Coffee ’n’ Conversations

By Clarenda Stanley

Why aren’t there more faces that look like mine? It is a question that I have often asked myself when attending any professional association gathering or visiting colleagues outside of the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) circle. Though minority populations are a primary beneficiary of many philanthropic dollars, we are not well-represented in the profession. Considering the growing diversity of the donor landscape and increasing globalization, this has often posed both challenges and opportunities for organizations and for fundraising staffs.

In 2009, due to the economic downturn, my then employer had all but eliminated professional development expenditures. So I applied for a scholarship from the AFP NC, Triangle Chapter. As part of my scholarship responsibilities, I was to volunteer with at least one committee. I immediately volunteered for the marketing committee, as I had an extensive (I like to think “impressive” would also be an apt descriptor) background in the field. After later discovering that there was also a diversity committee, I decided to volunteer for that committee as well. I gave the then committee chair and my predecessor, Oshana Watkins, a call. The initial conversation went something like this:

Me: “Hi, Oshana. My name is Clarenda Stanley. I am interested in joining the diversity committee and would like some more information.”
Oshana: “Great! What would you like to know?”
Me: “OK, for starters, how many members do you have on your committee and how often do you meet?”
Oshana: “Well, right now there is you and me. When are you available to meet?”

A formidable team of two, our initial challenge was to create an initiative that would secure buy-in not only from our fellow chapter members, but also from the philanthropic community as a whole. We realized early on that this issue was bigger than our chapter and could have a broad impact in effecting change throughout the entire organization—and perhaps the profession. We even thought we could transform the profession globally. Well, at least these were our lofty goals. However, we didn’t quite know what “it” looked like. So we went to Starbucks (of course) and we brainstormed. We drank coffee. Oshana went to Aruba. She returned. And we brainstormed some more. This went on for a couple of meetings until the epiphany arrived one morning as I walked into our “office” geared for more brainstorming and caffeine. “Coffee ’n’ Conversations” I announced. “Perfecto,” Oshana replied. Thus, our award-winning initiative was born.

The concept seemed simple enough. Every other month we would meet at a location somewhere in the Triangle region for coffee and diversity-related conversation. It would be free and open to any fundraiser and we would not require AFP membership. We would bring in speakers to help facilitate the discourse, give a plug for the organization and the profession and recruit some new members. And we would have pastries. Simple, right? Wrong. We soon learned that the topic of diversity is anything but simple: Understanding of the concept ranged from participants’ individual definitions of diversity to organizational philosophy and practices.

The support for Coffee ’n’ Conversations has been phenomenal. The initiative has piqued the interest of corporate philanthropy representatives and professionals outside of philanthropy. We now have corporate sponsors offering to sponsor a meeting.

So what have we learned? We now know that any diversity initiative needs six critical elements in order to be successful:

1. Establish a clear rationale for the initiative.
2. Focus the organization to achieve the changes necessary.
3. Seek input (from both individual participants and their respective organizations) broadly on the needs and priorities where you will target your efforts.
4. Ensure each participant walks away with action steps.
5. Carefully determine the timing and focus of each meeting/training.
6. Plan and prepare to maintain momentum over the long haul (caffeine really helps with this one).

I now have a co-chair. Camilla Eubanks, development coordinator at the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence, has been instrumental in this year’s programming. Our initial conversation went something like this:

Camilla: “Hi Clarenda. My name is Camilla Eubanks. I am interested in joining the diversity committee and would like some more information.”
Me: “Sure Camilla! What would you like to know?”
Camilla: “OK, for starters, how many members do you have on your committee and how often do you meet?”
Me: “Well, right now there is you and me. When are you available to meet?”

We will keep you posted.

Clarenda Stanley is a major gifts officer in the Office of Institutional Advancement at North Carolina Central University. Stanley has more than eight years of fundraising experience and serves as a mentor to up-and-coming philanthropy professionals. She serves on the board of the AFP NC, Triangle Chapter, where she chairs the diversity committee. She has earned an M.Ed. from Troy State University and a BSBA in marketing from the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

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