Mid-Year Impact Report - Spring 2017

SPRING 2017

DEAN’S

CIRCLE M I D -Y E A R I M PAC T R E P O R T

College of Liberal Arts

EFFECTIVE

MICHAEL LIPS

LASTING

PHILANTHROPY

SCHOLARSHIP

I M PAC T

E MI LY I B A R R A

J E FF DE NNI NG, Ph.D.

COURSE PAM PA XTON, Ph.D .

In the Effective Philanthropy class, Professor Pam Paxton uses her knowledge of social science techniques to teach students how to thoroughly vet nonprofit organizations. They are introduced to theories and research conducted on the nonprofit sector and encouraged to support these organizations through volunteering and/or donations. Through experiential learning, students are given the opportunity to gain real-world experience.

How would you describe your Effective Philanthropy course?

Being an effective fundraiser requires an understanding of the nonprofit sector and individual motivations to give and volunteer.

Nonprofits need fundraising professionals to meet their financial goals. Effective Philanthropy: Fundraising and Nonprofit Development is designed to meet both goals by introducing students to theories of the nonprofit sector and individual prosocial behaviors like giving and volunteering, while also introducing the components of a successful development program and basic principles and techniques of fundraising. Students receive practical instruction from Adrian Matthys, Director of Annual Giving, as well as other fundraising professionals in the Austin nonprofit community. All aspects of effective fundraising are covered, from building a solid base of annual contributors to cultivating relationships with major gift prospects to running successful endowment or capital campaigns. The class also provides information on the behind-thescenes activities required to have a successful fundraising operation, including donor stewardship, prospect research, database maintenance, and donor analytics. Students are exposed to the best practices of fundraising teams at all levels. There is also a significant experiential learning component to this course. That is, students actively raise money while taking the class. All money raised is given away to well-vetted charities through the paired Philanthropy: The Power of Giving course, also offered to undergraduates at UT.

What impact do you hope this course will have on your students?

For students, the ability to fundraise is beneficial whether they go on to work in the nonprofit sector or not. Many people are asked to fundraise at some point in their lives, (e.g., for their child’s school), but few have the tools to do so successfully. On the flip side, nonprofits of all sizes need fundraising professionals.

Everyone agrees that there is little university training in fundraising and no “pipeline” to the career.

Students of this course have a very marketable skill that should help them in their future job search.

How does your research inform or influence your teaching?

I have been researching prosocial behaviors, including trust, volunteering, and donating, for over fifteen years. Therefore, I am able to introduce students to cutting-edge research on “what works” in fundraising (e.g., matching grants, seed money), as well as the importance of the nonprofit sector to community well-being.

How does private support help your research or teaching?

Private support has been pivotal to my undergraduate teaching. Of course, offering students opportunities to practice fundraising support is a key part of my class.

My other course offered at The University of Texas at Austin, Philanthropy: Power of Giving teaches students how to responsibly donate money to exemplary charities. Prior to donating real money (typically $50,000 to $100,000), students become experts on how to research and evaluate nonprofits. After a semester of debates, the class thoughtfully decides which charities will receive funds. This course relies on donor funding in order to be sustainable.

"This class has the potential to change their lives; it helps students think about philanthropy at an early age."

Liberal Arts Honors (LAH) student Emily Ibarra felt overwhelmed during her first semester at the University of Texas. After moving from the small town of Rockdale, she felt as though her “world was in danger of falling apart. As a student who copes with General Anxiety Disorder, I had no clear idea of what career I would pursue.” She felt lost and worried about the financial strain of tuition costs.

She feared that she “was bound to fail.” During her second semester, LAH advisors presented Emily with the Michael Lips Scholarship. The financial burden that weighed heavily on her mind was alleviated, and she could then focus on just being a student and exploring future career paths. She said, “in the Liberal Arts Honors Program, I have worked closely with the Student Council as one of the Freshman Representatives, coordinating both academic and social events for my peers, for which I am very proud.

I have developed many friendships and gained confidence, as both a student and as an individual, through volunteer opportunities and seminars. I am extremely grateful for the opportunities I have been given, especially now that I have been selected as an Orientation Advisor to further represent my university. I am glad to say that I have discovered a passion for public speaking and researching both mental health care policies and communication disorders. And while I still continue to cope with my anxiety, I feel much more capable of promoting positive change in society, due to the financial support of the Michael Lips Scholarship.”

The Michael Lips Scholarship was created as a memorial to honor UT student Michael Lips.

“Private support while I was a graduate student allowed me to invest in my research. Those investments have paid off. My early research has opened many doors and continues to lead to exciting opportunities.”

When Denning began his student career at the University of Texas, he originally planned to earn a business degree. While taking a prerequisite economics course, he discovered that “economics provided a unique way of thinking. I chose to study higher education because of the wide-ranging consequences of higher education decisions, as well as opportunities I had to work with high quality data.” His enthusiasm for economic-related research of higher education inspired him to earn a Ph.D. in Economics.

After completing his Ph.D. in 2015, he began working as an Associate Professor at Brigham Young University, where he continues to research higher education. He said, “my research on community college tuition has resulted in taking two trips to the White House to discuss the effects of President Obama's proposal for free community college.” In 2016, he was the recipient of the prestigious Jean Flanigan Outstanding Dissertation Award from the Association of Education Finance and Policy. Denning continues to “visit Austin frequently and work with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) where I am a Policy Fellow. My projects include secondary data analysis as well as outreach via text message to students designed to increase college enrollment and completion. I began collaborating with the THECB as a graduate student and that collaboration has yielded several research projects and papers. I hope to continue working with them for many years to come.” The endowment support Dr. Denning received throughout his student career at the University of Texas facilitated an opportunity to pursue a career in economics that has had an instrumental impact on education policy proposals in the United States.