Outstanding staff member: Michele Farris

Posted on July 20, 2018 by Abby Rolland

Michele Farris with her Outstanding Staff Member award

“She was a quick learner and knows just about every aspect of our work in this department.”

“She works diligently and keeps a positive attitude.”

“She is one of the most caring and kind people I know.”

These words describe one of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy’s Outstanding Staff Award winners, Michele Farris. As the admissions and student services support specialist, Farris works hand-in-hand with the other members of the Student Services team in order to ensure that every student has a positive experience in the school.

Farris did not begin her career in higher education, though. With a bachelor’s degree in History and Spanish with a teaching track and a master’s in pastoral theology, she began working in youth ministry after graduating from then Marian College (now Marian University). After working for years in ministry and youth programs, her sister-in-law, working at IUPUI at the time, encouraged her to apply for a position at the university.

After several changes at the church, Farris decided to look into working for the university.

“At the time, you’d still have to go the human resources office and fill out an application. Then, they’d send your résumé to every position you were qualified for,” she explained.

The week after applying, Farris received a phone call from the IU School of Dentistry requesting an interview. A week after the interview, they contacted her to offer her a job working in admissions (“I started working in admissions there in May of 2000.”). Since then, she’s always worked for IUPUI.

Until 2014, Farris was still working for the IU School of Dentistry when Pamela Clark (director of student services and admissions for the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy) gave her a call. With the individual working in Farris’s position sick, Clark asked her to come take over the job for the time being. After several months, Farris was brought on full-time and assumed her current responsibilities.

Those responsibilities include processing applications for all of the graduate students, helping current students register for classes, managing the financial aspects of scholarships and graduate assistantships for master’s degree students, and preparing for graduation, among other tasks.

“I also attend college fairs and talk to potential students about the programs. From past years, a couple of students I spoke with ended up attending and graduating from our program, which is always nice,” Farris said.

While her job can be challenging at times (“we need official transcripts, which can be challenging to obtain sometimes!”), Farris enjoys the work she does.

“It’s a great feeling when you learn that someone who really wanted to get in, gets in,” she said. “They’re so excited about it.

“We have really phenomenal students here as well. They come to you with ideas; they’re open and want to learn. And they want to help people; it’s so refreshing to work with students like that. Even though they have slightly different outlooks, everybody has this view that we need to help each other and help the world. I just love it.”

With her positive attitude and willingness to work hard, Farris received one of the Outstanding Staff Member awards this year.

“When I realized Dean Pasic was talking about me during the announcement of the awards, I got kind of emotional,” she said. “You do your work well because that’s what you’re here for. So, it’s really nice to see your good work affirmed because it doesn’t always happen. That’s something this school does well. They support their students and their employees.”

And she passes that support along to the students. As one person noted, “She communicates with students efficiently and effectively and supports them in every way she can.”

‘Persistence pays off’: Research on congregations’ economic practices

Posted on July 18, 2018 by Amy Hemphill

“I’m impressed by your persistence!”

Thus began a voicemail message I received from a congregation leader last week. I’m learning that persistence is an important piece of the NSCEP research project.

The National Study of Congregations’ Economic Practices (NSCEP), conducted by Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, has been in the field since February, inviting selected congregations from diverse faith traditions to take part in our online survey. The survey will gather important data on how congregations receive, manage, and spend their resources, as well as the cultural, theological, and practical beliefs that shape their economic practices.

Dr. David King, Karen Lake Buttrey Director of Lake Institute, and Dr. Brad Fulton from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs in Bloomington are the co-directors of NSCEP.

In the course of our work with NORC, a research firm at the University of Chicago, we have discovered that even the high-level research skills they employ can sometimes be stymied by the characteristics of some congregations and clergy. Very small congregations that do not employ office staff during the week are difficult to contact by phone. Very large congregations employ myriad staff for the express purpose of protecting access to their clergy leaders.

To approach such congregations, our research team has created a specialized task force of callers with unique backgrounds and experience in congregational ministry, religious studies, and denominational connections. This team of folks affirms the high importance of the NSCEP study and recognizes the contributions it will make to local congregations and leaders, denomination staff, religious scholars, and the field of religious philanthropy.

They are each given a group of congregations to contact, using tools such as social media, personal and professional networks, and good old-fashioned phone calls. We are fortunate to have a caller who is fluent in Spanish to converse with clergy who prefer that language.

This is where persistence comes in. Reaching out to the congregations respectfully and repeatedly using a variety of methods helps convince the leaders of the faith communities of the importance and credibility of the study as well as the importance of their participation in it.

In the group of completed surveys so far, we have congregations as small as 30 members and as large as many thousands, traditions from Roman Catholic to African Methodist Episcopal to Islam, and yearly budgets from around $35,000 to several million dollars.

I have also learned that persistence pays off. When I try a new method of contact and get an enthusiastic response from the congregation or leader, I know their data will be contributing to the NSCEP results and I’m energized to reach out to the next congregation. Clergy are also pleased to learn that as participants, they will automatically receive a copy of the NSCEP results free of charge.

I’m grateful to work with a research team that highly values the contributions of U.S. congregations to our communities, and that leverages all available resources and connections to gather information on faith communities. In this way, our NSCEP study will be as reliable and representative as possible. And I’m grateful as well for our “Calling Team” and their persistent pursuit of NSCEP participants!

Amy L. Hemphill is the Project Coordinator of the National Study of Congregations’ Economic Practices (NSCEP) for Lake Institute on Faith & Giving at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. She holds a M. Div. from Central Baptist Theological Seminary and an M.A. in Sociology from IUPUI.

Master’s alumna applies practical knowledge to fundraising career

Posted on July 16, 2018 by Abby Rolland

After graduating in 2015 with a master’s in philanthropic studies and certificate in nonprofit management, Kyla McEntire has served as the Fund Manager at the Oaks Academy in Indianapolis for the past three years. Here, she talks about her journey through the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy and how she applies the knowledge she learned into her professional life.

What is your background?
Kyla McEntire (KM): I grew up in Indianapolis and graduated from North Central High School. I went to undergrad at The College of Wooster in Ohio and graduated cum laude with a degree in political science with a concentration in international relations and a minor in philosophy. During my time at Wooster, I had two internships that sparked my curiosity about the world of philanthropy. One was at Amnesty International in Chicago and the other was on the corporate partnership team here in Indy at the Children’s Museum. Both organizations relied heavily on donor support in one way or another and had incredibly important “missions.” After those experiences, I knew I wanted to be a nonprofit professional that raised support for a cause in which I believed.

What brought you to the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy?
KM: After being in Ohio for undergrad, I wanted to explore graduate school options closer to home and with a focused passion for philanthropy, the school seemed like such a great choice. The deciding factor between this school and other graduate programs were the graduate assistant opportunities available to students in Indy; I was excited about simultaneously taking classes while being a practitioner in the nonprofit world.

What was your favorite class and/or faculty member? How did classes help foster practical knowledge?
KM: My favorite class was human resources with Dr. Debra Mesch. I felt like most of the class content for the program was great, but incredibly cerebral/theoretical. The HR class was different and “hands-on.” Our main project allowed us to do a deep dive case study with a local nonprofit and I felt like I was able to read material for class and put it to use through that project, while making connections and building relationships with other Indy nonprofit professionals.

Any internships/specific areas of study? How did that help you with career goals?
KM: My time with Rob Smith at the Eli Lilly Corporate Foundation was eye-opening. Up unto that point, I’d only seen nonprofits from the fundraising side. I’d always imagined that being a “grantmaker” or with a corporate foundation would be so much easier, but I was wrong. Saying no to fabulous ideas wasn’t enjoyable and trying to compare apples and orange groves by developing a hierarchy of needs to determine which program/project was the most “deserving” never became easy. As someone on the fundraising side now, I have patience for corporate sponsors, but also have a passion for opening up lines of communication between nonprofits and companies that support them.

What are you doing now?
KM: In August of this year (2018) I will have been at The Oaks Academy for three years on their development team. The Oaks is an independent school in downtown Indy that provides a classical education to a student body that is intentionally a mix of race and class. We serve 50 percent low-income students and more than 80 percent of our students are on some type of scholarship. We’re a private school with a public mission, and have a large philanthropic need.

As the Oaks Fund Manager, I have a portfolio of donors, engage our alumni and corporate sponsors, support events, and lead stewardship for our team. It’s great to be on the frontlines of fundraising for an education-related cause committed to diversity!

Can you talk about the seminars on philanthropy that you’ve worked on recently?
KM: My colleague Sara Fichtner and I were inspired by a Women’s Philanthropy Institute event we attended last fall. It was a women-led conversation, but men were in the audience. At The Oaks, we’ve had “women’s conversations” in the past, but as the title suggests, only women attended. We wanted to give it a bit of a refresh and continue to have women-led conversations, but encourage women AND MEN to attend. I’ve been trying to engage our female donor base in an intentional way at The Oaks and this event series seemed like a strong starting point. To get this program off the ground, Sara and I created a proposal for the series, advocated for internal buy-in, and most importantly utilized current relationships at The Oaks to recruit expert speakers. We also leveraged this event to expand relationships at The Oaks through those that attended and those who volunteered their time to speak/host these events.

For this particular year’s theme of philanthropy, we set out with the goal to equip everyone (especially women) on ways to engage in philanthropy in a sophisticated way. This started with a 30,000-foot view of what philanthropy can look like, on a local scale with the Junior League or informal giving circle, to statistics on women in philanthropy nationwide.

Our second and most recent event “Give Like the Pros Do,” was a deeper dive into individual giving for the everyday giver. We know that those who are middle class and/or don’t have financial planners or wealth advisors, might not have access to the tips and tricks utilized by high-net worth donors. We wanted to remove that barrier. The Oaks was built on meaningful gifts of all sizes, and just because you aren’t writing large checks doesn’t mean you can’t be intentionally giving or using tax strategy to leverage your impact. Also, we marketed this event toward women because as shared by our speakers at the event, most of the time women aren’t always at the table making financial decisions let alone philanthropic ones. By encouraging women to take a seat at the table, or at their financial meeting, we’re hopefully empowering women to make informed and intentional philanthropic decisions and advocate for giving to the causes they care about.

What advice/suggestions do you have for alumni or students wanting to begin events like this and/or foster conversations about philanthropy?
KM: I would say events are a lot of work and won’t raise you large amounts of money in the short-term. Events aren’t always the answer or a good idea. HOWEVER, to evaluate the success of events you have to look at the relationship capital they can create. Also, bigger isn’t always better. These conversation events have been intimate and it allows me and my team to connect on a deeper level with those that attend and better the opportunity for follow-up.

What are your future career goals?
KM: In the future, I want to continue growing as a professional and always be connected to a cause making a positive difference. As long as challenges continue to pop up and I learn from them, I’ll be happy! I haven’t set out to be the CEO or executive director by a certain date nor do I want to land at a certain organization or company. Instead, I try to focus on being a strong leader even if I’m not in charge and ensure my relationships as a professional and employee are built on a meaningful foundation.

Fewer Americans are giving money to charity but total donations are at record levels anyway

Posted on July 12, 2018 by Andy Ware

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By Una Osili and Sasha Zarins, IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy

Following years of steady growth that has tracked the performance of a generally healthy economy, U.S. charitable giving has reached an all-time high at a time when the share of Americans who make donations is falling.

But as a lead researcher and an author of the latest Giving USA report, which the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy researches and writes in partnership with the Giving USA Foundation, we are concerned that some Americans may become less generous overall as the new tax law alters long-standing incentives to give.

The latest data

The money Americans gave to charity last year to support everything from disaster recovery efforts and environmental causes to higher education institutions amounted to about 2.1 percent of gross domestic product – a share that has barely budged in the past four decades.

All told, American individuals, estates, corporations and foundations gave a total of US$410 billion in 2017 to nonprofits, faith-based organizations and other charities, according to the Giving USA 2018 report. That marked a $20 billion increase from 2016. Adjusted for inflation, giving grew 3 percent.

At the same, the share of households making donations is decreasing, especially for the middle class.

We found this out through the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy’s Philanthropy Panel Study. Part of the University of Michigan’s Panel Study of Income Dynamics, it tracks the same households over time.

While more than two-thirds of Americans donated to charity in 2000, only 55.5 percent gave in 2014, according to this ongoing research.

Why has giving continued to grow, at least for now, despite this decline?

The simple explanation is that the Americans who do make donations are giving more money away. In 2000, the families who donated gave a total average of $2,041 in current dollars. This average sum rose to $2,514 in 2014, in current dollars.

Sensing trouble ahead

Conditions in 2017 were favorable for charitable giving to reach an all-time high despite those trends.

Among other things, the pace of economic growth picked up from 2016, the stock market boomed and the large number of hurricanes, earthquakes and other natural disasters inspired more fundraising for humanitarian relief than usual.

We are concerned that the flow of charitable donations, especially from low-income and middle-class Americans, may shrink. The main reason for this is that the new tax law may pare the number of people who get a tax break on the money they give away.

Donors, scholars and policymakers are unsure about how exactly giving will change due to the new tax law. But relevant research suggests that taking the charitable tax deduction away from millions of taxpayers may reduce their donations overall.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

The ‘eternal student’ and a Certificate in Fund Raising Management

Posted on July 10, 2018 by Abby Rolland

Pazit Levitan smiles with Dr. Gene Tempel and Bill Stanczykiewicz after completing her Certificate in Fund Raising Management

With three degrees from three countries, Pazit Levitan calls herself “the eternal student.”

A bachelor’s degree in art history and journalism, and two master’s degrees (an MA in film & television studies and an MBA in media management) led her from her home country in Israel to working in higher education in the U.S. After settling in New York City and having children, Levitan began volunteering with various nonprofits.

“Being a parent changed my perspective. I began to think about how I wanted to raise my children in a multicultural and diverse environment,” she said. “It was the first turning point in my career.”

Soon after she began volunteering, Levitan became the chairwoman of “Israeliness,” the Israeli programs at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan.

“I worked with a very specific Hebrew-speaking program. I formed committees, planned and ran events and program development, and worked in fundraising because we had to fund some of it ourselves,” she said.

After volunteering at the 92Y, Levitan and 12 others co-founded a small nonprofit called Moatza, which focused on serving Israeli-Americans.

“We applied for and received a grant to start the organization. Then, they voted me as the organization’s executive director,” Levitan said.

That resulted in the second turning point of her career.

“I was working in nonprofits and philanthropy in a professional role, not just a volunteer one,” she continued. “As the executive director of a small nonprofit (Moatza later merged into the Israeli American Council), I also realized not only how important fundraising is, but how there’s a professional way to do it. You really have to learn and study how to do it.”

When a position titled Director of Development for the American Friends of Soroka Medical Center (a major Israeli hospital in the Negev Desert region) opened, Levitan applied.

“In preparation for my interview, I learned about a book called Achieving Excellence in Fundraising, which is edited by Drs. Gene Tempel, Tim Seiler, and Dwight Burlingame,” she said. “I found that while I had been doing fundraising intuitively, there was much more substantial research and practice behind it and I could learn to do so much more.”

When Levitan was offered the job, she knew she wanted to pursue a better understanding of fundraising.

“I wanted to go full in and be the best development director I could be,” she said. “So, I knew that I needed to start with learning more about the academia that the editors of the book were involved in.”

Soon after, she found The Fund Raising School. By researching the school and its many courses, Levitan knew she wanted to complete the Certificate in Fund Raising Management.

“I wanted to learn about fundraising from all angles, so I knew that one course would not be enough,” Levitan said.

She completed her courses in about seven months, flying to Indianapolis three times and completing one online course.

“For the most part, I wanted to immerse myself in the environment of The Fund Raising School, which is why I chose the courses in Indianapolis,” Levitan said. “I did take one online course because I’m very interested in instructional technology. It was a good, thorough course online and it’s great for people who live remotely.”

She graduated last April, certificate in hand.

The Certificate in Fund Raising Management gave Levitan the skills and background knowledge she needed to become even more successful in her current role.

“It was the right integration of academics and practice with an added emphasis on experiential learning. Through this experience, I learned that every course is different,” she said. “Not only do you learn from the lectures, but you learn from peers and colleagues that you don’t get to meet in your everyday encounters or interactions. The course itself is a hub where people can exchange ideas with other fundraising professionals, who bring their own experiences and knowledge.”

And Levitan uses that knowledge as well as information she learned from the courses in her current work.

“From The Fund Raising School, I learned that the planning phase is very important. Whether it’s with the board of directors, the executive director, or prospective and existing donors, I have the language and confidence to articulate myself in a much more convincing way that’s grounded in research and practice,” she said. “That confidence projects trust and credibility, and these individuals know they’re in good hands.”

Levitan (l) stands with several board members and honorees at the gala event. “I’m fortunate in pursuing my certificate studies to have great support from the entire team, especially Executive Director Rachel Heisler Sheinfeld.” (second from right)

With her new education in mind and a great team at her side, Levitan recently planned the most successful gala the American Friends of Soroka Medical Center has seen. She is also working on a crowdfunding campaign to support a major art installation at the Soroka Medical Center.

Levitan also regularly encourages other development professionals to get involved, take the courses, and strengthen their skills as fundraisers.

“I’m a firm believer in self-growth, professional development, and investing in yourself for the long-term,” she said.

“Whatever you do, do it in the best way you can. Fundraising is a challenging, complex, multi-disciplinary profession. You’re speaking with people about their deepest values, which is very personal. You have to be delicate and sensitive but also strategic in how you speak to them. You learn those skills, as well as many others, from The Fund Raising School. I truly believe that the school is the best there is for this profession.

“I’m so glad to have been involved and become more a part of this philanthropy professional mosaic. Whenever I have a chance, I would like to return to The Fund Raising School and learn more.”

For now, though, Levitan is excited to use her skills and growing network in her work. And with The Fund Raising School beginning classes in New York City, she’s encouraging her friends and colleagues to get involved: “They’re very interested in the courses, so more people can become trained in this profession and continue to help others invest in the causes they believe in.”