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Grants for Lunch

Grants for Lunch is a brown-bag series for UA audiences featuring topics related to private grantseeking and fundraising with expert speakers from around campus as well as the larger community.

Please join the GIFT Center for the upcoming event:

More Askers = More Money: How Everyone Can Participate in Building Philanthropic Partnerships

Nationally known speaker, author, and community organizer Andy Robinson will share the lessons learned from a fundraising model that empowers all of the "human resources" (including YOU) involved in an organization.

Join us for this special opportunity to learn how to:

Define and create a "culture of fundraising" within your colleges and units
Identify barriers, and create strategies to address them
Develop your comfort with "the ask"
Help train colleagues and volunteers on "how to ask"
Adapt the all-staff model to the specific needs and limitations of your group

When: Monday, May 21 from 11:30 a.m.—1:30 p.m.
Where: Vine Avenue Annex, Room 102, 1125 N. Vine (SW corner of Helen & Vine)

Andy Robinson is a UA Alumni (MFA degree, Creative Writing, 1992) and was a Tucson resident for 16 years. For the past 31 years Andy Robinson has worked with a variety of nonprofits as a fundraiser, publicist, grantwriter, and community organizer. Since starting his consulting practice in 1995, he has provided support and training to thousands of nonprofit staff and volunteers in 47 U.S. states and Canada. His books include Grassroots Grants, Second Edition; Selling Social Change (Without Selling Out): Earned Income Strategies for Nonprofits; The Board Member's Easier Than You Think Guide to Nonprofit Finances; How to Raise $500 to $5000 from Almost Anyone, and Great Boards for Small Groups.

Kindly RSVP by February 24th to , providing the names and titles of attendees in your RSVP note. Seating is limited and will be capped. Bring your brown-bag lunch for this informal and free event for the UA community. Limited beverages and snacks are courtesy of the GIFT Center. The nearest available parking is at the Highland Parking Garage and there is plentiful Zone 1 parking nearby.

Past Sessions Include:

A grantmaker panel with Jim Gentile, Ph.D, President, Research Corporation, Linda Lohse, Executive Director, The Foundations, and Jane McCollum, General Manager, Marshall Foundation.
A presentation by Soyeon Shim, Ph.D, on building successful partnerships.
A community engagement presentation by Hildy Gottlieb, Co-Founder and President of Help 4 NonProfits and its Community-Driven Institute.
A panel of faculty experts who shared their experience, tips, and strategies to help with the important task of presenting your exciting research program to a variety of audiences. The panel included Andrew Comrie, Ph.D, Carol Gregorio, Ph.D, Stephen Russell, Ph.D, and Paul Sheppard, Ph.D.
A panel of distinguished program officers - Dr. Jo Anne Vasquez, Vice President and Program Director, Transition Years – Arizona, Teacher and Curriculum Initiatives, Helios Education Foundation, and Dr. Richard Weiner, Program Officer, Research Corporation for Science Advancement – who shared insights and gave behind the scenes information on how best to work with program officers and the human aspect of the grantmaking process.

Recent Grants for Lunch Events and Materials:

Philanthropy Is Changing—And What That Means to You

In this video Brian Kish, discusses the changing face of philanthropy and how these trends impact giving to universities. Brian Kish is Senior Vice President for Central Development at The University of Arizona Foundation.

Gender Matters: The Why and How of Cultivating Women

In this webinar by Patricia M. Moline, CFRE, CFP, learn practical, hand-on strategies for working with women donors in a way that complements existing development efforts. This webinar also discusses the importance of creating a receptive institutional culture that ensures success for staff, volunteers and donors, as well as best practices in engaging women donors from all generations.

Finding Potential Donors - How Do You Do It?

In this video, our experienced panel offers new and creative strategies for indentifying prospects as well as tried and true methods, favorite tips and resources, and insights about re-engaging your past and current donors, activating your networks, and maximizing your professional connections. The panel members are: Barry Benson, Senior Director of Development UA College of Engineering; Gail Browne, Executive Director, UA Poetry Center; Kassy Rodeheaver, Grants & Nonprofit Information Center Librarian, Pima County Public Library.

Perfecting Your Pitch

In this video Tom Ahern, a leading authority on donor communications, talks about telling your project story through creating a strong case for donor support.

Successful Storytelling in Persuasive Proposals

In this video, Cheryl Clarke, renowned author of Storytelling for Grantseekers: A Guide to Creative Nonprofit Fundraising and co-author of Grant Proposal Makeover, provides useful techniques and helpful tips for crafting successful proposal stories.

Grantmaking Live!

In this video, local funders share their experience, tips, and strategies for obtaining funding, and award a $500 mini grant on the spot. The grantmakers include Jason Ott, Community Relations, State Director, AZ, NM, Citi, Jane McCollum, General Manager, Marshall Foundation, Laura Penny, Executive Director, Women's Foundation of Southern Arizona, and Sarah B. Smallhouse, President, Brown Family Foundations.

Charitable Grants 101, in-house experts with decades of nonprofit and grant experience talked about all aspects of charitable grantseeking including: finding funders interested in your work, writing a proposal for a community audience, the key role of relationships and how to build them, and budget planning for charitable grants. (Quicktime Player required)
Who Cares? Sharing Your Research with Donors and the General Public, (Session video: Part 1 | Part 2) a panel of faculty experts shared their experience, tips, and strategies to help with the important task of presenting your exciting research program to a variety of audiences. (Quicktime Player required). This Research Summary Makeover will show you how to describe your scientific work in ways that donors can understand and make connections to beneficial real world applications.
Making Your Case: How to Sell Your Vision to Donors, a webinar presented by Tom Ahern. The program focused on effective case statements, how to answer the questions prospects care about most, storytelling formulas that work, and why testimonial is so important.
Preparing Successful Online Grant Applications, a webinar by Diane Gedeon-Martin. This session provided an outline to prepare clear, concise, comprehensive, and competitive online proposals.
The Donor's Point of View: "Please, just take my wallet...", presented by Evan Mendelson. Watch a video of this workshop that covered the unique aspects of working with high net worth individuals and families, and family foundations. (Quicktime Player required).