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Fundraising used to be something an educational institution did when it needed a new building. Increasingly, it\u2019s something a school does because it understands what sustains it. That\u2019s the real shift underway: from a function you activate to raise money, to one you build to keep the organisation strong for the long term.<\/p>\n
That change, from occasional Fundraising to an emerging profession, is one of the more significant shifts in school leadership over the past decade, and one of the least talked about. Australia doesn\u2019t yet have the clear career pathway into Advancement that more mature markets have established, and there is no established training pipeline. The work of educate+ in helping to shape this framework has been significant for the independent school sector.<\/p>\n
From Ask to Expertise<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n A generation ago, \u201cdevelopment\u201d in schools often meant a part-time role: usually reactive, tied to a capital campaign and staffed by whoever was willing and available. Increasingly, it looks like a genuine profession. Fundraising practitioners are building real expertise in donor relationships, Alumni engagement, data and stewardship, and they understand that philanthropy in a school runs on trust and relationships long before it runs on an ask.<\/p>\n That professionalisation matters. Fundraising done well isn\u2019t simply about securing gifts. It\u2019s about staying close to the people who\u2019ve shaped the school: Alumni, past parents and staff who gave decades of service, so that when the moment for generosity arrives, it feels like a continuation of the relationship, not a solicitation.<\/p>\n Why This is a Sector Issue, Not a Back-Office One<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Schools that resource Fundraising like any other senior function build something sustainable: a culture of giving that outlasts any single campaign. Too many schools across the sector still treat it as a task bolted onto someone\u2019s existing role, and keep rediscovering, campaign after campaign, that relationships can\u2019t be built at speed.<\/p>\n With intergenerational wealth transfer in Australia set to reshape philanthropic giving over the next two decades, the schools that build the function now will be the ones ready when that shift arrives.<\/p>\n Three things this asks of us as leaders:<\/p>\n The schools getting this right aren\u2019t necessarily the ones with the biggest asks. They\u2019re the ones building the relationships, capability and culture that will sustain their institutions for the long term, and setting a standard the rest of the sector is still catching up to.<\/p>\n\n
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