President’s Message

When over 100 delegates gathered in Christchurch this August for the Educate Plus New Zealand Chapter Conference “Let’s Talk Business” it was a watershed moment for the profession.  Professionals from secondary and tertiary, public and independent, and the North and South Islands came together to learn and share best practice for our fields. The mix of familiar and new faces shows the growth of the profession. There is also a growing awareness by our institutions of how Community & Alumni Relations, Admissions, Marketing & Communications and Fundraising generate financial and community support enabling schools and universities to realise their missions.

Educate Plus New Zealand is working hard with Educate Plus Australia to meet the needs of this growing group of professionals. Each of you brings a wealth of personal and professional experience when you enter the advancement field, and our organisation helps you to hone your skills through professional development and personal mentoring. Be it through a formal mentoring arrangement or the email exchange after a conference, I know from personal experience the benefit of utilising the Educate Plus network to improve my skills and knowledge. Educate Plus is a unique professional organisation for its members consistently and willingly offer advice and support to their peers. We are joined by our dedication to education and its great potential to unleash change in our world.

Chris Klaassen has ably led Educate Plus NZ as President for the last three years helping to grow a greater awareness of what this organisation provides for the advancement sector while pushing us, as a volunteer organisation, to better serve our members. With sincere gratitude I acknowledge Chris for his abounding energy and dedication to Educate Plus and all of its members. I welcome our talented New Zealand Committee who will work with me to continue to offer you networking and learning opportunities in your region and internationally.

I look forward to meeting you at the upcoming regional Christmas Drinks and the 2016 professional development events currently being planned. We are here for you, so please come along and always share your ideas to me or a Committee member on how we can better serve you to better serve education.

Catherine Boyer
President, Educate Plus NZ

NZ 2015/16 Committee Members

NZ Chapter President
Catherine Boyer, Philanthropy & Fundraising, Woodstock Consulting Limited

Catherine Boyer is currently a director of Woodstock Consulting Limited specialising in Philanthropy and Fundraising. Before moving from the US to New Zealand, she served as a board member where fundraising was an important part of her role. She served as Director of Development at St Andrew’s College in Christchurch for six years and then transitioned to Campaign Fundraising Manager. Catherine’s experiences took her from being a one person shop to running a multi-million dollar capital campaign. She admires the commitment of advancement professionals to serve their organisations and knows the dedicated amount of work it requires to succeed. Volunteering with Educate Plus is a priority because the organisation has provided her with terrific mentors, sound professional development, and an enthusiasm for the profession and its people. She has served on the Educate Plus NZ Committee since 2011 and is currently President.
e: cboyer@woodstockconsulting.co.nz

NZ Chapter Co-Vice President
Jo Brady, Director Alumni & Development, Lincoln University
Jo is currently the Director of Alumni and Development at Lincoln University. Jo’s involvement in education advancement extends over school and tertiary and nearly 20 years including Senior Leadership roles in Marketing, Communications, Alumni, Fundraising, Community Relations and Governance. Jo is an experienced presenter in Australasia and was awarded an Educate Plus Fellowship in 2014 for service to the sector and the profession.
e: jo.brady@lincoln.ac.nz

NZ Chapter Co-Vice President
Rob Hay Special Projects Manager, Lindisfarne College
Rob is the Special Project manager at Lindisfarne College (500 boys) in Hastings where he covers a range of development work including Fundraising, Alumni, Promotions, special events, and website.Rob is in his 12th year at the college.
He attended his first ADAPE (Educate Plus) conference in Auckland in 2006 and joined the committee in 2008 serving as secretary from 2009 to 2012 and Vice-President since 2013.
e: project@lindisfarne.school.nz

Secretary and Treasurer
Jill Rodgers F.Edplus
After many years spent working in advancement and serving the Educate Plus community Jill now works as the New Zealand Chapter Administrator, Treasurer and Secretary.
e: nz@educateplus.edu.au 

Newly elected Committee Members

Amanda Stanes, Director of Advancement, Auckland Grammar School
Prior to joining Auckland Grammar School in January 2015 as Director of Advancement, Amanda was Associate Director Donor Stewardship at the University of Auckland Business School for seven years where she was responsible for a portfolio of major gifts donors and corporate partners. In 2011 she was awarded a Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Award for Community Engagement and in 2012 was honoured with an Order of St John honorific for her work with the charity. That year she also achieved her Certificate in Fundraising Executive, one of only 22 fundraisers in New Zealand with this professional accreditation.

Amanda has been involved with fundraising, sponsorship, membership/alumni development and communications/marketing for 20 years largely in the tertiary education, heritage and arts areas. Her first strategic fundraising role was as Development Manager (2002 – 2008) at Auckland Museum where she was responsible for raising $65million for the Museum’s Stage II Grand Atrium project as well as managing the war memorial, membership, corporate PR and sponsorship portfolios.
e: a.stanes@ags.school.nz

John Godfrey, Managing Consultant, artfulFundraising
​John’s specialties are major gift fundraising, capital campaigns and business partnerships. John has worked in Tertiary Education advancement roles in New Zealand, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom. As a consultant he has worked with clients and trained representatives of numerous nonprofit organisations in the UK, India, Middle East, Singapore and Australasia. John wrote a popular fundraising book: “Artful Major Gift Fundraising”. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand.
e: john.godfrey@artfulfundraising.com

Linda Calder, Foundation Development Manager, Hereworth School
Linda is currently the Foundation Development Manager/Marketing Manager at Hereworth School in Hawke’s Bay and has been in the role since 2011. She has been a member of Educate Plus for 4 + years, so is still new to the Advancement. Linda attended the Educate Plus (then ADAPE NZ) in 2011 and was overwhelmed by the amount of support and value that she has gained from the conference.
She has set up the Development Office from scratch, so knows and understands the intricacies involved in a small school and the dedication that is required.
e: linda@hereworth.school

Naomi Wilde, Development Officer. St Andrew’s College
Naomi left university and began work in student liaison, marketing and recruitment before stepping into the world of Alumni and Development. In 2006 she was appointed Development Director for College House, an independent Hall of Residence. She was tasked with establishing an Alumni & Development Office and from one excel spread sheet built up a calendar of regular alumni events, alumni communications, Annual Giving and initiated a Major Gifts and Bequests programme.
Naomi is now at St Andrew’s College, and as well as being responsible for Annual Giving she is deeply involved in their fundraising campaign which will conclude with Centennial celebrations in 2017.
e: nwl@stac.school.nz

Janice Lapwood, Development Manager, University of Waikato Foundation
With a fundraising career spanning over 15 years, Janice is no newcomer to philanthropy. Initially she was the Fundraising Manager for the Campaign for Waikato at the University of Waikato, a highly successful campaign that raised over $11million. After leaving the University she worked for an independent school in Hamilton for 9 years, raising funds for a new Centre of Performing Arts, organising centenary celebrations and coordinating and implementing the schools marketing plan.
Now back at the University of Waikato, Janice is looking forward to the challenges and opportunities that come with working within their tertiary sector. Janice has been a member of the Educate Plus since the inception of the NZ Chapter and is a keen advocate for generating enthusiasm among Waikato members. Wanting to expand her knowledge, she recently attended the CASE conference in Singapore and will be sharing some insights at an upcoming Women in Leadership programme at the University of Waikato.
e: janicel@waikato.ac.nz

Re-elected Committee Members

Chris Klaassen, Director of International, Avondale College
Teacher at Macleans College and King’s College 1984-1993
Masters Honours Degree in Educational Administration (strategical planning and institutional advancement, and the change management necessary with any integration of development programmes).
Director of International, Avondale College 1999 – present day
Advancement Consultant 1995- present day. Recent clients have included AUT University, Lincoln University, AUT Millennium National Training Centre, NZ Rowing, NZ Cricket and 26 High Schools across NZ
Trustee – SHC Development Foundation Trust, Manaiakalani Education Trust (Auckland)
Rowing Coach from 1985 – 2014 (Macleans College, King’s College, Sacred Heart College)
Former President, EducatePlus NZ Chapter – 2012- 2015
SIEBA Board Chair – 2014 onwards. Peak Body for international student recruitment into NZ (currently 181 school members)
e: chris@kcl.co.nz

Martine Foster, Director of Development, Samuel Marsden Collegiate School
Martine Foster has been the Director of Development at Samuel Marsden Collegiate School – an Independent Girls’ School in Wellington – for the last twelve years. She has a background in Philanthropy and Grant making and has been a teacher.
Martine has been a member of Educate Plus since 2005 and sat on the Executive Committee for a number of years. She is a Fellow of Educate Plus and very committed to the development of this very important sector in Education.
e: martine.foster@marsden.school.nz

Vicki Fowler, Community Relations & Development Manager, Westlake Boys’ High School
As a relative newcomer to the area of Advancement, Vicki first discovered Educate Plus (then ADAPE NZ) in 2007 whilst serving on the Board of Trustees at Westlake Boys High School. Subsequently, in 2011, she was appointed to the newly-established role as the school’s Community Relations and Development Manager and quickly discovered, and benefited from, the fantastic support and guidance provided by Educate Plus colleagues.
Vicki has served one term on the Educate Plus NZ Committee and offers valuable experience resulting from a 20 year career in general management, marketing communications and events. Her first-hand experience of building a state school Development operation from scratch also ensures that Educate Plus NZ is constantly aware of the unique challenges faced by Development personnel involved with the establishment and growth of fledgling operations.
Vicki believes that there is enormous benefit to be gained in raising awareness of Educate Plus NZ, especially amongst our country’s state schools.
e: vfowler@westlake.school.nz

Carolyn Prebble, Development and Community Relations, King’s School
For more than 20 years Carolyn has been fundraising at King’s School, assisting the Headmaster, the Board of Governors, the Foundation, the Old Boys’ Association and the Friends. Her role includes fundraising for new buildings, state of the art technology, student scholarships, the Endeavour Scholarship Programme and for Staff Professional Development. Carolyn is currently on the Educate Plus NZ Committee. She was on the organising Committee for the ADAPE International Conference held in Auckland in 2006. Carolyn is an ADAPE and Educate Plus Fellow and received for King’s School the ADAPE 2006 Australasian Awards for Fundraising Campaign and the Fundraising Publication. In 2014 Carolyn was one the recipients of the Trevor Wigney Award.
e: c.prebble@kings.school.nz

Rose Crossland, Advancement Manager, St Margaret’s College
Rose Crossland is the Advancement Manager at St Margaret’s College, Christchurch. She has worked in fundraising and donor communication for ten years, winning international awards for both her fundraising and marketing campaigns.
Rose has experience in the not-for-profit, tertiary and independent school sectors, is passionate about education and the power it has to transform lives. She is proud to serve on the National Committee of Educate Plus NZ and the Southern Region Committee of the Fundraising Institute of New Zealand (FINZ).
e: rose.c@stmargarets.school.nz

NZ 2015 Chapter Conference

It was a conscious decision to name this year’s conference ‘Let’s talk Business’. There is a growing appreciation within the education sector in New Zealand that business best practice must be implemented to achieve our organisation’s goals. The national committee wanted to use the conference as a platform to inspire and influence the decision makers who work in governance and senior management as well as those of us who work in fundraising, community relations, marketing and enrolments.

As well as skilled practitioners in our various fields from Australia and New Zealand, experts from the business sector were also invited to present. Having longer session times was also deliberate to give more time for dialogue and in-depth examination of the topics – although it often seemed that there was still not enough time!  It obviously struck a chord.  We were thrilled with the large number of registrations and positive feedback received on the fresh concept and content.

The conference started with a leadership breakfast for people working in governance and senior management. Ross Blackman, Director of Black Gold (the organisation tasked with generating revenue for the Rio Olympics), spoke candidly to attendees about why investing in and resourcing their Advancement offices makes good business sense.  It attracted a large crowd and generated some positive conversations.

The sessions over the next two days focused on the core elements of Advancement, including sessions for beginners. A lot of learning and sharing went on. Complementing this were plenary sessions – highlights included keynote speaker Jason Pemberton, co-founder of the Student Volunteer Army, who gave a challenging and thought provoking discussion around the meaning of education. A panel discussion on Friday afternoon to look at leadership response in a crisis was specifically earthquake focused with Sir Bob Parker, Former Mayor of Christchurch, Jenny Harper, Director Christchurch Art Gallery, Gillian Simpson, Executive Principal St Margaret’s College and David Pine, formerly MFAT NZ Ambassador for Malaysia.

Delegates were privileged to have their conference dinner in the Christ’s College Dining Hall, a building not usually made available for outside groups. The heritage building, beautifully restored after the earthquakes, was a perfect space to gather together to reconnect with old friends and make news ones. During the dinner, a presentation was made to soon to be retiring Deb Cook to honour her contribution to St Cuthbert’s College and service to Educate Plus. A surprise serenade for Deb by a barbershop quartet was a highlight. It was also a chance for us to acknowledge Carolyn Prebble for the Trevor Wigney award she received at the Melbourne conference last year.

The committee is very grateful to sponsors Execucare, Ask Right and Blackbaud for their active and financial support for the conference and to The Commodore Hotel for their friendly and efficient hosting of the event. Thanks also go to our presenters for generously sharing their knowledge and skills. The conference made a healthy profit of nearly $10,000, some of which will go towards ongoing professional development for our members. 

There are many benefits to be gained from attending an Educate Plus conference. Regardless of your level of experience, you will gain new insights, have the opportunity to share your skills with others and come away better at your job than when you arrived. You will also leave with new and stronger friendships with people who understand the working world you operate in. Most of all, you will be reminded that you are part of an organisation dedicated to transforming lives through the power of education.

Members can access Conference papers from the educateplus.edu.au website in the document library under Resources. Such resources are categorized under:

• Admissions
• Alumni
• Fundraising 
• Marketing and Communications

Rose Crossland
NZ Conference Organizing Committee

Tribute to Debbie Cook

Director of Development St Cuthbert’s College

It was a real privilege for me to pay tribute to Debbie Cook for her outstanding leadership and service at the NZ Educate Plus Conference dinner held in the beautiful Dining Hall at Christ’s College on Thursday 13 August 2015.

In this newsletter it is very hard to condense what I said about Debbie at the dinner, for she is not only revered by St Cuthbert’s College, but is greatly admired and is highly respected throughout our profession.

Fortunately we had managed to keep this presentation to Debbie a wonderful surprise. During the lead up to the conference I found myself whispering our plans over the phone to Lynda Reid’s Personal Assistant!

After I spoke about Debbie, Chris Klaassen presented her with a pounamu pendant and Jill Rodgers organised  for  Debbie to be serenaded by a musical quartet who gave a stunning performance.

Debbie’s association at St Cuthbert’s College has been a long and special one. She is an Old Girl, a past parent, past Board Member and has been Director of Development for 14 years. During the time Debbie was a Trust Board Member at the College she attended a CASE Summer School for Philanthropy at Dartmouth College and so started her passion for carrying out the role to support the school.

Debbie has been in charge of many projects both large and small which have changed the face of the College and raised considerable sums of money. She is an exemplary model of the College motto, `By Love Serve’. This is demonstrated by her passion for education, supporting it through development, her exceptional skills, positive outlook and good humour. At St Cuthbert’s College there is a living example of the excellent working relationship between the Principal Lynda Reid and the Director of Development Debbie Cook and how delighted we were that Lynda was able to attend the dinner.

We congratulate Debbie on her success story and from Educate Plus Australasia again congratulate her on the following awards.

2006 Australasian Award  for Fundraising, Special Events                                                                                                     
2008 Fellow of ADAPE and now Educate Plus
2014 the Independent Schools of New Zealand, ISNZ,  presented an Honours Award for Service to Development

Our sincere thanks to Debbie for her work on the NZ Chapter of ADAPE and now Educate Plus as a Committee Member, Vice President, Member of the Australasian Board and immediate Past President of the New Zealand Chapter.

From Educate Plus Australasia, thank you Debbie for your immense contribution making such a difference to so many lives both at St Cuthbert’s College and throughout our profession. We will  miss you, we will always stay in touch and wish you much happiness in your retirement.

From Debbie Cook

Debbie Cook specially asked  for her sincere appreciation to be passed on to all the Educate Plus NZ Committee and Members for the wonderful farewell given to her at the Christchurch Conference. It’s a lovely opportunity to record her thanks in this newsletter.

`The thought and generosity that went into this has deeply touched me. The beautiful pounamu pendant will always be treasured and as for the `serenade’ – I am sure that it’s a once in a lifetime experience. I love it and it epitomises the fun and joy we all share in helping each other strive in our careers and benefit our organisations.

Educate Plus has given so much to me. Not only the latest in innovation and ideas in my field but also the encouragement and endorsement   that we were following best practice. I look forward to remaining in close contact with you in the hope of being able to give back to the organisation that has supported me so well.’

2015 Road Cone Results

Road Cones are the faces of the rebuild in Christchurch – ubiquitous beacons of order in what has been a chaotic Christchurch World. At the NZ Chapter Conference in Christchurch in August delegates were asked to submit handy ideas, suggestions and tips that they had picked up at the conference – collectively known as road cones and here is a selection of them below.

Road cone ideas, suggestions, handy tips.

·       If it wasn’t really hard, everyone could do it      

·       Go to donor meetings with your ears open and your mouth shut.            

·       New revenue generation should be a key strategy and priority at the ‘top table’.

·       Use your resources and time wisely. Plant your seeds in the most fertile ground.

·       This is one to question and debate in the institution: The major donor should be the LAST port of call in a project funding strategy, not the first.

·       Run campaigns like telephone campaigns ‘in house’ for better results

·       Don’t let down the donor

·       Be the strongest advocate for fundraisers – it’s our job to get people in our business on board.

·       The student on a scholarship who endorsed us all and the work we do – right at the beginning made me feel valued and connected. An inspired idea to do this for us and a reminder for us to do this for our team, our institution and our donors.

·       Fundraisers – let’s change the language. We generate revenue.

·       New language – out with ‘fundraising’ in with ‘revenue generation’. Fundraising has connotations of chocolate bars and sausage sizzles!!

·       ‘Big ears, small mouth!! Listen to your market / donors.

·       Making sure people understand the ‘language’ of advancement and what exactly they’re signing up to and expectations of their involvement – do not assume they understand the words. Eg. ‘Campaign’ is a great example. It means something quite different to non-advancement folk.

·       Get a Chair for each of the ‘projects’ within the campaign, and link them with volunteers.

·       The excellent analogy of the car salesman and linking it to funding.

·       Change terminology from fundraising to revenue generation

·       Brand: you are not all things to all people

·       This was a realisation. Philanthropy + assumptions = ‘Entropy’.

·       Delegation strategy of Peter Blake

1.     I know you can do it

2.     You will stuff up

3.     When you do, come to me first and we will sort it out together

·       Important to do liaison along with alumni events. So potential students can meet alumni and hear from them about the uni and courses

·       Plan against ‘single point of failure’.

Naomi Wilde, St Andrews College

Trevor Wigney Award

Last year I wrote to you all to say how honoured I was to be the first New Zealand recipient of the Trevor Wigney Award.

At the conference dinner in Christchurch Chris Klaassen asked me to pay tribute to Debbie Cook which was a real privilege. I hadn’t realised he planned to very kindly mention last year’s Trevor Wigney Award as he said a number of the New Zealand Chapter members had  been unable to attend the Melbourne Conference. I was overwhelmed at the dinner. Thank you Chris for your generous words and to you all for your support and encouragement. I continue to be very humbled by the award and am extremely grateful to you all.

We are in a wonderful profession working in schools and universities. The sharing and gaining of such valuable knowledge is very important as we strive to make a difference for so many young lives in our institutions. Thank you so very much. I continue to learn and to be inspired by you all.

Carolyn Prebble
Development and Community Relations King’s School