Dear Trusted CAP® Advisor:
I hope you believe, as I do, that the more Chartered Advisors in Philanthropy®, the better–the better for the philanthropic world, the better for mankind, and the better for each of us. I know that there is a very large spectrum of activity that you, as a CAP® may be engaged in related to philanthropy. At the core, however, is the enhancement of knowledgeable giving, and hopefully, you have been able to work with your clients in this way. It is in this spirit that I am sending you this message.
The AIP Foundation’s mission is to uplift individuals and communities by encouraging and supporting the professional education of advisors in philanthropy. AiPF’s Theory of Change is that by providing incentive for more advisors and gift planners to increase their technical knowledge on sound giving strategies, that they will multiply the financial value and social impact of the charitable gifts and investments made by their clients and donors. To this end the Foundation has provided a total of 71 incentive scholarships to applicants approved by our board.
Most of the funding for these scholarships came from a grant of a little over $34,000 specifically for this purpose, made by my client, the late Eva Marder. AIPF was the charitable beneficiary of her remainder trust. As a result of this gift there are 27 more CAP® recipients and 23 more on track for next year. I remember when I had suggested this gift to Eva and how happy she was to be able to have such a broad and important impact on philanthropy. Imagine if each of the new CAP® recipients were able to ask one of their clients for the same type of gift, the effect would be enormous.
As you think about this outcome from my asking Eva, perhaps, amongst the clients you have advised, you have the comfort level to make such a request. Eva’s gift was posthumous, and of course having the AIPF named as a beneficiary would be greatly appreciated and honored. But with posthumous gifts, there is a wait time.
You may also have clients you feel close enough to ask to grant a current gift. This will help us to provide more incentive scholarships now. For a $10,000 grant, your client will take pride in helping 20 additional students achieve the professional designation of Advisor in Philanthropy. Without current grants, there are no other resources to provide the incentive scholarships. I am asking you, if you can, to help the foundation continue to do its work. As a philanthropic advisor you may have advised a client to create a charitable remainder trust with the right to make early distributions. Or you may have advised a client to create a donor advised fund. Either of these could provide a gift without using personal capital of your client.
You may ask why is it beneficial for me to help create other CAP®s? Based on the theory of abundance, the more that the public is aware of this professional designation, the more the value of the professional designation. Goethe, the great German philosopher, said “you see what you know.” Potential and current philanthropists are more likely to use a CAP® if the CAP® is known to them. This knowledge will come from critical mass. We have a long way to go, but we have a great start. Please give this some thought. This is a really good thing you can do to help your profession.
Warm Regards,
Les Winston, CAP®, President, Advisors in Philanthropy Foundation, Inc.
95 West Street, Rocky Hill, CT 06067
860-721-7400 x3 fax) 860-721-7406
95 West Street Rocky Hill, CT 06067 Phone: 860-721-7400 Fax: 860-721-7406
Email:
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ORGANIZATION:
The mission of the AIPF is to uplift individuals and communities by encouraging and supporting the professional education of advisors in philanthropy.
The Advisors in Philanthropy Foundation, Inc. is dedicated to advancing the causes of social justice, education, culture, science and the environment as the result of increased, better informed, and more effective philanthropy. The Foundation does so by facilitating educational opportunities in advanced charitable planning techniques, sound giving practices, and solid due diligence methods for donors, the professionals who advise them, and for charity leaders.
DESCRIPTION OF THE ISSUE OR NEED:
Extensive studies in recent years indicate that charitable donors and potential donors, particularly at higher levels of giving, desire increased and improved technical counsel from the professionals involved in assisting and advising them on philanthropic matters.
Existing academic (i.e. diploma) and professional education (i.e. certification) programs related to financial planning, philanthropy, and nonprofit management only lightly address three critical areas: (1) advanced charitable planning techniques and strategies; (2) methods for comprehensive due diligence investigation of potential recipients of philanthropic gifts and investments; and (3) sound giving practices and strategies to maximize the effectiveness of a gift in advancing an organization's -- and the donor's -- mission.
These are the technical areas in which donors and philanthropists wish for more guidance. Lacking such guidance, the size, structuring and impact of their philanthropic gifts are diminished.
BRIEF OUTLINE OF PROGRAM ACTIVITIES:
The Foundation's scholarship program is designed to encourage financial, legal, accounting, philanthropy and development professionals -- both new and experienced -- to expand their knowledge of specific technical areas related to philanthropy.
We link these professionals with existing educational resources in advanced charitable planning, comprehensive due diligence, and sound giving practices. For many younger professionals -- in the financial planning industry and the philanthropic sector especially -- the cost of obtaining additional or advanced training in these areas is prohibitive.
After a thorough screening process focused on an applicant's credentials, prior education and training, and personal/professional commitment to advancing effective philanthropy, the Foundation awards modest partial scholarships to offset the cost of tuition or fees for technical training in the three designated areas.
BRIEF OUTLINE OF PROGRAM GOALS:
Our goal is to assist as many professionals as possible to master three specific philanthropic planning disciplines with the expectation that they can multiply the financial value and social impact of the charitable gifts and investments made by their clients and donors.
The scholarship program has three major objectives in its support of professional advisors. The Foundation believes that through specialized philanthropic training these advisors will:
- Lead more donors to uncover and realize the full extent of their financial philanthropic capacity resulting from the application of advanced charitable planning techniques by their professional advisor(s);
- Prompt donors to become more generous as a result of realizing their increased financial philanthropic capacity; and,
- Guide donors to engage in more effective philanthropy – improving their community and their world – through increased knowledge and understanding of comprehensive charitable due diligence and smart giving practices.
INDIVIDUALS RESPONSIBLE FOR PROJECT MANAGEMENT:
The six-member Board of Directors of the Advisors in Philanthropy Foundation has been responsible for establishing the critieria for scholarship eligibility, reviewing all scholarship applications, selecting scholarship recipients, and following up as mentors to recipients after they have concluded their training. The Board of Directors is assisted by a part-time contract administrator who is responsible for all record-keeping related to the Foundation’s scholarship activities.
The Board adheres to a strict conflict of interest policy with respect to scholarship applicants and recipients, and its members are not affiliated in any capacity with nor inure any benefit from the institutions which scholarship recipents may attend.
Sally Alspaugh, CAP®, CLU
Director of Family Philanthropy, Xavier University
Cincinnati, Ohio
Professional Designations:
Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU)
Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®)
David Briggs, CAP®, CLU, ChFC
Briggs Financial Group
Wooster, Ohio
Professional Designations
Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU)
Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC)
Gerald Horwitz, CAP®
C.E.O., Horwitz & Associates, Inc.
Riverwoods, Illinois
Professional Designations:
Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®)
John Sullivan, CLU, ChFC
CEO, Heritage Wealth Counselors, LLC
Boonton Township, New Jersey
Professional Designations:
Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU)
Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC)
Robert Thompson, JD, CAP®, CSSC
President & Principal Consultant, Sage Financial Design, Inc.
Simsbury, Connecticut
Professional Designations:
Certified Structured Settlement Consultant (CSSC)
Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®)
Lesley Winston, CAP®, CPCU, AAI
President, Insurance & Financial Services, Inc.
North Miami, Florida
Professional Designations:
Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU)
Accredited Adviser in Insurance (AAI)
Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®)
ESTIMATE OF PROJECT COST AND REQUESTED AMOUNT:
Based on the number of applications received last year, the Foundation is seeking to offer a minumum of 125 scholarships for the 2012-2013 year.
$ 62,500. Direct scholarship funds
$ 10,400. Administrative/accounting support
$ 5,200. Promotion of program through professional associations and conferences, postage, internet service fees
$ 78,100.TOTAL Program Budget for 2012-2013
Funds for administrative and promotional costs in the annual program budget are secured through personal contributions and solicitations by members of the Foundation’s Board of Directors, and through targeted special events designated for this purpose.
Grant funds are sought exclusively for the funding of scholarships (i.e. no grant funds will be utilized for administrative overhead expenses).
The Foundation is requesting support in the amount of $5,000 for the support of ten scholarships.
PROGRAM EVALUATION METHODOLOGY:
Short-Term Program Evaluation (Ongoing)
Through November 2012, seventy-one (72) scholarships each in the amount of $500 were awarded to professionals seeking specialized philanthropic training. 32 of these recipients have earned a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®) designation from The American College, and 19 more are on track to receive CAP® in the next year.
Prior to scholarship award, applicants are asked to assess their own knowledge and familiarity with (1) advanced charitable giving techniques and instruments, (2) charitable due diligence methods, and (3) sound giving practices.
Upon completion of the educational program to which the scholarship was applied, recipients are asked to assess their level of knowledge of the same three key areas.
Further, scholarships recipients are invited to project (a) how their new knowledge will impact their work with clients and donors, and (b) to what degree their knowledge is likely to impact the philanthropic practices – including giving levels -- of their clients and donors.
Long-Term Evaluation (Planned)
The Advisors in Philanthropy Foundation is planning longitudinal studies to follow up with past scholarship recipients three, five and ten years after completing scholarship studies (i.) to determine whether and how the advanced philanthropic studies did, in fact, impact their services to clients and donors, (ii.) to attempt to quantify any change in dollars represented by increased gifts by clients and donors as the result of the recipients’ increased knowledge and expanded philanthropic advisory services, and (iii.) to gather feedback about how to revise the scholarship program to ensure the Foundation’s overall mission and program goals continue to be met and enhanced.
95 West Street Rocky Hill, CT 06067 Phone: 860-721-7400 Fax: 860-721-7406
Email: