Blog
Advancing Your Mission in Serious Headwinds
William J. Acton, Senior Partner at Advancement Partners
Parents and alums want to become a part of a school that shares their values. They want to enroll their children at these kinds of school. They want to invest in these schools. So how do we, as school leaders, do the right things to build and strengthen these partnerships?
As long as we have been in the business of helping Catholic K-12 schools – and it’s over 27 years now – we’ve never seen schools facing stronger headwinds than they are today. Challenging political and social issues impacting all of education, public and private, seem to blow their way into our schools even though we think we may be protected from them by our Catholic missions. Turn on the TV, surf the internet, check out your social media feeds and you are bound to hear a host of topics which have found their way into our schools, disrupting things, challenging our enrollment and advancement efforts and skewing our focus.
Navigating these headwinds demands a passionate and committed focus. Schools must set their compass on a true north and stick to it, adjusting strategies and tactics as required to stay on the right ath and continue to advance. Schools not only need a plan, they need the right plan – one based on a bold vision that is grounded in mission.
Proper planning and funding that plan are the pillars of this year's annual summer seminar at the University of Notre Dame. We are doubling down on these because, frankly, too many schools, buffeted by the winds, are flailing and drifting. Even the best schools can drift a bit and the margin for error in this climate is small.
Parents and alums want to become a part of a school that shares their values. They want to enroll their children at these kinds of school. They want to invest in these schools. So how do we, as school leaders, do the right things to build and strengthen these partnerships?
Successful schools combine a solid strategic plan, through processes that actively engage the "right" stakeholders, with an advancement operation singularly focused on funding that plan. That's what we will discuss, in a true seminar manner, this August 3-5 at the Gold Standard of Catholic educational advancement, the University of Notre Dame.
Our 3 keynote presenters represent an “A-Team” of advancement leadership:
- Kirt Bjork is a current Director of Regional Development at the University of Notre Dame and a former All-American hockey player for the University.
- Mark Donahue is the current President of Brother Rice High School (Chicago) and a former two-time All-American at the University of Michigan and lineman for the Cincinnati Bengals.
- Mike Brennan is the current president of Mater Dei (Los Angeles), one of the largest and most decorated Catholic high schools in the country, and a veteran of over 30 years of high school leadership (Catholic and public).
We think these three – along with the seminar presentations/discussions facilitated by the API leadership team – will create thoughtful and productive conversation. Then there’s the camaraderie and sharing that comes from fellow attendees that often proves just as valuable as the sessions themselves.
Focus, leadership, planning, funding and execution. That’s how successful schools deal with the headwinds. Join us in South Bend this August and you’ll see what we’re talking about. Early Bird pricing ends on May 31.
Posted on: May 24, 2023