A member of the KIPP MA team shared our current progress to our internal and external goals on fundraising. We received a $25,000 donation that was not reflected in the update shared at the Board meeting on 6/12.

We are waiting on a few grants and coordinating outreach to a few lapsed donors to ensure everyone interested in and able to give has the opportunity to do so before FY26. 

A member of the committee asked for the rationale behind having an internal and external goal-- the internal goal is focused on unrestricted funds, and the external goal is more around our grant strategy.

Updates on recent appeals were shared, including our Annual Report video, our Annual Appeal, and asks anchored in the recent NYTimes feature.

The Executive Director reviewed her recent donor outreach and communication. Donors have found our KIPP Forward work most compelling, particularly given how strong our postsecondary data is compared to the state, BPS and LPS, and that our Persistence programming relies entirely on philanthropic funding. She's recently been hearing from donors about other organizations also experiencing threats to their funding, such as AmeriCorps. She needs to focus on being in the right place to share that story.

Grant applications will remain a priority for KIPP MA. 

One individual has not given yet to the Board. Our Board Chair noted we'll get to 100% and will help with outreach. It could be worthwhile to set goals for this moving forward.

A member of the KIPP MA Team recommended we keep a similar plan for next year: $1M external, $700K external. Could we call these total and unrestricted? It's something to consider. 

We're trying to build a stronger major gifts portfolio, but we're not planning any major events right now given capacity. There is likely some interest in Board or donor circles that we may want to take advantage of to cultivate a different donor base. 

The team is also preparing for some possible major donor and institutional attrition that we need to account for and work to fill given where they are in their life cycle as donors to the organization. 

We've historically held a dinner in the fall hosted by one of our major supporters and these intimate experiences have generally been where our Executive Director is most successful, but we need to get new people in the space. The Chair of the Committee shared about his experiences in Atlanta with similar objectives and outcomes. 

The Executive Director shared new powerful data around BA completion that is significantly above the state and sending districts. We need to share this.

A member of the KIPP MA Team shared some context for the 25-26 strategy. Nonprofit best practices suggest 30-40% of overall fundraising need comes from the Board. This is true at other KIPP regions.
 

What would it take to achieve 30-40% ($300K-$400K) from the board annually within 3-5 years? Can we in the short term double board giving in FY26 to $80K?

The Committee Chair shared that both make total sense. It would be interesting to see benchmark around different regions of expectations set for Board members. 

To get our Board fundraising higher, we could get more out of people we have now and/or to get new people. He'd be interested to get more data and have a conversation around what is the role of the Board at the Board retreat. 

The Board Chair named it feels like there's more capacity to get Board members involved in a way that's more meaningful-- in the schools, in donating, deepening relationships. Trying to get Board members to understand how critical Board fundraising is to the organization, to KIPP Forward, to the budget. Historically we've fundraised when it's exciting, when it's growth, and other regions fundraise constantly because you just never know. It's critical to maintain a school that's financially stable. 

What would it take for people to feel the need to donate and that their dollars are always going toward something significant? The Board should feel pushed to always give more. We've been talking about this for years-- we need to be more diligent. 

It feels like the right time to present this challenge to the Board. We're grateful for everything the Board has done, and we need people to double their giving. This should be explicitly named with new Board members. 

A member of the KIPP MA Team will reach out to someone at the KIPP Foundation to get comparative data.

The Board Chair says we've recently brought on new committee members that match the identities of our student population, which is so important, and we need to bring on members of the Board that can also give more substantially. These things need to be balanced. 

Can we bring in students to events to speak directly to the impact of funding on their experience? An example is the students participating in the CRA internship.

The Executive Director is currently in the mindset that some of the next Board members should have significant capacity to give. We're also prioritizing bringing on academic-minded people, and that is also in the works. 

This might take 2-3 fiscal years, but we want to move in an upward direction. 

A member of the committee asked if we have a member of the Board that's a pace-setter. Historically this has helped make huge lifts and has helped the team use that and can be more effective than blindly asking people to give. Currently we don't have a pace-setter. We do have generous people on the Board. 

Another possible strategy is to have members of the Board advertise a significant gift with a match from the Board-- i.e. I'll give $100,000 over two years, but need the Board to match that.