2024 Foundation Leadership Forum: Schedule

(generally smaller foundations operating as a closely integrated component of the institution)

Facilitators:
Lori M. Buckheister, senior consultant, AGB
Vita Pickrum, president, Delaware State University Foundation

(generally mid-sized foundations with more independent operations responsible for fundraising)

Facilitators:
Tod Burnett, president, University of Alaska Foundation
Chris Dyba, president, East Carolina University Foundation

(operationally independent foundations that are not responsible for fundraising programs)

Facilitators:
Elizabeth McClanahan, CEO, Virginia Tech Foundation
R. Jason Caskey, president and CEO, University of South Carolina Educational Foundation

Facilitators:
Mike Goodwin, senior consultant, AGB
Jeff Todd, CEO, University of New Mexico Foundation

Facilitators:
Lauren Norris, senior director, board operations and volunteer engagement, University of Maryland Alumni Association
Patricia Smith-Phillips, senior director of board and donor engagement, University of Illinois Foundation

Facilitators:
Susan Taylor Demming, executive director, Elgin Community College Foundation
Amanda Sbriscia, vice president for Institutional Advancement and Executive Director, Holyoke Community College Foundation

Now more than ever, endowments and foundations are faced with the pressing need to evaluate their investment programs, outsourced chief investment officers (OCIOs), and/or investment consultant relationships to mitigate risks and maximize outcomes. As a leader and trustee, what steps can you take to ensure that your organization’s governance is well-situated and working? How can you verify that your relationships function optimally and that performance meets your needs? Additionally, how can you ensure that your policy aligns with your organization’s objectives and culture? This session will provide crucial knowledge regarding benchmarking investment programs and selecting OCIOs and investment consultants effectively. You will learn why oversight and due diligence are essential for foundations, and how to properly assess your provider relationships to ensure they align with your unique needs, paving the way for optimal performance.

Areas of focus will include:

• The importance of regular due diligence
• Strategies for evaluation, oversight, and benchmarking
• Risk mitigation tactics
• Search and RFP best practices

Learn from seasoned experts who have conducted over 90 evaluation and search projects totaling $100 billion in assets. By the end of this session, you will be equipped with the knowledge to strengthen your organization’s position through effective OCIO and investment consultant relationships.

Speakers:
Gregg S. Fisher, investment committee chair, University at Buffalo Foundation
Gregory Metzger, search practice leader, North Pier Search Consulting
Scott Rash, president and CEO, Wright State University Foundation
Jim Scheinberg, managing partner, North Pier Search Consulting

Good governance entails more than simply fulfilling fiduciary responsibilities. A board’s investment in creating good governance and implementing best practice sets the stage for an engaged board, organizational excellence, and enhanced strategic alignment with the institution. This session will bring together leaders of two foundations for a discussion about the ways their boards are leveraging governance fundamentals such as updating the mission, vision, and values; reviewing the institution-foundation MOU and bylaws; and creating orientation and mentoring programs to become more impactful strategic partners to their institutions.

Speakers:
Cheryl Webster Crounse, vice president of advancement, Salem State University Alumni Association and Foundation, Inc.
Annalisa Di Palma, chair, Salem State University Alumni Association and Foundation, Inc.
Julie Fenton, board vice chair, Oakton College Foundation
Katherine Sawyer, chief advancement officer, Oakton College; executive director, Oakton College Educational Foundation

U.S. News & World Report eliminated alumni giving as a factor in its 2024 Best Colleges rankings. This reflects a long-standing trend within alumni relations of focusing on ways institutions can most effectively support the success of students from the classroom into careers and forge mutually beneficial long-term relationships with former students. In this session, leading alumni relations professionals will explore the next generation of alumni relations and strategies to align the work of foundations and alumni associations to support student success, engage new volunteer perspectives, and foster philanthropy in recent and future alumni.

Speakers:
Paul Rucker, executive director, University of Washington Alumni Association
Julie A. Sina, associate vice chancellor for alumni affairs, UCLA

Enterprise risk management (ERM) is an effective tool to identify, assess, manage, and report risks to the achievement of strategic objectives. However, implementation of an ERM program often seems like a daunting task. This session will include discussion of simple strategies to get your ERM program implemented to a degree appropriate for your organization’s complexity and available resources.

Speakers:
Evan Gatian, director of internal audit, West Virginia University Foundation
Robert D. Johnson, chair, audit committee, West Virginia University Foundation Board of Directors

A successful investment policy should address risk and return, liquidity needs, variance tolerance, and, most importantly, mission alignment. Unclear goals, problematic methods of determining risk tolerance, confusion regarding roles and responsibilities, and vague guidelines on evaluating success are just some of the pitfalls in investment policy development. Drawing on case studies and best practices, this session will explore the top 10 mistakes boards make in designing an investment policy and share recommendations for how boards and committees can avoid them. Attendees will leave with an understanding of what to avoid for successful investment policy design, tips and tricks for how to structure committees for success, and insight into how they can apply these insights at their own foundations.

Speakers:
Alexander Kocher, director, Global Endowment Management
Hannah Rahill, associate director, Global Endowment Management
Keith Sauls, vice chair, The College of Charleston Foundation

In today’s data-driven world, organizations across industries are recognizing the immense potential of modern data systems and AI-driven intelligence. These technologies have the ability to identify revenue opportunities, provide cost savings, and drive actionable insights.

During this session, we will delve into futureproofing your organization by maximizing personalization and preferences to unlock the next generation of donors. Understand how this type of technology investment helps organizations attract and retain new talent.

You’ll hear a brief result-oriented introduction to cloud-based infrastructures, automation, and machine learning. Discover how these modern data systems use intelligence to adapt and scale to meet evolving business needs, and how to deal with the macroeconomic forces of tomorrow, through optimizing costs and spending.

Draw inspiration from Mark Koenig, chief innovation officer at the Oregon State University Foundation, as he highlights the achievements and lessons learned from the foundation’s journey.

Speakers:
Rachel Crosbie, vice president of strategy and operations, Fundmetric
Mark Hobbs, CEO, Fundmetric
Mark Koenig, chief innovation officer, Oregon State University Foundation

A ubiquitous meme shows a cartoon dog calmly drinking coffee in a room that is engulfed in flames. He smiles and says, “This is fine.” Many in higher education would disagree. Public confidence in higher education and its value proposition is low. Business models are under stress and many institutions are facing enrollment headwinds driven in part by demographic trends. Public policy interventions and pressures from private interests are challenging board independence and academic freedom. Political and cultural divisions are making the always difficult job of the president more challenging than ever. This session will provide an overview of some of the issues impacting public institutions and foundations and challenge participants to think about the ways their foundations can partner with their institutions to navigate through current challenges.

Facilitator:
Merrill Schwartz, senior fellow and senior consultant, AGB

Speakers:
Carol Cartwright, senior consultant and senior fellow, AGB
Brian Flahaven, vice president strategic partnerships, CASE
Tom Harnisch, vice president for government relations, SHEEO

Join us for an engaging session as we delve into groundbreaking insights on gift officer performance, providing invaluable guidance for leaders seeking to make strategic decisions.

Discover how your organization can leverage the power of AI and automation to enhance fundraiser efficiency and revolutionize one-on-one development efforts. You’ll see examples being put into practice across the advancement sector and learn about potential opportunities to maximize your team’s potential and elevate relationship-based fundraising to new heights.

Speakers:
Brent Grinna, founder and CEO, Evertrue
Nick Linde, vice president of advancement, University of Nebraska Foundation

This session will present a case study of the way the Evergreen State College Foundation Board of Directors has become a strategic partner to advance the institution’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and foster a broad-based culture of philanthropy to support student success. The board’s story demonstrates how board diversity; inclusive, community-based approaches to philanthropy; a focus on student success; a commitment to ethical storytelling; and an innovative campaign model enabled a highly resource-constrained college to build fundraising capacity and establish a foundation-led culture of philanthropy.

Speakers:
Betsy Donnelly, chair, Board of Governors, Evergreen State College Foundation
Dolly England, governor, Evergreen State College Foundation
Abby Kelso, executive director, The Evergreen State College Foundation 

Succession planning is a critical aspect of ensuring the continued success, sustainability, and impact of institutionally related foundations. As leadership transitions become more frequent and the landscape of higher education evolves, it is essential for foundations to have a well-defined roadmap for selecting, preparing, and transitioning their key leadership positions. This session is designed to equip board members, chief executives, advancement leadership, and other stakeholders with the knowledge, tools, and strategies needed to effectively manage leadership transitions and maintain the momentum of their foundations.

Speakers:
Deborah McAneny, board chair, University of Vermont Foundation
Kimberly Templeton, principal, AGB Search
Kimera Way, CEO, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation; consultant, AGB

Now more than ever, developing an effective, long-term asset allocation strategy is critical for endowments and foundations. In addition to optimizing returns, a strategic approach to asset allocation can help institutions navigate periods of market volatility while remaining focused on their long-term goals. 

In this wide-ranging discussion, we’ll explore the ways in which thoughtful asset allocation can impact performance, risk, liquidity, spending, and more. How can asset allocation help endowments and foundations endure periods of market stress while remaining opportunistic? How have traditional approaches to asset allocation evolved in recent years? What does an appropriate policy look like in the current environment? Is it accurate to define “tactical” asset allocation as “short-term,” as is customarily thought? Our panel of experts will seek to answer these questions while touching on a variety of related topics, including: 

• Challenges and opportunities presented by periods of high volatility 
• The (changing) roles of specific asset classes within a long-term allocation 
• Implications for and interplay with spending rate 
• The role of capital market assumptions and modeling 
• The proper balance of tactical and strategic goals 
• Customization of asset allocation for mission-alignment 

Speakers:
James Bailey, chair elect, Kent State University Foundation
Matthew McGanity, managing director, University of Illinois Foundation
Jeremy May, board chair, University of Colorado Foundation
Darren Myers, partner and director of research, Agility
Amita Schultes, partner, Agility

Just as we were getting used to the idea of name, image, and likeness (NIL) collectives, the IRS issued guidance suggesting that NIL collectives may not qualify for the tax-exempt status the agency previously granted. At the same time, 2023 was a pinnacle year for conference realignment in college football. This session will not provide simple answers to all your questions about the ongoing changes in collegiate athletics. It will provide an overview of the current turbulent landscape and serve as a forum for discussion of the ways foundations are navigating the changes and the ways they are working to manage risk and leverage the benefits of collegiate athletics.

Speakers:
Thomas Hyatt, general counsel; specialist and senior fellow, AGB
Dianne Murphy, board chair, Tennessee Tech University Foundation
Greg Willems, president and CEO, Kansas State University Foundation

In the current environment, universities, colleges, and their related foundations must satisfy a wider range of important stakeholders than ever before—stakeholders that can often be at odds with each other. Each governing board must carefully consider the needs and objectives of its specific constituencies and determine how it and the institution can best meet those needs and objectives. However, a foundation governing board must also hold fast to key principles and values to remain true to its mission and serve both the current and future best interests of the institution. This session will bring together members of the AGB Board of Directors for a discussion about the influences buffeting public higher education and recommendations for maintaining mission focus in challenging times.

Ellen Chaffee, interim president and CEO, AGB
Ross Mugler, board of visitors, Old Dominion University
Katherine Sawyer, chief advancement officer, Oakton College; executive director, Oakton College Educational Foundation
Beverly Seay, trustee emirita, University of Central Florida

Since ChatGPT burst onto the scene in late 2022, fundraisers everywhere—from presidents and foundation CEOs to frontline major gift officers—have been exploring whether and how they can—and should—use artificial intelligence (AI). This session will highlight how the College of William & Mary is approaching AI in support of three related goals:

1. Enhancing donor relationships: William & Mary is applying AI to bring more humanity—not less—to its donor relationships.
2. Retaining staff: Many worry that AI will eliminate jobs, but William & Mary is leveraging AI to enrich jobs and heighten job satisfaction by streamlining (or eliminating) the least-loved parts of fundraisers’ day-to-day responsibilities.
3. Boosting results: William & Mary is using AI to increase the productivity and effectiveness of each individual fundraiser, from its leadership annual gift officers to its foundation CEO.

Speakers:
Matthew Lambert, CEO, William & Mary Foundation
Kestrel Linder, co-founder and CEO, GiveCampus

Understanding and managing risk is a fundamental fiduciary responsibility. Climate risk and a rapidly evolving energy economy will both have enormous impacts on investments. Institution and constituent commitments to sustainability are providing an additional incentive for foundations to understand the impacts of carbon and climate on their endowments. This session will provide practical guidance on how to understand and manage climate risk and carbon exposure in your endowment and examples of ways institutions are working to incorporate such insights into risk-return calculations and investment strategy.

Speakers:
Timothy Coffin, director of sustainability, Breckinridge Capital Advisors
Daniel Ingram, partner, Aon
Jeff Mindlin, chief investment officer, ASU Enterprise Partners

The public university endowment is more than a static funding source; it is a dynamic asset that can transform the university’s financial equation. In this session, we’ll share research on endowment best practices and how the most forward-thinking public universities use their endowments for far more than balancing budgets. With the right fundraising, investment principles, and spending policies, endowments can power academic growth, research excellence, and student opportunity. This session will dive into public university and foundation endowment portfolios and the implication of fundraising, spending policies, and strategic investments on the purchasing power of the endowment. We will explore ways to deepen understanding of the current and future role of the endowment, sharing metrics from Cambridge Associates’ peer research. We will consider the impact of strong stakeholder communication to help donors understand the impact of their gifts and university and foundation leadership’s commitment to excellent stewardship of those gifts. There’s a lot at stake for public college and university endowments, and governance can make all the difference. Join this session to learn what works and what doesn’t through case studies and shared experiences.

Speakers:
Tracy Filosa, head of CA institute, Cambridge Associates
John Han, vice president for administration and CFO, University of Hawaii Foundation

Foundations can choose from a wide range of investment services. Fitting investment management services to the circumstances, resources, needs, and investment objectives of your foundation can help ensure that you are making the best use of your staff and investment committee. This session will explore the pros and cons of various investment management models, industry trends, and questions boards should be asking about their investment management model to optimize their investment operations and investment outcomes.

Facilitator:
Sarah Wessling, vice president and leader of enterprise risk, FEG

Speakers:
Michael Aluise, SVP and advisor, FEG Investment Advisors
Jeff Wright, trustee, Ohio University Foundation

External economic circumstances, declining enrollment, and rising costs are putting additional pressure on university budgets. Advancement leaders must make difficult choices about where to invest in order to achieve the best outcomes. However, many of those decisions are favoring short-term outcomes to the detriment of long-term donor pipeline building and future fundraising revenue.

During this session, we will discuss the important balancing act that advancement leaders must perform in order to continually feed a healthy donor pipeline. Topics will include high ROI acquisition strategies, changing dynamics in donor retention, methods for accelerating major gift pipelines, and alignment of roles and goals among your staff to drive toward common outcomes.

Speakers:
Greta Daniels, senior vice president, RNL
Rickey McCurry, president, University of Nevada Las Vegas Foundation

This case study describes how a mid-sized foundation transformed its board and in turn transformed its partner university and the community it serves. Over a period of 15 years, the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire Foundation has evolved from a relatively passive foundation to a critical strategic partner of the university, adapting its board and focus to more effectively align with the strategic priorities of the institution, leverage public-private partnerships, and grow philanthropic investment in the campus and community. Its story illustrates the way that positioning the foundation as an entrepreneurial partner, laser-focused on campus priorities, can also help foster philanthropic investment in the university.

Speakers:
Steven Semingson, director, Blugold Real Estate Foundation
Kimera Way, CEO, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation; executive director, Blugold Real Estate Foundation

Board assessment is a foundational element of good governance. Effective assessments are learning experiences that enable boards to identify key areas of improvement, recalibrate board priorities, ensure board accountability, and demonstrate their commitment to serve the institution. This session will demonstrate the ways two foundations have used board assessments to create more thoughtful, inclusive, engaged, and diverse board cultures. Participants will be encouraged to share their approaches to board assessment and ways they have used assessment work to enhance board culture and elevate the impact of their board and foundation.

Speakers:
Margaret Ann Bollmeier, President and CEO, Medical College of Virginia Foundation
Trishana Bowden, President, George Mason University Foundation

The Iowa State University Foundation, like many other foundations, has an ambitious strategic plan to grow fundraising over the decades ahead. To accomplish that plan, it is undertaking multiple transformational initiatives, leveraging a host of new operational and advancement technologies designed to maximize strategic data assets to reimagine business models and strategy. This session will explore some of the ways digital transformation is elevating the foundation’s performance and efficiency. In addition, participants will learn how the foundation is engaging volunteer leaders to assess opportunities and return on investment and manage the risks associated with rapidly evolving technologies.

Speakers:
Ted Oberlander, member, board of directors, Iowa State University Foundation
Rosa Unal, vice president and chief information officer, Iowa State University Foundation

What are the latest trends in philanthropy for colleges and universities? What attitudes do donors to higher education bring to their philanthropy, and how can institutions discern them? How are demographic trends reflected in philanthropic activity? Drawing on new data from the 2023 Bank of America Study of Philanthropy (conducted in partnership with the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy), this session will:

• Provide insights into the motivations of affluent donors in the United States
• Illuminate affluent donors’ giving practices by generation, gender, sexual orientation, and racial/ethnic cohorts
• Suggest ways in which advancement leaders can more effectively engage and appeal to specific groups of affluent donors

Speakers:
William Jarvis, managing director, philanthropic executive, Bank of America
Anna Maria Pruitt, managing editor, Giving USA; associate director of research, Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy

Deglobalization has already begun to lead to a less connected world. Rising nationalism, global supply-chain disruption stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, and geopolitical tensions have caused many consumers to look for locally sourced goods and services. Investors, it seems, have been no different, increasingly questioning the benefit of investing outside of developed markets. While investors may have valid concerns about certain countries or industries within emerging markets, this does not undermine the case for holding a strategic allocation to emerging market equities. In this session, we will discuss how a global portfolio may benefit not only from risk diversification but also from investment opportunities.

Speakers:
John Lau, portfolio manager, SEI Investments
Paul Chai, associate vice president of Investment and CIO, Kansas State University Foundation
David Carney, senior vice president for finance and administration and CFO, University of Connecticut Foundation

As the development and alumni relations professions continue to evolve, staff may bring very different expectations about what is “appropriate” to both the office and their engagements with constituents. The rapid shift to remote work meant newer employees may never have learned the cultural norms of their new workplaces. Heighted political polarization can make differences of opinion or perspective feel like unbridgeable moral divides. This session will provide guidance on helping staff maintain appropriate and productive relationships with constituents, provide them with best practices for handling difficult and precarious situations (including racial and gender bias, political opposition, sexual harassment, and sexual misconduct), and otherwise bring their best selves to work.

Speakers:
Mauria Brough, president, Advancement Resources
Alisa Robertson, president and chief advancement officer, University of Wisconsin Foundation
Matthew White, vice president for advancement and president, Utah State University Foundation

Foundations are critical to many colleges and universities, providing the fundraising and endowment management that support the mission of educating the next generation of leaders in America. Often, the school relies heavily on the support provided annually from the endowment, making the consistency of that support paramount. However, research from the NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments shows that the majority of institutions are using old technology when it comes to calculating annual spending methodology and investment management fees. This session will feature a discussion of alternate approaches that may more effectively minimize the volatility and better optimize the consistency of the support flowing to the university and operations of the foundation itself.

Speakers:
Jason R. Ball, CFO, Fort Hays State University
George Suttles, executive director, Commonfund Institute
Timothy Yates, president and CEO, Commonfund OCIO

With over 60 percent of presidents saying they hope to start or expand a fundraising campaign, the 2020s are shaping up to be the “decade of the campaign.” However, questions linger about the effectiveness of campaigns amid both donor and staff campaign fatigue. This session will focus on new models and innovations in campaign structure and strategy. We will investigate varied models for activating support and energizing the campus community around advancement. Specifically, we’ll discuss the question of dollar-goal impacts, the repetitive priorities that make donors and alumni lose interest in campaigns, and strategies to overcome campaign fatigue. The session will conclude with a high-level discussion about the future of the comprehensive campaign.

Speakers:
DeAnna Carlson Zink, CEO, University of North Dakota Foundation
Jim Poolman, board chair, University of North Dakota Foundation
Fleming Puckett, senior director, EAB

The U.S. Supreme Court decision eliminating the use of affirmative action in college admissions can be seen as part of a broader reaction against efforts to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). While the ruling doesn’t address scholarships, some attorneys general have already counseled colleges to stop using race as a factor in scholarships and employment decisions. At last count, anti-DEI legislation applicable to colleges and universities had been introduced in 40 states and passed in 14. This session will explore the implications of challenges to DEI initiatives for foundations, including how they are working with donors interested in supporting diversity and inclusion, how they are managing prior gifts that may now be at odds with state legislation, and how they are addressing the challenges they may encounter in their boardrooms and talent management programs.

Speakers:
Abi Cahak, chief legal officer, University of Wisconsin Foundation
Jennifer Cerasa, vice president, general counsel, and board legal counsel, University of Illinois Foundation
Margaret Jarrell-Cole, consultant, AGB

This session will provide an overview of some of the top trends shaping higher education endowments and engage participants in a discussion of the ways these issues are informing their endowment government, management, and strategy. Potential issues to be explored include changes in:

• Investment management structures
• Allocation strategies and alternatives
• Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing
• Return expectations
• Institution finances and needs

Speakers:
John Griswold, senior consultant, AGB
Samantha Foster, managing director, Russell Investments
Floyd Simpson, director, PFM Asset Management

A diverse, engaged foundation board can be a force multiplier for a foundation, leveraging needed perspectives, experience, expertise, and relationships to advance the foundation’s mission. The wrong board can be an impediment. This workshop will provide an overview of the governance practices needed to engineer an engaged board aligned with an eye toward advancing the strategic priorities of the foundation and the institution. The session will provide guidance on developing a board composition matrix, ensuring board diversity, building a pipeline of board candidates, developing board orientation and education, and maintaining board engagement—in short, engaging the right people and providing them with the tools to lead and succeed.

Facilitators:
Lynnette Heard, senior fellow and senior consultant, AGB
Mike Goodwin, senior consultant, AGB

“Strategic planning” may conjure images of a months-long process resulting in a massive plan full of tactics and goals that may or may not serve as a valuable guide for the work of board and staff leaders. While foundations may not need a comprehensive “strategic plan,” they definitely need a strategic compass: a roadmap to provide guidance and focus through the many twists and turns affecting higher ed today. This workshop will present streamlined approaches to developing foundation strategy and, more importantly, executing plans to enhance board governance, strengthen the performance of key foundation functions, and elevate the foundation’s ability to serve as a strategic mission partner to the institution.

Facilitators:
Leonard Raley, president and CEO, University Maryland System Foundation
Cynthia Roth, president and CEO, West Virginia University Foundation
George Watt, senior fellow and senior consultant, AGB
William Sheedy, board chair, West Virginia University Foundation

This workshop is intended as a forum for staff and board leaders of advancement programs that are or want to be embedding artificial intelligence (AI) into the day-to-day advancement activities of the foundation or institution. Facilitators will ask participants to share, then discuss, examples of how they are deploying AI to automate processes, solve long-standing problems, address emerging challenges, create efficiencies, aid in prospect identification and customization, and otherwise enhance the effectiveness and impact of advancement work.

Facilitator:
Mark Koenig, vice president for technology and chief innovation officer, Oregon State University Foundation

Over the past decade, dozens of public college and university foundations and alumni associations have merged governance structures, integrated operations, or taken other steps to more closely align their work and more effectively engage and support alumni and grow alumni giving. This workshop will provide an opportunity to learn from leaders of foundations that have integrated in various ways with their alumni associations. Presenters will describe the contexts of the merger, the board and operational processes they undertook, the ways the change has impacted their boards and advancement work, and insights and recommendations for other foundations that are considering similar changes. If your foundation is considering integrating with your alumni association, this workshop will allow you to hear from leaders who have worked through the process and to pose questions to other organizations contemplating similar changes.

Facilitator:
Niles Sorensen, consultant, AGB

Panelists:
Colin Hennessy, vice president of alumni and donor engagement, University of Iowa Center for Advancement
Erin Lewis, chief operations officer, Auburn University Foundations
Kim O’Neill, president and CEO, Foundation for WWU and Alumni; Vice President for University Advancement, Western Washington University
Lynette Marshall, president and CEO, University of Iowa Center for Advancement
Eric Schoenstein, immediate past board chair, Oregon State University Foundation
Andrea Sturm, board chair, Western Washington University Foundation