Juan Calixto, CFRE

"Good intentions are not sufficient to make an organization more diverse."
—Juan Calixto, CFRE

Juan Calixto, director of development for Mujeres Latinas en Acción in Chicago, is passionately committed to helping diverse nonprofits succeed in fundraising. He wears many hats, all related to diversity, development and nonprofit organizations. He currently works for a nonprofit grassroots organization dedicated to empowering Latinas, their families and youth; he recently served as lead staff for a successful $3.5 million capital campaign.

Calixto has spent 19 years in nonprofit organizations serving Latino communities in Chicago, and he is actively engaged in his AFP chapter, the fundraising profession and establishing entrepreneurial endeavors. Juan co-founded a diversity conference called "Breakin' It Down," which has become an annual event in Chicago, and he serves as chair of Latinos in Development, the professional association he co-founded. Calixto was awarded AFP Chicago Chapter's highest honor, the President's Award, in 2006.

Q. Tell us about your personal background.

A. I am one of 11 children who grew up in a loving, but poor, Puerto Rican family. However, none of us realized that we were poor. My siblings and I thought every family was like ours. We received food and clothing assistance from the state and from the nuns at the Catholic school where we attended grade school. I graduated from a public high school and then attended Northern Illinois University, where I initially majored in computer science. I took an elective course with a Puerto Rican professor there who changed my life. I had never met a Latino professor and it radically altered my sense of career and life possibilities. Even more profoundly, I ended up changing my major to sociology. One of the most important things he taught me was not to be like everyone else who came from poverty—they left school, earned a high salary and forgot where they had come from. I vowed that I would be different—one day I'd give back to my community, even though it was unclear in my mind just how and when I would do that.

After I graduated, I began working as a youth worker in a nonprofit organization and eventually became the first development staff member for a network of youth-serving organizations. Part of my job training included a membership in AFP. This was around 1988, and at that time, if you were a member of a minority within AFP, you were automatically routed to a "minority outreach" committee, which later became the AFP Diversity Committee.

The early engagement with the "minority outreach" committee afforded me many opportunities to learn and grow. Most members were African-American, and there were only two Latinos, including me. As a group, we embraced diversity, put together workshops and conferences and really focused on helping the larger organization create activities aimed at increasing the richness and diversity of its membership and programs. However, we had our own learning experiences in managing diversity. For example, early on we ran a successful conference that featured an African-American speaker, which included a reception with the speaker. I was told I could not attend because I was not black. We worked our way through that and the experience became the impetus for my co-founding a group, Latinos in Development (www.latinosindevelopment.org) in 1997 that helps Latino fundraisers network and grow professionally.

Q. Why is diversity still relevant to AFP today?

A. If we don't consciously make the effort to get there, it won't happen on its own. Good intentions are not sufficient to make an organization more diverse. For example, I am currently one of three men working for a women's organization offering services to victims of domestic violence and abuse, and we recently had a dialogue about increasing the diversity of our board members. There are no men or any non-Latinos on the board. We have set the goal to increase diversity, and we know it will make us stronger as an organization. We must always be mindful of that goal, communicate with each other to keep it moving forward and understand that sometimes this mindfulness can cause us to slow down our decision making. It's easier to just find someone and check it off our list, but it takes more time to consciously choose someone who brings a different background and perspective. It's worth the extra time.

Q. What is your personal definition of success with respect to fundraising professionals and diversity?

A. I think that this is different for each person and each organization. Goals change, and we work in a constant state of flux. At our chapter, for example, we instituted a "fellows" program that is basically a paid membership to the chapter for two years. We have about 10 fellows per year, and it has turned out well. We have increased the diversity of our members by giving them a chance to experience chapter activities, such as conferences and committees. Once they see how things work, they decide to join and they tend to stay on board. I think this is an example of our success as a chapter committed to diversity, and other chapters have adopted the same program.

Q. What is your greatest challenge as a fundraiser and your greatest satisfaction?

A. My greatest challenge is simple: raising enough money to reach our financial goals. We all face that challenge every day, and I've learned that the more success you have, the grander the ideas become. So the target is constantly moving and the bar is continually being raised.

As for the greatest satisfaction, I think it comes down to relationships. I am inspired by the people I work with. My CEO is fantastic, and other fundraisers I serve with on committees are terrific, too. My AFP membership has brought me so many new friends and colleagues who enrich my life.

Q. Do you have any advice for readers with regard to diversity in fundraising?

A. There is no single formula for being successful in attracting more diverse members into your chapter or your donor base. You can always approach someone directly and perhaps even get a token member or a one-time donation for your cause. But if you want a lasting connection, you have to first be intent on building a relationship with that person. It takes time and cannot be rushed.

When trying to reach out to a population, be open to learning and understanding more about them first and then build the conversation over time. Reach out and be welcoming. My parents taught me that. There were 11 kids in our family and my mother and father always welcomed the friends we brought home. In their home, I was taught respect most of all—respect for my older siblings because I could learn from them, and respect for the women in my family because they did so much for the rest of us.

One other thing, get involved. Join AFP and become an active member; work on committees, get to know people and give your talents and time to advancing the field. We have a profession we can be proud of, and we have the power to create positive change. I believe in the case statement of the AFP Chicago Chapter that "philanthropy builds community."