Course Category: Free for All-Inclusive Members

The Role of Philanthropic Conversations in Families

Transferring values, not just dollars, is the essence of philanthropic conversations in families. These conversations rarely occur with families who have the actual capacity to give, however. Whether your alumnus identifies as middle-class or is part of a family with a long-storied history with your institution, cultivating conversation among their closest familial ties is often the missing link when developing strong and sincere relationships with multiple generations. Join us in this first of a three-session series on family giving. In this training, you will gain insights into the role of philanthropic conversations within families and why it is important to bring institutional values into the familial relationships you’re stewarding.

Research & Scholarship at Mid-Career: Reboot, Reset, Reimagine

Faculty commonly struggle with research at mid-career. Some may struggle with a stagnant research agenda and reduced scholarly productivity, while others may question their commitment to the research agenda that led them to tenure. In this course, you will learn a process for resetting, rebooting, and reimagining your research and scholarship so you can get back on track and design a research plan that aligns with where and who you are at your mid-career stage. This course is designed for mid-career faculty who are seeking guidance to plan the next steps for their research, including tenured and career faculty who: To support you through this process, we will explore three paths to mid-career scholarship and research: building and leveling up your current research agenda, exploring new research strands, and developing a SOTL agenda. We will discuss the merits of each path within specific institutional contexts, as well as long-term career goals, and identify key strategies so you can move forward with a research agenda that aligns and reflects you in this current moment.

Effective Donor Cultivation Strategies for Academic Deans

Donor cultivation is a critical element of sustainable fundraising practices. Academic deans must employ strategies that are aligned with the donor’s personality, values, and philanthropic outlook to meaningfully develop the donor relationship. Without this intentional approach to donor cultivation, less strategic fundraising strategies may cause a dean to fail to build a relationship with a donor that would allow them to contribute through the institution in a way that is aligned with how they want to impact the world.  Join us for this one-hour training to learn how to use specific strategies to foster relationships with your donors in individualized ways. You will identify the key principles of donor cultivation, learn what to listen for in donor conversations, and consider different methods of donor engagement while working through real-world donor scenarios.

Freedom of Speech, Academic Freedom, and DEI: A Complicated Relationship

Within higher education, the debate related to the First Amendment and academic freedom—and whether or not they are a hindrance to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives—continues to be a polarizing topic. During these uncertain times, it’s more important than ever that campus leaders are armed with facts as well as critical perspectives, to assist them in their ability follow the law while also creating meaningful learning environments for faculty, staff, and students. This training aims to remove the assumption that diversity initiatives struggle to coexist within the parameters of free speech and/or academic freedom. During the session, we will explore and explain areas where the priorities of DEI and academic and political leaders overlap, rather than diverge. You will come away with a greater understanding of the interrelationships among the three and of how to offer support when the values of faculty, staff, or students remain in conflict.

Building Racial & Cultural Literacy

Changing demographics in U.S. higher education are leading many of us to increase our understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion to engage with students and colleagues more meaningfully. Racial identity and its intersection with other social identities play a prominent role in how individuals experience higher education as a place of work or learning. This video course is designed to increase your understanding of racial identity, power dynamics, and privilege within the higher ed context. Our expert instructor, Dr. Domonic Rollins, will help you learn the definitions of key terms, reflect on your own identity and its connection to privilege, and power, and apply your racial and cultural literacy to real-world scenarios. Accompanying this course is a workbook designed to help you put your knowledge into action.

The Key to a Chair’s Success: Situational Awareness of Your Department

This course is designed for any/all department chairs who want to develop a greater awareness and understanding of their department and its strategic position within their institution. You’ll be introduced to a four-step process called an environmental scan, which allows you to systematically research and assess your department’s history, trends, and strategic position—all of which influence the way others view and engage with you and your department. You’ll further explore how your environmental scan can help you to make better decisions, make a case, communicate effectively with your stakeholders, leverage institutional collaborations, and empower others throughout your department.

Building Communities of Practice: Extended Orientation and Development Programs for Campus Leaders

At this time of continued transition in higher education, institutions are regularly welcoming new leaders at all levels. Many institutions do not have well-developed, intentional practices for fully onboarding new leaders in ways that will help them understand the culture, complexity, and wide range of responsibilities and expectations of their position. Additionally, many leaders are relatively isolated in their roles from a wide-ranging support network across their campus community. Developing a program that will impart new leaders with a clear sense of how to be successful in their role and at the institution, share resources that will support their transition, and provide intentional opportunities to build relationships can supplement what any one specific department or area is able to provide to ensure success for the new leaders on campus.  Join us to learn how creating extended orientation and development programs can shorten transition periods and set a strong foundation for success. Using the Virginia Tech Academic Leaders Program and New Senior Leader Cohort as models, we will explore essential programmatic elements, learn how to make the case for such a program, and hear about pitfalls to avoid.   In this training, we will cover:  

Maintaining Collaborative Momentum After Securing a Transformational Gift

Identifying and cultivating a major donor whose personal beliefs and philanthropic vision align with institutional purpose is no small task, and securing a transformational gift from such a donor is a significant accomplishment for any institution. Not only can such a gift transform the lives of current and future students, but it should also shift the ways in which the advancement shop engages with campus partners, the donors themselves, and alumni and other potential donors.  Using her experience with Western Michigan University’s Empowering Futures Gift, Kristen DeVries, Vice President and Executive Director of WMU Foundation, will share how a transformational gift can motivate additional alumni and donor engagement. In this two-hour training, you will consider how to establish clear internal processes and communication methods that will allow you to use momentum from a transformational gift to inspire others to contribute to historic institutional change. 

Bridging the Equity Gap in Higher Education

Bridging the Equity Gap in Higher Education July 31 – August 1, 2023 Build equity on your campus by focusing on retention and completion for historically marginalized students. Welcome to your course page for your virtual conference! We’ll be adding links to meeting rooms, schedules, social media, and course materials as they become available. Make sure to check back as it gets closer to your conference! EVENT INFORMATION Check back soon for links! ENSURE YOUR TECHNOLOGY IS READY This workshop is intentionally designed to allow for maximum learning, connections, and engagement. We advise the following in order to participate fully: Audio & Visual Needs

Leading Your Research Group with Clear Communication and Intentionality

As institutions push for more interdisciplinary research both internally and externally, faculty must also manage more complex research teams. While teams may unite around a shared project, without unified expectations for aspects like who will be an author or how to share data, collaboration can be difficult, and the research project may not be successful. Leaders of research groups from labs to interdisciplinary teams working at multiple institutions must therefore learn how to set up shared guidelines and expectations in order to manage the project from start to finish. This course is intended to help leaders of research groups of all sizes learn how to manage research projects with clear communication and intentionality. Our expert speaker will walk you through how to think about the guidelines that should be in place for peer review, authorship disputes, data management, creating a safe research environment, and collaborative research. You will also learn some common pitfalls in each of these areas and be able to use the accompanying workbook to plan out your collaboration and communication with your team.

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