning opportunities at
community colleges?
Do the needs of returning veterans represent
educational and income/donation opportunities for
community colleges and employers?
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Can social enterprise and venture philanthropy
be applied to developing additional, sustainable
sources of income to support education
programs in community colleges?
Community colleges in South Carolina are
partnering with an invention-on-demand
company to offer new courses in inventiveness.
Financial support may come from inventiondependant companies. Can this apply in
California and attract donations and grants?
Can community colleges glean portions of
income generating and fundraising methods
from larger universities, such as:
Co-op Employment
Graduate Recruitment
Professional Development
Executive Engagement
Sponsored Research
Technology Transfer
Strategic Investment
(source: Northwestern University)
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DISCUSSION