A previous article "Growing Funds for Higher Ed Veteran Programs Through Philanthropy" covered the basics of what every veteran program and office should compile to start working with their institution's development officers (DOs). And more importantly, why it's so vital that they do. Here we dig deeper into understanding development, return on investment, and stewardship.

Now that you have the carefully crafted story of your student veterans, having a little knowledge about what your DO needs to build an observable, measurable and repeatable process, will go a long way when building a strong philanthropic base of financial support.

Understanding Development

There are entire organizations dedicated to understanding and educating both the professional and the layman about development (and I encourage you to learn more). For our purposes, having a little understanding of what your DO does to create the opportunity for a donor's gift will as they say 'help you, help them, help you'. Here are five important considerations.

1. It's an art and a science. Philanthropic development, like many professions involving human nature, cannot be completely scripted. Planning and preparation are crucial, but every skilled development officer prepares for the unexpected. The donor is the driver; the DO is the navigator. You, your organization, and your students are the fuel.

2. Development does not equal fundraising. While related, development has a deeper commitment to a unique experience for each donor. Fundraising is often transactional, casting a wide net to the masses in hopes of finding support; optimally, development is not transactional, but more about the relationships built between each donor and the program (and your students), relationships that are designed to exist for a lifetime.

3. This requires teamwork. Successful development requires a 'synergy' between you, your staff, and the development team. This can include sharing of trusted information like budgets, priorities, and unit goals that can then be married to a donor's philanthropic profile (areas of giving, capacity to give, timing, etc.).

4. The DO is a conduit.You may get lucky and pair with a DO who is currently, or has, supported veterans before, but that is not the norm. So as the DO learns about a potential donor's passions, they bring you, the subject matter expert on student veteran support, to the table to make a connection that leads to a gift.

5. The donor gets 51% of the vote. As much as you may want to fulfill a need in one area of your organization, donors will give to the area that most grabs their passion. Accept that gift with gratitude, be a good steward of that gift - it may payoff later in the area you wanted with another donor or with the original donor that sees how well you have stewarded their gift (more about that later).

Understanding Donors

Within the process of each donor cycle lies an understanding of who potential donors might be and the ways they may contribute to your student veterans. The obvious donors in the higher ed space are your military-affiliated alumni; beyond their devotion to the school, the ability to help veterans that made the same choice they did is the easiest connection. However, local veteran and community organizations, corporations that express support for veterans and veteran employment, foundations and other non-profits, your athletic department, and recent student graduates are also great sources of support. Do not limit your alumni pool to alumni veterans; often alumni that have family members who served want to honor their family member. Finally, a good DO will always ask individuals if their employer will match all or a part of their gift (some companies will even match retiree's philanthropy).

Understanding Different Types of Support

As varied as the types of donors, so too are the ways in which they can support your organization. These can include cash/check, securities, wire transfer, or an after-life estate, to name a few. The donor's impact can be felt at the individual student level (scholarships), the program level (individual program funds), or the institutional level (think 'big ideas,' funding an entire center, institute, or funding infrastructure). The way you see the funds generally reveal themselves in one of two ways: direct funding or endowments. Direct funding is a gift where the entire amount of the gift is provided to your scholarship or program. The endowment is an investment fund where your scholarship or program sees a stipend from the earnings of the invested gift. Directed giving is great because the 'flash-to-bang' is immediate - $25K directed is money you can spend today on the area the donor supports. The endowment is smaller in the short-term but is a legacy gift: $25K donated into an endowment today may return $1K annually but will impact the program far beyond the monetary value of the original gift. And don't forget gifts left by a donor after they are gone; often a donor may not have the means to give now, but can leave a sizable 'Planned Gift' in their estate.

While most gifts end up as cash in your budget, they can also represent tangible items like student consumables (gift cards, event tickets, food, clothing, etc.), organizational items ("gifts-in-kind" - computers, furniture, group opportunities, or experiences), and re-usable items (e.g., books, school supplies, graduation robes). Each can make a difference at just the right time for your student veterans.

Understanding Return on Investment

Donors don't want to give you money, they want to invest in a brighter future. At the end of the day, philanthropy is a value proposition - donors want to know how their investment will impact students, institutions, and communities. So, it is important to monitor the impact of their donations and document the impact for them and future donors.

For each donation you receive (monetary, consumable, gifts-in-kind, or reusable), it is important to articulate back to the donor:

• The number of students supported
• The impact of their gift on:
  • Student debt reduction
  • Graduation rates
  • Employment rates
  • Student experience (survey students who were impacted by the donation to see how it helped support them)
  • Staff resilience (staff turnover remains a challenge across many veteran centers).

Your DO's ability to articulate this 'return' grows the likelihood that you, the DO, and the perspective donor will get to 'yes' with today's gift and grow the potential for the next gift.

Understanding Stewardship - Giving Back to Your Donors

In philanthropy, it is often said that 'your next best donor is the last donor.' This has everything to do with how a donor feels throughout the experience. You have an impact on this feeling, both in the short and long-term. Feeling a sense of gratitude from the students impacted, from you, and from your team can mean the difference between a single transaction and a long-term relationship that can include repeat and more impactful giving. The easiest way is a thank you note to the donor from you or, in the case of a scholarship or program opportunity, the students who benefitted from the gift. Hand-written is best, or if typed, a hand-written line next to your signature. A thank you gift (plaque, or article about their gift in your institution or foundation's magazine or newsletter) is something the donor can hold on to and share with others. Hosting an annual donor appreciation event where donors get to meet the students that benefit from the donor's philanthropy often has an immense impact, particularly if the students and staff say 'thank you' directly or as part of the event program. At the end of the day, that gratitude is what donors want most - to know that their gift is making a difference. And managing this well will pay off with more gifts, either from the current donor or with a referral to the donor's circle of friends, family, and colleagues.

Despite your institution's best intentions towards the student veterans on their campus, most do not have the resources to meet the full needs of any cohort, and student veterans are no different. Even with limited access to your development team, building a trusting relationship with a DO can pay off for your students. Well managed philanthropy can fund some to all of the program and scholarship needs of your student veterans. You and 'your DO' are the team that will maximize those opportunities.

Article Topics

Military Educational Benefits Military Friendly Institutions Serving Military in HigherEd Veterans Academic Success Working as a Veteran in HigherEd

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