2023 Friday February 10th Sessions

All times are Pacific Time.  Note that recordings for all sessions (except in-person-only sessions as noted) will be available for viewing after the conference. 


9:00-10:15 a.m. Breakout Sessions

Alumni Relations and Annual Giving – Ideas for Collaboration
Kathleen LaManna and Mariam Khwajazada, Mount Saint Mary’s University
Auditorium Room

The Institutional Advancement team at Mount Saint Mary’s University recently reconfigured its organizational structure so the Directors of Alumnae Relations and Annual Giving could work side-by-side to activate alumnae and build a donor pipeline. In this session, we will highlight opportunities for collaboration between these two departments, including student philanthropy, young alumni engagement and establishing a “Traditions” framework. Come and share success stories, struggles and goals for a successful partnership between your engagement and fundraising teams.

Developing Your Leadership Annual Giving & Major/Planned Gift Prospect Pipeline
Laurent “Lo” DeJanvry, Meeting of the Minds Laureate
Mountain Vista Room

Join perennially-popular MOTM presenter Lo DeJanvry for a discussion about leadership annual giving prospect identification ideas and engagement strategies — and developing a healthy prospect pipeline up through major gift fundraising.

Gift Processing 101 – Dates, Receipts, Metrics, Copying, Scanning
Mallory Wiswell, City of Hope, Jennifer Garcia-Do, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), Anita Lawson, Southwestern Law and Erin Gale, UC Davis
Hillside West

This “audience participation” session will attempt to answer fundamental gift processing and entry questions that have raised concerns for decades! We will begin by asking the audience to list the gift processing issues rearing their ugly heads in day-to-day gift processing. The panel will try to suggest solutions to those conundrums and reflect on national best practices. The panel will also come prepared to discuss various topics, including gift dates, receipt requirements, gift processing metrics, copying/scanning requirements, and recurring giving issues, among others. You are encouraged to email your discussion topics ahead of time if you prefer to be anonymous!

Let’s Chat: A Conversation on All Things P2P
Rachel Cleary, GetThru
Hillside Central

GetThru has been in the person-to-person texting and calling game since 2016. In that time, their team has seen it all—from regulations changes, emerging best practices, innovative campaigns, and more. In this session, GetThru’s Rachel Cleary will briefly present on those topics and then facilitate an informal conversation with you, the audience. P2P veterans and newbies alike should join us to share your own experiences, swap best practices and messaging ideas, and get your P2P questions answered.


10:30-11:45 p.m. Breakout Sessions

The Best of the 2022 Annual Giving Idea Exchange
Bob Burdenski, Robert Burdenski Annual Giving
Auditorium Room

For 23 years, Bob Burdenski has hosted an annual exchange where hundreds of institutions share thousands of annual giving innovations, ideas and success stories. Awesome appeals, terrific technologies, dynamic discoveries and marvelous messages. It was a great year of pushing the envelope in direct mail, digital and beyond. Come and see CASE Innovations in Annual Giving author Bob Burdenski dump out his bag of BOB (Best of the Bunch) favorites for some of the clever fundraising ideas of the year.

Using Analytics to Identify, Engage, and Cultivate New Prospects
Elissa San Juan, Cal Poly Pomona, Jeff Callaghan, Loyola Marymount University, and Jessica Channell-Iler, UNLV
Mountain Vista Room

In the spring of 2022, Cal Poly Pomona, equipped with a new database, new prospect ratings (tons of them!), and a charge from above to put the new tools to use in finding our best prospects. Loyola Marymount University and UNLV have also delivered similar successes. Learn about the journeys, teamwork, analysis, and leadership that resulted in a strategic and comprehensive implementation plan for identifying, engaging, and cultivating new prospects. Share in our recent successes and challenges on this journey.

Creative Funding Models for Advancement
Laurie Ogg, Sonoma State University and John Taylor, John H. Taylor Consulting, LLC
Hillside West

Educational institutions, healthcare and other nonprofit organizations all face a similar fundraising challenge: How do you invest in advancement program growth on the front end while you wait for the increased gift revenue on the back end?. Planning your next capital campaign will highlight the specifics, with readiness planning likely identifying the need for increased staff, technology, stewardship, marketing and more. “It takes money to raise money,” but how do you manage while you’re in the middle of it? This session will discuss a variety of fundraising funding models and the pros and cons of each. Then, the panel will share how their own institutions manage program funding – with some lessons learned for those considering funding solutions.


12:00-1:00 p.m. Closing Session

Closing Session – Minds Met: Favorite Take-Aways, Moments of Inspiration and Predictions
Bob Burdenski and John Taylor
Auditorium Room