Faculty Development: Ideas for a More Inclusive Classroom

According to the 2014 Open Doors Report, the number of international students at US colleges and universities increased by almost 8% from 2013. As colleges become more culturally diverse, it’s imperative for faculty to enhance their understanding of intercultural competence to better serve and retain this important student demographic. However, many faculty struggle to embrace and take advantage of diversity in the classroom. Join us for an online training that outlines intercultural competency essentials that every faculty member can incorporate into their classroom. In this practically focused session, you will learn important cultural considerations that will help you to incorporate all learners in a global classroom.

Trends in Higher Education
Performance-Based Funding

While states and institutions across the country experiment to find successful funding formulas, all will agree that performance-based funding (also termed outcomes-based funding) is once again gaining momentum. A majority (60%) of states have already adopted measures to allocate public funding on the basis of outcomes, and many more plan to follow suit. The time is now for your institution to begin thinking about how performance-based funding models can represent state and institutional interests while achieving better student outcomes at your institution. Join us for a webcast that addresses key national trends and developments within performance-based funding. In addition, our expert presenters will address ways your institution can collaborate with legislative personnel in developing fair and equitable formulas for allocation.

Direct Mail: Back to Basics

Direct mail continues to be a staple for most advancement shops and annual giving efforts, but the popularity of flashy mailers can leave you wondering what might be best for your shop. To ensure that the foundation of your mailing efforts is strong, it may be time to return to a more basic approach to your direct mail strategy. Join us for an online training as our expert instructor provides cost-effective direct mail strategies for segmenting, messaging, and scheduling that seamlessly integrate into your overarching annual giving strategy.

Marketing Your Planned Giving Program

Most planned giving shops have a marketing plan, but how effective is it? Whether you’re collaborating with a communications team or on your own, an integrated marketing and communications plan allows you to work smarter, not harder. An effective marketing plan will uncover unknown gifts, identify new prospects, and engage current donors—allowing you to demonstrate a tangible return on investment. Join us online to learn how one institution has developed a strategic marketing program that both informs their donors and serves as an effective stewardship tool. Our expert instructor will share practical takeaways for implementing these tactics, regardless of shop size and resources.

Launching a Crowdfunding Initiative

Is your shop interested in developing your own crowdfunding initiative, but unsure how it will complement your current advancement strategy? Crowdfunding can increase alumni engagement and participation while serving as a cost-effective tool for: Acquiring new donors Updating alumni contact information Re-engaging lapsed donors and identifying their philanthropic interests Serving faculty and students in their most pressing needs Being able to integrate a crowdfunding initiative into your overall strategy is crucial to any successful effort. Join us online to learn how to bring crowdfunding from inception to launch, while ensuring that this latest fundraising innovation helps boost your overall program.

Strategic Financial Aid Allocation for Retention

Financial, academic, and social challenges make student retention a complex issue on any campus. Amidst this complexity, many institutions continue to widely allocate limited financial aid funds without a clear understanding of which students are most incentivized by financial support. Those who are able to accurately target students most in need of financial incentives for degree completion, however, ensure the strongest investment for their students and their institution. Join us for an online training that will help your institution to develop strategic plans for retention-driven financial aid allocation. Primarily, we will address: Which students will be most impacted by financial aid incentives How to design a cost/benefit analysis for optimal financial aid allocation When to communicate and distribute financial aid awards to improve retention

Global Considerations for a Modern Campaign

International alumni are often overlooked in campaign efforts. However, a campaign is a great opportunity to engage your institution’s increasingly diverse constituents. While many institutions may be intimidated by the prospect of a global campaign, your shop can successfully accomplish a global campaign by: Identifying your international alumni base Gathering and reviewing important alumni data Planning international events and donor visits Join us online to assess your institution’s readiness for taking your campaign global and intentionally plan for international alumni involvement in every stage of your campaign.

Fundraising Essentials: Advancing Your Career for Underrepresented Professionals

While the advancement profession has grown increasingly diverse, senior management and chief advancement officer roles remain largely male and white. Women have made strides into senior management roles across the field in recent years, but many are not compensated at the same level as their male counterparts. As institutions attract increasingly diverse student populations, it is important that the diversity of the campus community is reflected across the administration as well. Now is the time to create your career plan and focus on moving into a senior management role. Join us online to gain the tools to guide your career path towards senior management while effectively negotiating compensation and overcoming perceived performance gaps. Our expert instructor will address the following key questions: How do you become an executive director, vice president, or associate vice president of advancement? How do you map your career path to get to the top position? How do you negotiate a competitive salary? How do you assess your professional environment for growth?

Proactive Strategies for Controlling
Admissions Turnover

Turnover is an inevitable part of contemporary admissions work, but not all of it is out of your hands. Proactive and ongoing training, management, and evaluation of your admissions staff can go a long way toward promoting employee retention, thereby cutting cost and increasing the overall productivity of your office. Join us for an online training program that will teach you how to proactively manage turnover within your admissions office. You will come away from the program with concrete strategies that you can use to increase job satisfaction and promote retention among your admissions employees, including: Designing a deliberate and ongoing training plan Connecting employee performance goals to metrics Facilitating opportunities for advancement

Conducting a Self-Audit of Your Retention Data and Programs

Student success initiatives are often widespread, and they impact multiple areas of a single institution. However, campus administrators often don’t have enough program information to strategically allocate resources to the initiatives that create the most impact. This can lead to wasted resources and misaligned attention on programs that do not contribute to student success. Join us for an online training session that will help you understand how your retention team is measuring the success of the retention programs you have in place. You will leave with a worksheet that organizes the institutional programs, goals, and students related to these initiatives.