Best Practices for Your School's Fundraising Efforts
Find guidance for the many people involved in advancement work, including trustees, heads, development and alumni officers, volunteers, consultants, and business officers.
NAIS Resource Guide: Advancement and Fundraising
A lively school community has hallways bustling with students, faculty, and staff, but there’s work behind the scenes as well. It takes the generosity of donors, with thoughtful guidance from the head of school and the advancement team, to keep things running. NAIS has the best practices, tools, and resources you need to work with your alumni and your community to fund your school’s future for years to come.
Start Here
Reference Guides for Varied Fundraising Roles and Responsibilities
Boost your school’s bottom line with books such as the Handbook of Philanthropy, Gifts That Give Back, The Planned Giving Primer, and The Trustee’s Role in Fundraising.
Advancement Issue: A Strategic Look at How Advancement Connects the Dots
From communicating independent schools’ value proposition to establishing their financial security to engaging the families and community that support them, the advancement function is critical.
DASL Databook Offers In-Depth Look at Giving Numbers
Download the advancement section of the DASL Databook to discover trends and figures for annual and capital giving for your school and selected comparison groups.
Deep Dive
Member Voices: Insights into the Field of Advancement
Phil Higginson, assistant head of school for institutional advancement, Ravenscroft School (NC), discusses
the advancement field and shares best practices for funding the future.
Fundraising Tips for Independent Schools
Independent schools can face many challenges, and sometimes even very good institutions struggle financially. These fundraising tips offer advice to help keep your school strong.
Eight Things to Know Before Fundraising for Major Gifts
Establishing an ongoing major gifts program is an important professional responsibility of a development director, as fundraising success often depends on major gifts.
Finding the Right Development Director for Your School
Leading a school’s fundraising is an energizing challenge but not an easy job, so hiring the right development director is paramount. Here are tips on finding the right fit.
Advancement and the Big Ask: What to Say and How to Say It
This webinar provides best practices and practical advancement strategies for heads of school and ways to strengthen the partnership with the development office.
Alumni Relations Engagement Strategies
Maintaining positive connections with alumni is mission critical, as they can offer their time and talent, volunteer as fundraisers, and donate to annual and capital campaigns.
International Student Programs: Six Tips for International Fundraising
Here are strategies for navigating the nuances of international fundraising, including how to integrate international perspectives and manage cultural norms thoughtfully.
How to Make Your Development Activities More Inclusive
Inclusion must be an important value and goal for an entire independent school community, and that should extend to making sure inclusion is evident in fundraising work.
Video: How One School's Unique Approach Relies on Fundraising
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Additional Resources
- NAIS Legal Advisory: Comprehensive Analysis of Tax Reform Legislation
- NAIS Research: 2018 NAIS Survey on Non-Tuition Sources of Income
- Looking Ahead: New Financial Models in Schools
- Handbook of Philanthropy Excerpt: Creating a Culture of Philanthropy
- NAIS Legal Advisory: How Antitrust Law Affects Independent Schools