Workshop: Leadership Gift Appeals

October 2, 2025 11:30am-4:00pm ET

Overview

In annual giving - just as with nearly every other type of fundraising effort - the majority of the money raised will almost always come from a relatively small group of a campaign's top donors. That’s why it’s so important to develop personalized, high-quality appeals for this important group. Doing so will not only increase the chances that your appeals will stand out and get opened, but it will go a long way to making your best prospects and donors feel special and appreciated.

Join us on Thursday, October 16th, for an interactive online workshop that will provide you with a framework for developing effective leadership gift appeals to support your annual giving efforts

Participants will have an opportunity to:

  • Learn how to plan and implement successful leadership gift appeals.
  • Study real-world examples of giving day tools, techniques and materials.
  • Begin to develop and refine your own leadership appeal strategy.
  • Get feedback from experts and colleagues on how to improve your efforts.
  • Earn CFRE credit
  • And more!

This event is ideal for advancement professionals at educational institutions who wish to learn the nuts and bolts, latest techniques, and current best practices of planning and executing successful leadership gift appeals.

  • Save $250 when you register by Friday, September 5th
  • AGN Members save an additional 30%
  • Receive further discounts when registering multiple attendees from one institution

Program

(all times are Eastern Time)

11:20am - Sign-In Begins

11:30am - Welcome

Meet the faculty, get an overview of the program.

11:45am - Grasping the fundamentals (General Session - 60 min)

Review the basics of planning, implementing and evaluating a successful leadership gift appeal.

12:45pm - Assignment/Break (15 min)

Take time to complete a short assignment.

1:00pm - Assessing opportunities (Small Group Session - 60 min)

Meet in a small group with peers to talk about where you are in the planning/development process, discuss potential challenges and opportunities you might be facing, and work through ideas to improve your strategy.

2:00pm - Break (30 min) 

Take a little time to rest, get a snack, check email, etc.

2:30pm - Finding inspiration (Small Group Session - 75 min)

Meet in a small group with peers to look at and analyze real world examples of leadership gift appeals from a variety of different programs, discuss each one's strengths and weaknesses, and consider possible ways to incorporate them into your own efforts.

3:45pm - Bringing It All Together (15 min)  

Get a summary of the day's key takeaways, lessons learned, and words of advice from the workshop’s faculty.

4:00pm - Workshop Ends

*Note: Only one person/login per institutional registration.

Faculty

Dan Allenby  (Host) |  President & Founder at Annual Giving Network

Dan is an author, speaker, and consultant who has worked with educational institutions for more than 25 years to improve their fundraising results. An internationally recognized expert on annual giving, he is a CASE Laureate and recipient of the prestigious Crystal Apple Award for Teaching Excellence. His book Ideas for Annual Giving offers designs for helping organizations increase their levels of sustainable philanthropic support. Dan has led annual giving and membership programs at Boston University, Tufts University, Georgetown University, and the National Geographic Society. He also served on the faculty for CASE’s Summer Institute in Educational Fundraising and chaired its Senior Annual Giving Professionals Conference and Annual Giving Workshop for five collective terms. He holds a B.A. in History from James Madison University and a M.B.A. from Boston College. Outside of work, Dan enjoys spending time with his family, writing songs, and getting away to the beaches of Cape Cod. His philosophy is that success comes from focusing on what’s right in front of you.

Greg Knedler

With more than 25 years of experience in annual giving and educational fundraising, Greg has led programs at Troy University, the Air Force Academy Foundation, Georgia State University, and Auburn University. His other experience includes consultant work with K-12 private and charter schools. He holds a B.S in Marketing and an M.Ed. in Marketing Education, both from Auburn University.

For more information about this workshop, please contact us at 888.407.5064 or [email protected].