Development CommitteeNovember 20, 20098:00-9:30 a.m.

Members present:

Steve Lebovitz, Chair Judy Kaye Eric SchlagerBen Bloomstone Myra Kraft Andrew SchultzJon Davis Dale OkonowValerie Friedman Jay Rosenbaum

Staff: Zamira Korff, David Strong, Danielle Nadeau

Steve Lebovitz convened the November 20th Development Committee meeting. He welcomed all members and commenced introductions.

Steve called on Zamira Korff, Vice President of Development, to give an overview of CJP’s Development work. Zamira highlighted specific areas, including deployment of professional resources to best advance philanthropic partnerships and create sustainable funding opportunities, as well as long-term strategies for fundraising and engagement. The recently completed Strategic Plan serves as an overarching guide for the Development program and the foundation for many policies and programs currently being implemented. Zamira noted that while CJP is most easily identified by virtue of a strong annual campaign, there are several other important giving vehicles and philanthropic investment services provided through CJP, the depth and breadth of which is sometimes overlooked. Part of the Committee’s work will focus on how CJP can most effectively expand these opportunities, together with overall donor services. This will play an important role in raising the overall philanthropic bar for CJP and the Jewish community.

Committee discussion included designated giving, a philanthropic trend seen across many organizations. In the past decade, CJP has increasingly incorporated current use designated giving as part of its annual campaign to advance CJP’s mission and the areas greatest potential impact. In 2009, CJP raised approximately $12 million in designated gifts that support CJP partners and priorities as part of the overall $39.5 million campaign. In fact, when one takes into consideration the additional funds CJP was able to raise in designated gifts, the overall decrease in allocations to the community was only 7%, as opposed to the overall 15% decrease in support. The newly formed Committee on Strategic Priorities will regularly review the status of designated giving within the campaign and consider it in the context of the allocations process. CJP will continue to monitor national and local trends on designated giving and the implications it has on CJP’s ability to effectively administer, steward and report on designated gifts.

It was noted that CJP needs to maintain a balance between the possible expansion of designated giving as a means of increasing donor engagement, particularly at

the mass campaign level, with the critical resources and flexibility provided by unrestricted support. It was suggested that the answer might be in creating areas for gift designation at the mass and mid-campaign levels that are narrow enough to provide a sense of connection for donors, yet broad enough to underpin our strategic initiatives and allow us to retain necessary flexibility in allocating resources to those initiatives.

There was also discussion of CJP’s relationship to partner agencies and day schools, our strategy with regard to fundraising on behalf of these institutions and our policy regarding gift counting and recognition. Zamira highlighted CJP’s strategy of actively soliciting gifts on behalf of, or together with, community partners with a particular emphasis on raising funds for programs and initiatives that are strategically aligned with CJP’s priorities in order to ensure we have the necessary resources to implement those initiatives and fulfill our commitments to the Jewish community.

There was some discussion regarding the challenge of having adequate resources in the Development office to provide ongoing consultation, support and research services to the many community institutions requesting CJP assistance. There is also concern around donor fatigue and ensuring that CJP and other organizations are able to successfully reach out to new donors and foundations rather than overburdening current donors.

David Strong then discussed CJP’s $514.8 million in philanthropic assets under management, including CJP’s own endowment, Donor Advised Funds and the Jewish Community Endowment Pool. He highlighted the ways in which CJP’s investment platforms strengthen our fundraising capabilities.The Development Committee was directed by the Board of Directors to review organizations that have received a grant from CJP’s Donor Advised Fund (DAF) program for the first time.

Upon a motion duly made and seconded it was unanimously:Voted to accept the Donor Advised Fund recipient organizations.Oversight of the Gift Acceptance Policy is an explicit responsibility of the Development Committee as stated in Article IX, Section 5 of CJP’s By-Laws. The Committee was directed to consider the authorization of an Interim Gift Review Group in advance of a new Gift Acceptance Policy which the Committee will consider at a future meeting.

Upon a motion duly made and seconded it was unanimously:Voted to elect an Interim Gift Review Group.

Next, Zamira discussed the Development Department Organizational Chart and the deployment of staff, highlighting two areas of increased importance, the office Donor Relations and Stewardship and the office of Gift Planning and Investment Partnerships. Each of these offices plays a critical role in advancing CJP’s relationship with donors, highlighting the impact and effectiveness of our work, and enhancing our opportunity to expand both philanthropic services and philanthropic partnerships within and beyond the Annual Campaign. Zamira highlighted a recent analysis of CJP’s annual campaign which demonstrated

tremendous donor loyalty and retention at the major gifts ($10,000+) level of the annual campaign. As we review the $1,000-$9,999 range, followed by the mass campaign (under $1,000), we see less continuity and more erosion in donor support at the lower ends. It is clearly apparent that donor giving and retention is directly related to the time, effort and attention invested by CJP staff and volunteers in cultivating and stewarding those relationships. Implicit in this, is the question of what additional resources might be needed to enhance our donor retention and engagement opportunities at all giving levels.

Steve addressed the Roles and Responsibilities of the Committee and suggested that Committee members be very much involved with the development work of CJP, as advisors, advocates and representatives in the community. He encouraged members to continue to consider both their own areas of expertise and experience as well as the needs of CJP. The Chair then concluded the first meeting of the Development Committee at 9:30 a.m.