Breakout Sessions H
Day Two | Thursday, November 14, 2024
1H: Management for Volunteer Groups and Committees
Tracking volunteer involvement within an organization and a community is essential to measure a constituent's interest in your organization. Implementing and maintaining high-quality data standards when recording group and committee assignments takes discipline and a great business process. In this session, Leslie Coonfield, Director of Compliance at the University of South Carolina, and Derek Clark, AVP of Advancement Services, will run through a case study of how they implemented a business process and system implementation to track their constituents' internal group involvement and community involvement. She will walk the attendees through system improvements and the business processes they established over the last few years.
 Leslie Coonfield, Director of Data Compliance at the University of South Carolina, has 25 years of experience in Higher Education in University Technology Services, University Housing and University Development. Leslie's expertise lies in data organization.
 In 2018, Derek Clark joined the University of South Carolina as Assistant Vice President of Advancement Services. His professional career experience includes 11 years at the University of Georgia in advancement services management and 11 years at General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC) in the financial business redesign and optimization management roles. Prospect Research & Prospect Management, Information Technology, Revenue & Compliance, and Analytics & Client Solutions for the Division of Development are his responsibilities as AVP at the University of South Carolina. Derek's professional organizational position includes being a member of the Advancement Management Best Practices Committee of AASP and a past chair. He is also a past Blackbaud CRM Higher Education Product Advisory Group (PAG) chair. In his career, Derek has overseen two successful fundraising system conversions at UGA and the University of South Carolina on time and under budget. The latter of the two conversions occurred 100% remoted during March-August 2020 of the pandemic. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Georgia in Management Information Systems and a master's from Central Michigan University in Business Administration.
2H: On the Other Side of Go Live
This past summer, Emory University's Advancement & Alumni Engagement Division went live with Affinaquest but this isn't a story about sprints and data conversions. This is the story of how Emory transformed their technology stack, reimagined their teams, and refreshed their governance program to drive innovation across the division. Join us to learn more about what it takes to ensure that your organization is prepared to take actualize the benefits of your new system on Day 1. Join us to learn more about how Emory has reimagined their teams, technology stack, and governance program to drive innovation across the organization.
 Dr. Mark Walcott has over 20 years of experience in technology-related and advancement services roles focused on Data Analytics, Data Management, and technological innovation. He serves as the Assistant Vice President of Technology and Business Intelligence within the division of Advancement and Alumni Engagement at Emory University. Dr. Walcott actively speaks on a variety of topics and has served on Blackbaud Higher Education Executive Advisory Board, Multicultural Leadership Institute (MCLP) Board, and other organizations focused on community and technological Advancement. As a Vice President of aasp, Dr. Walcott is focused on continuing to build the profession through the strategic growth of aasp.
 Heather Greig is a CRM Consulting Director and the Industry Delivery Lead for Huron’s Advancement Portfolio. Her focus is digital transformation in Higher Education Advancement. Most recently, Heather led Advancement’s digital transformation to a Salesforce ecosystem for the University of Florida. With more than 20 years of experience, Heather has served numerous roles across the Advancement profession – from student caller to annual giving director to consultant to executive leader. Heather is committed to the role that Advancement plays in actualizing an institution’s mission and believes in the power of innovation in a Salesforce ecosystem to drive growth in private support and constituent engagement.
3H: Culture Management: How to Keep Morale High and Turnover Low
Are you an Advancement Services leader concerned about staff turnover and how to keep your employees engaged? You're not alone. According to aasp's most recent career survey, employees care the most about a positive work environment. But what does that mean, and how can you manage it, especially given the post-pandemic, new world of work? Join aasp President and Jessica LaBorde and her management team for a deep dive into how they manage culture at UC Davis. Hear Becky Ferguson, Meg Padovani, and Danielle Burgess talk shop on how they keep their teams engaged and fulfilled at work, all on a budget.
 Jessica Schrider LaBorde is the Assistant Vice Chancellor of Advancement Services for the University of California, Davis. Jessica and her team develop and provide advancement services solutions with the front-line fundraiser in mind. With nearly 25 years of experience in corporate sales, political and nonprofit fundraising, and philanthropy operations, Jessica is passionate about improving both internal and external processes to drive a leaner, more efficient business while supporting the UC Davis philanthropic goals and priorities. Jessica is active in CASE as both a speaker and an awards judge for Advancement Services Programs. She holds a BS in Mass Communications and a BA in English Literature from Appalachian State University and has completed her Executive MBA. When not fearlessly leading her team to new professional heights, she takes pleasure at home and abroad by gardening with her tween twins, supporting farm-to-fork initiatives, and sampling family-owned wineries and microbreweries with her charming husband. She is also a voracious reader who enjoys napping nearly as much as turning pages.
 Dr. Becky Frantz is the Executive Director of Customer Services at UC Davis Advancement Services. In this role she oversees the Business Relationship Manager team, focused on user data and system needs, as well as the Service Desk and Training team, who supports getting users access and onboarded to the division supported systems. In addition to her other responsibilities, Becky is a campus expert in data security, risk assessment, and business continuity. Becky holds a PhD in Education and Human Resources from Colorado State University and Master's degree in Higher Education Administration from Penn State University. Becky continues to champion philanthropy operations through her service on the Association of Advancement Services board of directors. She is also trained specifically in applied statistics and was a National Data Policy Fellow sponsored by the NSF and Association for Institutional Research. Before UC Davis Becky spent time in the Development and Alumni shops at Stanford and Penn State.
 Danielle Burgess is the Director of Gift Services at UC Davis. With over 10 years of experience in Advancement Services, Danielle has worked in gift policy and data roles, including assisting with the development and implementation of GREAT, UC Davis's CASE award winning centralized gift processing system. In her free time, she loves to binge watch nostalgic TV, trying out local eateries and walk the UC Davis arboretum with her son.
4H: Setting the Standard: A Case Study in Building a Funds Management Program Driven by Data
Are our donor funds being utilized? Are there any fund issues we need to address? Should we be worried when we send out our annual donor fund reports? If you've ever had these concerns, you're not alone. In recent years, many nonprofit organizations have been grappling with similar questions, finding little guidance on this vital aspect of any advancement operation. Join us in this session as we look at the University of Nebraska Foundation's journey to grow its funds management team from the ground up, leveraging donor fund data along the way. It's time to bring the discussion on funds management challenges out of closed-door conversations and begin an industry dialogue to identify what tools, resources, and standards need to be in place to successfully manage and steward donor funds. Whether you are new to funds management or seasoned in the field, come prepared to share your experiences and glean insights from others in this collaborative space.
 Aaron Rouse is the Director of Fund Stewardship and Management at the University of Nebraska Foundation. He leads a team that manages over 11,000 donor funds that support the University of Nebraska. Aaron came to UNF in 2014 as a Prospect Information Manager and moved into his current role in 2016. Before that, Aaron was the Donor Relations Manager for Omaha Performing Arts (2012-2014) and the Special Projects Assistant and Assistant Director of Development for Hastings College (2008-2012). Aaron is an active volunteer with CASE, presenting at conferences, volunteering on numerous committees, and serving as the CASE District VI Chair (2022-2024). In recent years, he has been featured in multiple publications and has spoken about his work in funds management. A graduate of Hastings College (Neb.), Aaron holds a B.A. in Business Administration and Human Services Administration as well as an MBA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
 Hannah Althouse is the Assistant Director of Funds Management at the University of Nebraska Foundation. In her role, she helps to maintain fund coding standards for more than 11,000 donor funds and acts as a liaison with University staff on fund management and stewardship. Hannah joined UNF in 2017 as a Prospect Information Manager and moved to the Funds Management team in 2021. Previously, Hannah was the Manager of Membership and Advancement at American Farmland Trust in Washington, D.C. (2014-2016). A proud Cornhusker and farm kid, Hannah is a business graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and earned her Master of Public Administration degree from the George Washington University.
5H: Is Your Team Functioning Effectively?
Recently the Records and Gifts team at UCF conducted an internal assessment of the team. Workloads, communication channels, processes, knowledge gaps and documentation were all evaluated. By completing this assessment team members have more defined roles with clearer expectations and accountability. Standard operating procedures, training documents and workflows were updated or created. Team members were able to share feedback anonymously leading to improvements in team dynamics. Overall, the team is more efficient, and the team members are more content.
Sauntel Richardson
 Kelly Travis is the Assistant Vice President of Advancement Services and Strategic Operations at Rollins College. In her current role she oversees teams responsible for Data Management, Gift Services, Prospect Development and Technology. Prior to transitioning to Rollins College Kelly served as the Senior Director of Records and Gifts at the University of Central Florida.
6H: What Does "Good" Look Like? Learning To Set Data Driven Benchmarks For Your Fundraising Program
Are we on track to meet our goals for the year? Which donor populations are growing over time? Are we successfully moving donors to higher giving levels? Having a clear understanding of your organization’s fundraising trends will help your team identify and expand high-performing donor segments, while addressing areas that are underperforming. In this session, we'll discuss the key metrics you should be tracking and you'll learn how to set data driven benchmarks for your fundraising program to maximize donor growth.
 Catherine Ross is a Senior Fundraising Analytics Consultant at Blackbaud. She brings over a decade of experience in direct response fundraising techniques, frontline fundraising, and comprehensive capital campaigns. Prior to joining Blackbaud, Catherine led the annual giving program at the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law. In her current role, Catherine works with nonprofits to analyze their fundraising trends, helping to identify opportunities for growth and pinpoint vulnerable areas for course correction.
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