GIVING from the female perspective

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GIVING from the female perspective

• Sandra Keiser Edwards
• Associate Vice Chancellor
• University Development
• University of Arkansas

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GIVING from the female perspective

• Considering ways in which women can be
  meaningfully engaged in private gift support

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Women in PhilanthropyWomen and
PhilanthropyWomen of PhilanthropyWomen for
PhilanthropyWhatever the preposition its
about the role women play in your private gift
fundraising effort.
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Survey of Participants

• Have a giving program for women?
• Have a major giving strategy which includes women
  as a specific segment?
• Are considering a program specifically for women?
• Are caught in the spandex phase?

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Purpose of Discussion

• Explore ways in which
• Women can be meaningfully engaged in major gifts
• Women can be meaningfully engaged in a giving
  program at the annual level providing positive
  public relations and a first step in cultivation

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Purpose of Discussion

• Not our intent to promote one way of involving
  alumnae or a specific type of program
• Nor to recommend starting programs which require
  more support and/or overhead than you and the
  institution may be able to effectively manage

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Purpose of Discussion

• Help navigate a discussion which aids your
  initial thinking about creating a program or in
  the refinement of an existing program

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Taisho Chic Japanese Modernity, Nostalgia, and
Art Deco Japanese art of the greater Taisho
period (1900-1935)
Nakamura Daizaburö, Woman (detail),
1930Two-panel screen ink and color on silk, 59
x 79 in. Purchased with Marjorie Lewis Griffing
and Beatrice Watson Parr Funds, and the Estate of
Selden Washington, 1994, HAA 7547.1
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Alumnae 1940 to 1960

• Women were able to quickly assess the needs of
  the community through their neighbors, friends,
  schools and community organizations.
• Needs requiring modest funds and volunteer time
  were immediately addressed in an organized, but
  by todays standards casual way

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For Example.

• Ruth Keiser
• Polly Klein
• Eleanor Shorts
• Marian Tait
• Frances Loving
• Opal Moretz
• Evelyn Smith
• Anne Drummond

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Key Words --- Key Attitude

• Desire to be useful
• Expectation to help
• Supportive of educational concerns
• Supportive of women and womens issues although
  not necessarily self described feminists
• Opinionated, self-confident

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Situation Today

• The women from this era represent our oldest
  alumnae
• Their daughters are in their 40s 60s ---
  likely professionals
• Their granddaughters are in school or recent
  graduates preparing for careers or graduates of
  the past decade influenced by both generations

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Situation Today

• Our schools offer professional, well-managed
  programs which are very cuttingedge,
  leading-edge
• Where is the actual need for involvement and/or
  help?
• How can our programs be accessible and high
  touch?

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Alumna as Major Donor

• Characteristics
• Active volunteer/leader
• Financially prosperous
• Engaged in detail of program or gift
• Results-oriented/human values

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Pattern of Solicitation

• Solicit him in his office
• Focused on his degree not hers or theirs
• Largely transactional
• Him multiple years/larger gift
• Her now/butter egg fund

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Changing.

• How do you break out of this pattern?
• Pay attention to gender diversity

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Manner of Approach

• Establish connection determine role of spouse
• Engage in dialogue about her/their values
• Introduce to faculty/students involved in areas
  of interest
• Let prospect drive development of proposal
  (highly interactive)

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Building a Prospect Base

• Womens networking groups
• Cycle of cultivation is longer but productive
• Look to your volunteers
• Look also to alumni who volunteer for others
• Carefully examine the family wealth
• Address her interests separate from spouse

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Cultivation As Group Effort

• Focus Group Activity
• Request help in defining new programs, trends,
  interests (Deans Group The Muses)
• Gather where they live (outreach) as well as on
  campus
• Involve, listen and report back
• Effort must be genuine and lead somewhere

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Womens Giving Circle

• Convene leaders within a specific interest group
  to the College to support women, women in
  agriculture, women in health and human
  development, or women in support of the college
  in general

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Womens Giving Circle

• Strong core of volunteer leadership
• Highly-defined purpose
• Endorsed by dean or academic leadership
• Defined structure
• Managed by development office

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Success of a Circle

• Strong buy-in of college
• Built-in focus group
• Ideal for cultivating major giving prospects
• Blend of new donors with established
  philanthropists a place where major donors can
  mentor and a place where new donors can be
  nurtured

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Elements of a Circle

• Sharing resources everyone contributes the same
• Determining what programs will be supported and
  how these will be determined
• Deciding how funds will be allocated

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Womens Giving Circles

• Purpose-driven
• Results-oriented
• Sense of accomplishment for the Circle and the
  recipients

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Structure

• Must determine level of annual gift which is a
  stretch for some and but still meaningful for
  others
• Need to live with that gift level for at least
  three years
• Most at 1000, some at 500

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Benefits of a Giving Circle

• Provide active involvement in giving
• Level the playing field of giving
• Raise the sites of modest or non-donors
• Allow modest gifts to be leveraged
• Provide environment women enjoy

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Findings

• The more hours women spend volunteering the more
  likely they are to provide financial support to
  those same organizations.
• There were no differences in motivations of women
  based on age.

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Findings

• Why Women Volunteer
• Enjoy it
• Want to socialize
• To make a difference
• To give back

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Beginning

• A third-party, neutral, unrelated, unbiased
  facilitator for planning
• Establish governance
• Establish funding practices
• Establish solicitation methods
• Agree on membership levels
• Terms of membership