A presidential transition can be a challenging time, and those critical first conversations will set the tone for the partnership ahead. by Sasha Egorova, Academic ImpressionsInterviewing Jake Heuser, Bradley University Welcoming a new president can be an unnerving event for the whole campus. It can particularly be a challenging time for the vice president of advancement and the advancement team. Those critical conversations in the first few weeks of a new presidency can set the tone for the partnership between the president and the chief advancement officers in the months ahead–a partnership that will be critical to the health of the institution. We recently spoke with Jake Heuser, VP of Advancement at Bradley University, about what it takes to ensure a smooth transition. Heuser has been at Bradley for over 10 years, having raised over $100 million dollars while working with two presidents during his tenure. A couple of years ago, Bradley went through a presidential transition. Reflecting back on that experience, Heuser offered some key insights on how to establish a productive VP/President relationship during a presidential transition – and three steps to engage your new president effectively in fundraising. 1. The First Meeting: Overprepare, Have a Plan, But Stay […]
Supervision is much more than informal meetings and annual performance reviews. This online training examines a supervisory model that can help you develop the capacity of your employees. You will learn: Keys to being an effective supervisor Questions to use in creating a meaningful supervisory relationship Methods for establishing trust An effective supervisory structure (when to meet and what to cover) How to discuss areas for learning and improvement Join us online to learn how effective supervision can improve your team’s performance and results.
by Kathy Edersheim, President of Impactrics How does an alumni affinity group get started and, perhaps more importantly, what makes it sustainable beyond the initial excitement? There are many right answers and many challenges along the way. The key is to develop some guidelines and learn from other institutions’ successes as well as from their failures. The Yale Alumni Non-profit Alliance (YANA) is one example of a resounding success that can be a model for the formation of other affinity groups. Before you begin the hard work of forming the group, consider: In 2010, these fundamentals seemed to be in place for YANA. Here is the story. Getting Started YANA started with a casual remark to me at a cocktail reception in 2010: “Hello, my name is Ken. We met once before – Do you have a few minutes to talk?” Actually, Ken had been thinking about the idea for a new shared interest (affinity) group for a while. That evening at the reception, Ken described his idea to create a platform to share best practices and provide support for anyone interested in the non-profit sector whether as a professional, a funder, or a board member. He had questions – […]
With nearly 17 years’ experience in higher education, Laura’s passion for and commitment to students remains her primary focus. She believes deeply in meeting students where they are and in supporting them fully so that they can get to where they want to be. At CMU English, Laura developed the Major Buddy Program, which connects prospective and newly declared majors with current students in the Department so that they can get an inside perspective on the student experience while meeting peers with similar interests and goals. She also serves as a representative of the CMUSafe Ambassador Program, where she assists the CMU community with emergency preparedness and safety measures. Laura is an active member of the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA), and she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, plus Theatre Arts and a Master of Arts degree in English, both from Duquesne University.
It doesn’t matter if you are a Major Gift Officer working as a liaison to the athletic department or a Director of Athletic Development. Now more than ever, to effectively raise money for your college athletic department you must have a successful partnership with your Athletic Director. Many advancement professionals working with college athletic departments do not have a background as a coach or an administrator. So how can you, as the athletic fundraiser, build a successful partnership with your Athletic Director? Unfortunately, there is no magic formula to help build this relationship, but here are four steps you can take to get started: 1. Schedule a weekly meeting with your Athletic Director. If a weekly meeting isn’t possible, then make sure it is at least bi-weekly. These meetings will ensure that you, as the frontline fundraiser for the athletic department, have a strong understanding of the current needs of the department. While you’re meeting, you’ll also have the opportunity to coordinate upcoming travel and additional events that require the Athletic Director’s attendance. It may also be helpful for you to attend athletic staff meetings and for your Athletic Director to attend development meetings going forward, to further strengthen the connection […]
Nancy has been bringing practical, collaborative methods to organizations and communities facing complex issues since 1980. Nancy has extensive experience in designing and facilitating large group, task-focused, strategic meetings. She has applied this expertise to cases related to strategic planning, organization redesign, critical cross-boundary meetings, and leadership development. Nancy is clinical assistant professor in the Organization Development Leadership Program at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine where she teaches courses on Appreciative Inquiry, Systems Literacy and Leader as Meeting Designer and Facilitator. She designed and facilitates a multi-day Leadership Institute for Friends Services for the Aging and the Penn Foundation. Nancy received her PhD in Applied Learning Theory from Temple University.
By Amanda Morrow, SHRM-CP, Human Resources Business Partner, Rice Universitywith editing contributions from Melinda English, Rebecca Gould, and Susann Glenn Panic Over one year ago, the isolated whispers of a novel coronavirus grew into a boisterous, full-blown pandemic alarm that reverberated across the globe. As a result, universities and colleges worldwide were suddenly tasked with leading their staff, faculty, and students through unprecedented challenges and unforeseen complications. We, here, at Rice University in Houston, Texas, were no exception. On March 5, 2020, our Crisis Management Team alerted the campus that a staff member who had been under quarantine with a possible case of the coronavirus has tested positive for the disease. While swift action was taken to isolate the affected individual and those with whom they had contact, this news catalyzed sudden and wide-reaching action across campus. As the implications of SARS-CoV-2, a highly contagious, airborne disease, began to take form, the Human Resources (HR) team sprang into action. Our team immediately began supporting efforts to close down the campus to only essential personnel; to provide critical guidance to supervisors as they sent most (if not all) of their employees-home to work fully remote; to redesign how work was being […]
One seasoned enrollment manager offers practical strategies for making your admissions team high performing, high morale, and effective. When I took on my role in 1997 as director of admissions at Elizabethtown College, the extent of my leadership and management experience consisted of serving as captain of my college track team several years before. While I’d worked hard as an admissions counselor and was beginning to feel a genuine connection to admissions work and higher education, I did not think of myself as a leader. I suspect my experience is fairly common among those who find themselves (or will find themselves) in positions of leadership in an admissions office: lots of enthusiasm, little experience. Though I still make mistakes, I’ve learned a few things about leading and managing an admissions team. But for this post, I asked my own team for some feedback about what does generally work, and what doesn’t. Responses to my inquiry resulted in my first observation about self-management and reinforce how important it is for admissions leaders to solicit feedback from team members! I hope these observations are helpful. UNDERSTAND YOUR TEAM Understanding the characteristics and acknowledging the complexities of the team is a must. Most […]
Irma leads the University of South Carolina’s efforts to support students in integrating learning within and beyond the classroom through the university’s signature learning initiative, USC Connect. A key component of this initiative is the opportunity for students to graduate with leadership distinction by meeting experiential and integrative learning criteria as reflected in their required ePortfolios. As the former associate dean for academic and student affairs of the College of Education, Irma led efforts for the university’s recognition by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education in meeting clinical experience standards at the highest (target) level. She is also integrally involved in coordinating work for the university’s continuing recognition by the Carnegie Foundation as a Community Engaged University. Irma’s PhD is from Syracuse University in teaching and curriculum. She has twenty-six published articles, has been invited to speak at twenty-five presentations/keynotes, and has presented over fifty refereed papers at conferences such as the American Educational Research Association, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and Rejuvenating Schools through Partnerships [in Hong Kong]. Her most recent publication will appear in the Peabody Journal of Education in 2014. It is entitled The Challenges Never Stop! Two Decades of Reaching for the […]
Start with Yourself. Unlock Your Leadership Strengths. Whether you’re managing projects, coaching others, or building your leadership identity, this path helps you lead with greater awareness, clarity, and adaptability. These self-guided resources are designed to meet you where you are—helping you deepen your self-awareness and apply practical strategies in your day-to-day leadership. This learning experience is ideal for: Individual contributors and rising leaders Team leads and frontline managers Department chairs, program directors, and supervisors Take the Five Paths Self-Assessment Included in membership or available for individual purchase. MEMBERS Take the Assessment NON-MEMBERS Purchase the Assessment Learn How to Interpret and Apply Your Results Attend a Live Debrief Session with a trained facilitator (recommended). Register for the September Debrief ➞ Register for the October Debrief ➞ Watch the On-Demand Overview Course at your own pace. View On-Demand Video Course ➞ Not a member? Start with the Free Webcast. View the Free Webcast ➞ Build Real-World Leadership Skills Turn insights into impact with our self-guided Leadership Skills Course—designed to help you apply the Five Paths to Leadership® to everyday leadership challenges like delegation, feedback, meetings, and more. This flexible, on-demand course features: Short, self-paced lessons you can complete on your own schedule […]
