The 2019 NEAGC

Monday, March 18 – Tuesday, March 19, 2019

The Renaissance Providence in Providence, Rhode Island

The 2019 NEAGC Fee: $225 (Early Bird rate of $175 available until November 30, 2018)

What’s included?

  • Two keynote sessions
  • Two full days of breakout sessions, networking with sponsors, presenters, and attendees, as well as several meals and refreshments throughout the conference.
  • Lunch will be available on both days, breakfast will be served day 2.
  • When booking your travel, plan to stay until the end of the conference for a chance to win one of two Apple iWatches.

For more information or to be added to our email distribution list, please sign up now.

Full participation in NEAGC is applicable for 8 points in Category 1.B – Education of the CFRE International application for initial certification and/or re-certification.

Conference Schedule

Monday – March 18, 2019

8:00 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. Registration and Coffee

8:45 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. Welcome and Opening Remarks | Diane Thompson Award Presentation

  • Andy Bernstein | President of the Northeast Annual Giving Association & Director of Annual Giving, Quinnipiac University
  • Colin Hennessy | Associate Dean, Alumni Relations & Development, Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago
  • Trish Jackson | Vice President for Development, Brown University
  • Stephanie Rasamny |President, Mainsprings Media Communications, Inc. Platinum Sponsor

9:15 a.m. – 10:30 p.m. Keynote Address

  • Kestrel Linder |CEO and Co-Founder of GiveCampus

10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Break and Visit Sponsors

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Breakout Session 1

Fixing the Leaky Bucket: Addressing Issues in Donor Retention

  • Charlene Culler | Director of Annual Giving, Hunter College
  • Jonathan Van Oss | Director of Consulting & Analytics, Pledgemine

Area(s) of Focus: Direct Mail, Analytics

Downsizing Your Phonathon: Panel

  • Anthony Cernera | Senior Director of Annual Giving and Engagement, Geisenger
  • Abby Beauparlant |Director of Annual Giving, Merrimack College
  • Ryan Chartier | Associate Director of Annual Giving, University of Vermont
  • Kevin Morgenstein Fuerst | Senior Director of Annual Giving, University of Vermont

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Marketing, Young Alumni,  Analytics

Title TBD

  • Bob Burdenski | Robert Burdenski Annual Giving & FundList

Area(s) of Focus:

Parent Giving 101

  • Taylor McDonnell | Assistant Director of the Fordham Fund, Parent Giving, Fordham University

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Marketing, Direct Mail, Email Marketing

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Lunch sponsored by MCR & Five Maples Development Communications

1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Breakout Session 2: Professional Development Sessions

New to the Annual Giving Field Track

  • Jenn Castellani | Director of the Vassar Fund, Vassar College

Seasoned Annual Giving Professionals Track

  • Colin Hennessy | Associate Dean for Alumni Relations & Development, University of Chicago & 2019 Diane Thompson Award Recipient

Area(s) of Focus: Professional Development

2:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. Breakout Session 3

Don’t Say it, Show it: How to incorporate more video into your annual appeals

  • Lindsay Roth | Assistant Vice Chancellor for Annual Giving, UMass Dartmouth
  • JD Beebe | CEO, ThankView, LLC

Area(s) of Focus: Stewardship, Social Media, Marketing, Email Marketing, Analytic

Strategic Planning, Strategic Communicating: Building a framework for Fundraising Success

  • Stacey Grady | Director of Development, Springbrook
  • Lauren Agnello | Development Assistant, Springbrook

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Social Media, Marketing,  Direct Mail, Email Marketing

Utilizing Annual Giving Volunteers to Raise More Money

  • Marybeth Oskowski | Director of Annual Giving, Boston Latin School Association

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Social Media, Marketing, Young Alumni, Student Philanthropy

6 Pillars of a Successful Annual Giving Program

  • Dan Allenby |Principal and Founder, Annual Giving Network

 Area(s) of Focus: Professional Development

3:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. Break and Visit Sponsors

3:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. Breakout Session 4

Engaging Young Alumni in Recurring Giving

  • Nick Wormley | Executive Director of Athletic Development, Fairfield University
  • Connor Donnelly | Assistant Director of Athletic Development, Fairfield University

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Young Alumni, Student Philanthropy

Digital Fundraising in Difficult Circumstances (without looking opportunistic)

  • Stephen Neill | Chief Operating Officer, Gonzaga High School

 Area(s) of Focus: Digital Marketing, Social Media, Crowdfunding

Title TBD

  • Bob Burdenski | Robert Burdenski Annual Giving & FundList

Area(s) of Focus:

Writing for Direct Mail Appeal

  • Paul Barry | Cape Cod Mail Group, Annual Giving Direct Mail Strategist
  • Tracey Palmer | Palmer Communications

Area(s) of Focus: Direct Mail, Marketing

4:45 p.m. NEAGC Day 1 Concludes

6:00 p.m – 8 p.m. Networking Reception

Tuesday – March 19, 2019

7:45 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Breakfast

7:45 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Problem Solving/ Idea Group Session (Optional)

9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Breakout Session 5

Collaborating Across Campus for a Successful Giving Day

  • Angelica Howard | Major Gift Officer, Temple University
  • Blake Piper | Assistant Director of Programs and Initiatives, Temple University

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Social Media, Marketing, Young Alumni, Student Philanthropy, Direct Mail, Email Marketing, Analytics

A Continuum: from Alumni Engagement to Annual Giving

  • Chantal Champagne | Executive Director of Alumni Relations & Annual Giving, Pace University

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Social Media, Young Alumni

Back to a Manual Phonathon

  • Amanda Walck | Assistant Director of the Fund for Albright, Albright College

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Marketing

The Party is Getting Crowded

  • Angie Myers | Director of Annual Giving, Pennsylvania College of Technology
  • Clarke Gafke | CEO of LEAD

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Stewardship, Direct Mail

10:00 a.m. – 10:30 p.m. Break and Vendor Visit

10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. – Breakout Session 6

Giving Days in a Small Shop

  • Crete Clifford | Annual Giving Officer for Operations,  Salve Regina University
  • Andrew Baik | Annual Giving Officer for Digital Fundraising, Salve Regina University

 Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Social Media, Marketing, Young Alumni, Direct Mail, Email Marketing

Invest in Qualifying: Donor Growth and Talent Management

  • Lori Kiewe | Executive Director, Qualifying and Training, Syracuse University
  • Kate LoSecco | Development Associate, Syracuse University

 Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Professional Development

Collaboration between Annual Giving and Major Gifts Teams

  • Colin Hennessy | Associate Dean for Alumni Relations & Development, University of Chicago & 2019 Diane Thompson Award Recipient

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Professional Development, Marketing

Creating a Senior Class Volunteer Group: Lessons and Results

  • Paul Muite | Executive Director of the Annual Fund, Stony Brook University
    Angelica Scanu | Annual Giving Coordinator, Stony Brook University

Area(s) of Focus: Social Media, Marketing, Student Philanthropy, Email Marketing, Analytics

11:45 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. – Breakout Session 7

Breakdown Campus Silos for Digital Marketing   

  • Stuart Seidel | Manager of Digital Marketing, Annual Giving, University at Albany

 Area(s) of Focus: Social Media, Marketing, Student Philanthropy

Using Fundraising for Athletics to Increase Alumni Participation

  • Tim Martin | Director of the Assumption Fund, Assumption College

 Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Marketing, Young Alumni, Direct Mail

When Affinity and Capacity Meet: Cohort-based Leadership Annual Giving – When it works (and when it doesn’t)

  • Flavio Bollag | Development Officer, Leadership Giving, Stony Brook University

Area(s) of Focus: Frontline Fundraising, Analytics 

Let’s Email Smarter

  • Stephanie Rasamny | President, Mainsprings Media Communications

Area(s) of Focus: Email Marketing, Marketing, Analytics

12:45 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. Lunch sponsored by MCR and Five Maples Development Communications

1:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Keynote Address

  • Joan Garry | Principal, Joan Garry Consulting

3:00 p.m. -3:15 p.m. Closing Remarks & Prize/Giveaway Announcement

3:15 p.m. 2019 NEAGC Concludes

The 2019 Diane Thompson Award Recipient

The Diane Thompson Award: Annual scholarship awarded to a senior annual giving professional who, in the opinion of the Northeast Annual Giving Association Executive Board, has exhibited excellence in annual giving practice and commitment to the profession. First presented in 2015, the award is named after Diane Thompson, the foundress of the Northeast Annual Giving Conference.

The Northeast Annual Giving Association is pleased to announce that the recipient of the Diane Thompson Award is Colin Hennessy, Associate Dean of Alumni Relations and Development for the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago.

As Associate Dean and Chief Development Officer, he leads all initiatives to engage Harris alumni and deepen philanthropic relationships with Harris alumni, parents and friends. 

Before joining Harris Public Policy and the University of Chicago, Colin served as the Executive Director of The Penn Fund at the University of Pennsylvania where he oversaw the global undergraduate annual giving program and the largest of the University’s annual funds. Under his leadership, The Penn Fund steadily increased alumni donor participation and both unrestricted and endowed scholarship revenue to the University and gained national praise for collaboration with faculty on experimental fundraising design and testing. Prior to his role at Penn, Colin served as Associate Director of Annual Giving programs at the University of Iowa Center for Advancement, managing annual giving programs for Iowa’s 11 Colleges. 

In 2007, Colin was the inaugural recipient of the James A. Socknat Memorial Fellowship in Tertiary Education at The World Bank where he researched the use of information and communications technologies in the developing world. At Penn, Colin’s doctoral research explored undergraduate distance learning at institutions with traditional residential college model and outreach strategies for development and alumni relations with the goal of increasing lifetime philanthropic support. 

Colin earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Iowa and graduate degrees in education and public policy before earning his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania.