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Fundraising Stories
Decatur Public Schools Foundation
Oct 12, 2007
Honorees travel from as far away as Vienna, Austria to attend the Decatur Public Schools Foundation’s “Celebrate the Legacy of Learning” fundraising event. “This is our most successful fundraiser,” explains Judy Taylor, executive director of the Decatur Public Schools Foundation (DPSF).
Honorees travel from as far away as Vienna, Austria to attend the Decatur Public Schools Foundation’s “Celebrate the Legacy of Learning” fundraising event. “This is our most successful fundraiser,” explains Judy Taylor, executive director of the Decatur Public Schools Foundation (DPSF). “It is a very upscale award ceremony that celebrates alumni for their achievements in the arts, science, technology, or for their lifelong commitment to learning.” The event not only raises close to $70,000 for DPSF, it provides positive exposure for the Decatur Public Schools. “Our community can see that even though our school district suffers from poverty and lack of resources, we have highly successful graduates.” Taylor, who has worked with DPSF for three years, was previously a corporate events director with the American Heart Association. “The reason I made the change to our local education foundation is because of the great education my children received from our school,” she shares. “My goal was to double the foundation’s non-designated income the first year. We actually tripled our income the first year – that was a great challenge and succeeded with the partnership of our committed board members.”
She describes her most successful fundraising technique as, “Recruit, recruit, recruit the right board members and volunteers. The right people can introduce you to the heads of corporations. They can connect you with the organizations in your town that need to know what your school is doing – those organizations have dollars and would support your foundation if they knew your needs.”
DPSF’s fundraising efforts amounted to $215,000 in non-designated funds last year. Taylor says, “One of our most important goals is to fund grants for teachers. Last year we awarded 58 grants totaling $85,000.”
Designated donations also have a major impact on the district. “We were very fortunate to receive a one million dollar grant to implement an inquiry science program in our elementary and middle schools,” explains Taylor. The Decatur Public Schools completed two years of the program, and have already seen improvement in science scores.
The future for DPSF includes a multi-year strategic plan for alumni fundraising. The foundation wants to move toward a university-like marketing to alumni, with multiple contacts each year. They have taken the first step by contracting to produce high school alumni directories and offering opportunities for alumni to connect with the high schools through phonathons and a commemorative walkway.
When it comes to advice to someone just starting out in raising needed resources for a school district, Taylor says, “Always start at the top. Invite the most influential person or persons you can think of to partner with you in your efforts to improve opportunities for students in your school district. Don’t be afraid to share your passion!”
For more information, contact:
Judy Taylor
Executive Director
Decatur Public Schools Foundation (217) 424-3300
http://www.dps61.org/foundation
