8-9:00 a.m. – Continental Breakfast
Seating/Networking in Ballrooms B and C
9-10:15 a.m. – Breakout Sessions
Sandbox Fundraising: The Creative Ask
James Wasilewski, VCU
Ballroom A
The Ask should be a creative experience and journey. We, as fundraisers, are representatives, advocates, researchers, storytellers, guides and connectors who navigate and help shape, mold a sandbox of options for a donor. Preparation and practice as a listener and creative partner, with your organization’s priorities in mind, will allow you to a provide be a compass for a conversation about support. This also helps with an approachable and enjoyable solicitation experience. Participants will review the elements of an ask and explore the approach of “Yes, and” to acknowledge and build as a portion of fundraising through discussions and exercises.
A Chat About CFRE
Gloria Goosby CFRE, Obama Foundation, and Cameron Hall CFRE, University of South Carolina
Ballroom B
Earning the Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) credential is a professional milestone recognized worldwide as the standard for fundraising excellence, ethics, and commitment to lifelong learning. In this engaging discussion, seasoned CFRE professionals will share their personal journeys toward certification, the career advantages they’ve experienced, and the ways CFRE has enhanced their credibility with colleagues, donors, and employers. Panelists will also discuss practical benefits such as professional growth, networking opportunities, and how CFRE helps strengthen the fundraising profession as a whole. Whether you’re considering certification for yourself or encouraging your team to pursue it, this session will offer valuable insights and inspiration.
Thriving in a Small Shop Environment: Strategies, Successes, and Support
Ric Stewart, Shelia-Marie Stacy, ERAU, and Kanisha Fowler, Gardner-Webb U
Multipurpose Room
Join us for an engaging panel discussion tailored for annual giving professionals working in small shops. Our seasoned panelists will share effective tactics and strategies that have driven success, from grassroots campaigns to innovative digital appeals. Whether you’re looking for new ideas, seeking advice on overcoming specific challenges, or wanting to connect with others in similar roles, this panel is for you. Come prepared to ask questions, share your experiences, and leave with a network of colleagues (bring your business cards!) ready to support each other in our critical work.
Ditch the Guesswork: Leveraging Benchmarks to Make Smarter Fundraising Decisions
Catherine Ross, Blackbaud
Ballroom C
Learn how to zoom out from annual tracking and explore how benchmarks can guide your multi-year fundraising strategy. With data driven benchmarks, you can ditch intuition and guesswork to start distinguishing real trends from outlier behavior and focus on long-term growth. Whether you’re looking to lift retention or move donors up the pipeline, you’ll leave this session with the tools to establish meaningful benchmarks, identify high performing donor segments and feel confident about what “good” looks like.
10:15-10:30 a.m. – Break
10:30-11:45 a.m. – Breakout Sessions
Inside “Forever ETSU” – A Week of Giving and Gratitude
Desmond Pierce, Eastern Tennessee State University
Ballroom A
ETSU took a bold step and rebranded its traditional Day of Giving into a full Week of Giving & Gratitude driven by data, analytics, and a desire to deepen engagement across campus and community. Using insights from donor behavior and participation trends, they segmented the week to spotlight different audiences and tailor messaging for maximum impact. In this session, we’ll take a deep dive into the rebranding process, share what worked, what didn’t, and how we’re evolving our approach moving forward.
Here’s how the week unfolded:
Day 1: Faculty & Staff Giving Day – Celebrating the generosity of those who make our university thrive from the inside.
Day 2: Make a Gift Today – A direct appeal to our broader donor base with personalized outreach.
Day 3: 423 Day – Bucs Say Thanks – A day of gratitude rooted in our local area code, highlighting appreciation for our supporters.
Day 4: Student Day – Empowering students to give back and get involved in philanthropy.
Day 5: Community Festival – Wrapping up the week with a vibrant celebration open to the entire community.
We’re excited to share our journey and lessons learned and hope it sparks ideas for your own giving initiatives!
Roundin’ Up the Team to Grow Reunion Giving
Cynthia Uviedo, Trinity University
Ballroom B
Over the last decade, Trinity University has been roundin’ up the team to strengthen our reunion giving program. By bringing together partners from Major and Planned Giving and Alumni Relations, we built a strategy that truly engaged our reunion alumni. These collaborations helped us double the number of volunteers and quadruple our average reunion gift amount. Come hear how recruiting the right trail bosses and wranglers—our dedicated volunteers—has set us up for years of success on the reunion giving trail!
Annual Giving, AI and You: Who’s Using AI To Do What – Right Now?
Bob Burdenski with Bethany Wallace, John Brown University, George Crocker, East Carolina University, Moderators
Multipurpose Room
You’re the contributors for an instant inventory and discussion about who’s using AI for exactly what at the moment. Using open-ended Menti questions on the various uses of AI, we’ll compile and discuss the uses in the room for:
◾ Your First “Gateway” Use of AI in Your Personal and Professional Life
◾ Using AI To Write “First Drafts” of Content or Messages?
◾ Using AI As a Search Engine to Find Answers to Questions?
◾ Using AI To Create Graphics, Video or Designs?
◾ Using AI To Review Your Work For Clarity, Voice, Biases, Etc.?
◾ Using AI For Summarizing Content or Notes – Meeting Recording Minutes, or Groups of Messages?
◾ Using AI For Automation/Coding/Programming?
◾ Other Ways You Use AI?
◾ What Tools Are You Generally Talking About When You Say “AI”?
While there are still many proud non-adopters (including those with environmental concerns), join us for a look at who’s incorporated AI into their work – and how.
Principles of Ethically Influencing Annual Giving
Clark Gafke, LEAD Philanthropy
Ballroom C
Discover the science behind donor motivation in this engaging and insightful session! Principles of Ethically Influencing Annual Giving will equip you with eight proven principles—Authority, Consistency, Contrast, Liking, Reciprocity, Scarcity, Social Proof, and Unity—that inspire donors to make meaningful gifts to their university. Rooted in the groundbreaking research of the Cialdini Institute, these principles provide a framework for authentic and ethical donor engagement. Clark Gafke, a Cialdini Certified Professional and Ethical Influence Practitioner, will guide you through the subtle yet powerful elements of everyday communication that drive generosity. With practical examples and actionable takeaways, this session will empower you to build stronger connections with donors and achieve sustainable results in annual giving. Whether you’re a seasoned fundraiser or new to the field, this session will improve the way you approach donor engagement!
11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m. – Lunch
1:15 p.m.-2:15 p.m. – Breakout Sessions
Navigating the Space: Identity, Challenge, and Purpose in Advancement
Harold Williams, Jr., Old Dominion University
Ballroom A
What does it mean to build a career in advancement while navigating the complexities of identity and representation? This session shares findings from a qualitative study focused on the lived experiences of African American development professionals at Predominantly White Institutions in the Southeast. Through powerful insights and direct participant voices, we’ll explore how identity shapes professional experiences, the challenges faced in advancement roles, and the more profound sense of purpose that drives fundraisers to persevere and lead. Attendees will walk away with a new perspective on staff support, motivation, and retention—key factors in building stronger, mission-aligned advancement teams.
Talk Data to Me: Annual Giving Data and Segment Analysis that Matters
Amy Marks, Space Center Houston with Bob Burdenski
Ballroom B
Ever feel overwhelmed by endless fundraising data or, worse, endless data challenges? You’re not alone. Join us for a series of round table conversations where we cut through the noise and focus on getting to the metrics that matter most…to you. Bring your questions and headaches; we’ll work together on what gets in the way of measuring and analyzing the success of your annual giving program. Is your data informing how you best spend your time or budget, or is something missing? Session leaders will visit core metrics —donor retention, return on investment, program coverage, response rates —and why segmentation is so important to your growth strategy. Participants are invited to share how they learned annual giving data management, reporting and analysis, plus how they’ve turned these numbers into actionable insights. Walk away ready to measure smarter and raise more.
Boost Your Fundraising Efficiency with ChatGPT
Bethany Wallace, John Brown University
Multipurpose Room
AI can’t replace your voice—but it can speed up your process. This session shows how to use ChatGPT to improve communication, save hours each week, and stay ethical by protecting donor data and avoiding generic AI tone. We’ll look at the difference between the free and paid versions of Chat GPT, how to create better prompts, and how to safely create and train your own custom GPT for your organization.
Trendy with a Chance of Impact: A Practical Guide to the Big Picture
Felicity Meu, GiveCampu
Ballroom C
Discover the key trends shaping advancement strategy and execution—and how they apply to your institution. This session will share insights from a meta analysis of philanthropy research, GiveCampus data, and real-world examples. You’ll leave with actionable tools and data to evaluate your performance, understand how peers are adapting, and identify opportunities for meaningful impact.
Key Learnings:
◾ Understand the most significant trends currently influencing advancement strategy and execution.
◾ Connect these trends to your institution’s specific goals and challenges.
◾ Gain insight from aggregated data
◾ See real-world examples of how peers are responding to these trends.
◾ Identify where your institution can take action to drive measurable impact.
2:15-2:30 p.m. – Break
2:30-3:45 p.m. – Breakout Sessions
Career Paths in Annual Giving
James Wasilewski, VCU, Amber Countis, Texas A&M Victoria, Heather Locke Green, UTSA and Laurie Soenen, College of Charleston
Ballroom A
Session description to follow.
Loyalty Societies in Higher Education: Strengthening the Culture of Sustained Giving
Kanisha Fowler, Gardner-Webb University
Ballroom B
How Loyal Are Your Donors? Loyalty societies do more than recognize consistent giving, they also help shape a culture of long-term support and deepen donor engagement. What may start as a simple thank-you can evolve into a powerful strategy to retain annual donors, welcome new ones into the fold, and identify prospects for major or planned gifts. In this session, we’ll explore the purpose, structure, and impact of loyalty societies across higher education. You’ll gain practical ideas for launching or refining your own program—regardless of your institution’s size or budget—and learn how sustained recognition can lead to transformational giving.
Fundraising at the Edge: Real-World Ethics for Annual Giving
and Advancement Professionals
Nikki Rader Ed.D., John Brown University
Multipurpose Room
Fundraising professionals operate at the intersection of mission, money, and meaning—and increasingly, that means navigating complex ethical terrain. This session explores real-world ethical challenges faced by annual giving teams, advancement services, and frontline fundraisers. From honoring donor intent while supporting evolving institutional priorities, to using personal data responsibly in an age of AI, participants will examine the nuanced decisions that shape ethical fundraising practice. We’ll unpack the ethics of storytelling in appeals and donor reports, explore transparency in restricted and unrestricted giving, and consider how recognition and incentives can influence donor expectations. Additional topics will include how to handle gifts from controversial donors, and the pressures of closing gifts under ambiguous circumstances. Through case studies and guided discussion, attendees will gain practical tools for ethical decision-making, sample language for policy and appeals, and strategies to foster a culture of integrity within their advancement teams. This session is ideal for anyone in annual giving, advancement services, or frontline fundraising who wants practical tools to lead with integrity and navigate tough conversations with clarity and confidence.
Donor Personas and Journey Mapping: What It Is and How to Do It
James Barnard, BWF
Ballroom C
Everyone is talking about personas and journey mapping… but how does this actually help us meet our fundraising goals? In this session, we’ll explore the ins and outs of creating donor personas, and we’ll learn what journey mapping is (and what it isn’t). Attendees will learn tangible approaches to help you better understand the interests, motivations, and decision-making process of your donors so you can tailor strategies and messaging accordingly.
3:45-4 p.m. – Break
4-5:00 p.m. – Breakout Sessions
A Giving Day Forum: Extended Days, Additional Days, Giving Tuesdays, Google Analytics, Multichannel Metrics, Dean Diplomacy and More
Sharon Horinka and Shayna Long, UNC Charlotte
Ballroom A
Many “mature” giving day fundraising programs are now ten years old or more – and the timing, the duration, the metrics, the purposes and methods have all changed and evolved over that time. Join us for a giving day check-in: How do you (continue to) define success? What about Giving Tuesday? How do you achieve campus cooperation? What if we did this more than once a year? And for more than 24 hours? Join us for a giving day forum.
A Healthcare Annual Giving Forum:
Patients, Physicians, Providers, Policies, and Pipelines
Paige Rowell, St. Joseph’s/Candler Foundations, with Bob Burdenski
Boardroom
Healthcare institutions offer their own challenges (HIPAA) and opportunities (grateful patients, healthcare professionals, companies and the community) for annual giving fundraising. Join us for a forum that will share group information and discuss topics including:
✔ What does the prospect journey look like: from acquisition to renewal to major giving prospect?
✔ Using digital options to the fullest: emails, unique web landing page, ongoing impact updates;
✔ Tribute and 3rd-party giving-making the process easy and meaningful;
✔ What’s new in stewardship;
✔ Valuable vendors – Who are you using? Email vendors? Print? Business Associate Agreements?
✔ Giving initiatives: Doctor’s Day, Giving Day, Nurses Week? Do these help?
Fundraising During Times of Change
Amber Countis, Texas A&M University-Victoria
Ballroom B
The University of Houston-Victoria (UHV) is officially transferring from the University of Houston System to the Texas A&M University System, a change signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 27, 2025, and set to take effect on September 1, 2025. UHV will become Texas A&M University—Victoria and will be the 12th university within the Texas A&M University System. With that backdrop, join Amber for a discussion on how to manage fundraising during times of change, and how she’s navigating the advancement transition for her institution.
Direct Mail: 5 Things You Should be Testing
Sara Pond and Matt Sulzer, MCR
Ballroom C
Testing, testing 1, 2, 3… Are you testing your direct mail approach? Join MCR to learn 5 things you should test, how to perform a quality test, and lessons learned from client results – plus, view a smorgasbord of direct mail samples! Implementing these elements into your upcoming campaign will reveal insights about your audience, identify donor patterns and help you develop a sound fundraising strategy.
GetThru Sponsor Session
Matt Hirschy, GetThru
Multipurpose Room
Session description to follow.