Another Tool in My Toolbox
– By #MillerSD
Last week, I attended my last session of fundraising school and graduated from the Indiana University Lilly Family of School of Philanthropy. I am now certified in fund raising management. I was honored with a scholarship from Dakota Resources for my tuition and I am so very thankful for their support in Hand County and On Hand Development Corporation. I was one of three Economic Development directors from around South Dakota representing rural communities. Representing Hand County and rural South Dakota is something I take great pride in and I jump at the opportunity to tell our story to people who have never heard of our community.
This credentialed professional development opportunity is a 15-month training program that involves: 1) Four fundraising courses taught by faculty from The Fundraising School at Indiana University 2) Attainment of CFRE credentials 3) Activities with a statewide cohort of South Dakota fundraising professionals. This class was broken up into 4 different sessions
- Principles and Techniques of Fundraising – February 1-10, 32 hours to complete
- Developing Annual Sustainability – July 1-2, 2021, 16 hours to complete
- Developing Major Gifts – April 4-6, 2022, 24 hours to complete
- Managing the Capital Campaign – Sept 7-9, 24 hours to complete
So, what did I learn that will make a bigger impact on our community? I honestly don’t have enough space in this article to bore you with all of the details of my learning journey. But I can tell you that my journey as a leader for our community and the educational opportunities that I am taking part in are making our community a better place to live. This course is going to enable all of Hand County to complete major projects and goals and connect On Hand to outside resources. This course is just another tool in the toolbox for Hand County to take advantage of all of the resources outside of our county lines.
What I am realizing on my journey in Economic Development is that continued education in every field is making a huge impact on our entire community. And I can’t wait to see what this course will do for all of Hand County for future projects. On my way home from Sioux Falls last week, I thought about all of the nonprofits in our community and how I can help them with their fundraising goals. I thought about the Miller Swimming Pool, the Baseball Association, the Churches, the School and all of the after-school events, the Daycare, the Legion, the Lions Club, the Friendship Center, and all of the other awesome non profits in our community and how they are raising funds. I also thought about On Hand Development and developing a better strategy for annual sustainability and what that might look like for our community.
If you are part of a nonprofit and looking at techniques for fundraising, developing major gifts, and managing a capital campaign, come visit with me. I would love to share with you my newest tool and how I can better connect you to so many resources.
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