Asia-Pacific Institute in Educational Fundraising

Meet Your Faculty

Ann Badger, Conference Chair
Director of College Advancement, Ormond College,
University of Melbourne

Ann Badger is currently the director of college advancement at Ormond College, University of Melbourne. Prior to this, she was director of community relations at Melbourne Grammar School for more than ten years. In both positions she has been responsible for all advancement areas including alumni, community, marketing, communications and fundraising.

Ann is a past president of both ADAPE Vic/Tas and ADAPE Australasia Inc and was the recipient of that organisation’s peak award in 2000. She has presented at CASE conferences in the United States, Asia Pacific and Europe.

A past teacher of English at both the secondary and tertiary level, Ann has a particular interest in professional development and raising the profile and standards of advancement within Australasia and globally.

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Jo Agnew
Director
Agnew Associates, Australia

Jo Agnew is a successful fundraising consultant with a wealth of international experience. Based in Perth, she consults to a range of educational and charity clients around the world. Jo works with clients to ensure that clear thinking leads to creative strategies and rigorous systems. She is passionate about creating an environment where people feel empowered and have the courage and determination to raise significant funds for their organisation.

Throughout her advancement career, Jo has been a regular contributor to the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and a leading force for the establishment of the CASE Spring Institute in Durham (UK), which she chaired for the first two years. Jo is the first Australasian to win a CASE Apple for excellence in training.

Jo came for a background in Public Relations and Policy Development within the Government of Western Australia. In 1993, she moved to the UK where she established the Development and Alumni Office of King’s College London. Over her seven years with King’s her team built up an effective database, alumni programme and introduced an annual fund, legacies and major gift programme. She also led the College through the ‘quiet stage’ of King’s first capital campaign.
In 2000, Jo moved to New York where she led Oxford University’s North American office for three years. Highlights included launching the international campaign for the Bodleian Library and increasing income to the University over a trying economic time.

In 2004, Jo moved back to the UK where she established Agnew Associates, working for a variety of educational and charity clients around the world. Her work includes strategic advice, training and coaching in all areas of fundraising, alumni relations and communications.

Jo is now based in Perth, Western Australia, where she is working with a range of clients in Australia, the UK and Africa.

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 Bob Burdenski
Principal
Robert Burdenski Annual Giving

Bob Burdenski is an internationally recognised expert in annual giving, direct marketing and alumni relations programme strategies, based in Chicago, USA. Bob has spent more than 17 years in fundraising and has served as an annual giving programme consultant for the past ten. He has worked with more than 100 institutions throughout the world, including the National University of Singapore, the University of Sydney, New York University and the London Business School. He is a frequent speaker, and author of Currents articles and the CASE books Innovations in Annual Giving and More Innovations in Annual Giving. Since 2002, he has served as the moderator of FundList, the largest fundraising e-mail discussion listserv in the world.

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Sue Cunningham
Director of Development
University of Oxford

Sue Cunningham became director of development for the University of Oxford in May 2006 where she is in the working on the largest fundraising campaign ever undertaken by a European university, to raise a minimum of £1.25bn. The Campaign for the University of Oxford: Oxford Thinking, was launched in May 2008.

Cunningham is leading the university's development team in the UK and is also responsible for the University of Oxford China Office, in Hong Kong. She has twenty years of professional development experience. Her career has spanned both cultural and educational organisations and has included the setting up of the first fundraising department for the National Museums & Galleries of Wales and running the department of External Relations for the University of St Andrews. Before taking up her current role she was director of development for Christ Church, one of Oxford's 38 colleges.

Cunningham has enjoyed providing regular training for CASE and was chair of the CASE Spring Institute for three years. She has experience of major gift fundraising, creating and running annual funds, family programmes and donor membership schemes and of managing development teams-large and small.

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Clare Pullar
Pro Vice Chancellor (Advancement)
University of Queensland

As Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Advancement), Clare Pullar is principal advisor to the Vice-Chancellor on Advancement Strategy, lead solicitations and change management to embed best practice in Advancement throughout the institution.

Clare has worked in tertiary and secondary education sector fundraising for 23 years and joined The University of Queensland in September 2009. Prior to this she led community engagement programs at Melbourne Business School (2007-2009) and Trinity College in the University of Melbourne for 10 years.

She has a depth of experience in both strategy and operational aspects of raising substantial financial support for all aspects of education - research, endowed professorships, scholarships and infrastructure. She has a special interest in cultural change required for successful philanthropic fundraising. She was a member of B-Hert (Business Higher Education Round Table) taskforce examining how philanthropic support for Australian higher education institutions can be increased. In 2006, she was awarded both the Trevor Wigney Award and the Peter Crook Award for outstanding service in Advancement in Australasian education.

Clare is a Board member of the Australian Youth Orchestra..

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David Shepherd
Director of College Advancement
United World College of South East Asia

Dave Shepherd is director of college advancement at United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA), a K1 - Grade 12 nonprofit international school in Singapore. Dave leads the department of College Advancement, which includes communications, alumni relations and fundraising.

With no formal advancement department prior to 2006, the college has implemented a strong communications strategy, a dynamic and comprehensive alumni relations programme, and recently launched active fundraising via a college related foundation.

As a member of CASE since 2006, Dave has presented at several CASE events, including the 2008 CASE Asia-Pacific conference and the CASE/EARCOS conferences from 2007-2009. He also authored the inaugural "Postcode from Singapore" in the January 2008 edition of CASE Currents.
Dave taught for three years' in the UK, prior to joining UWCSEA in 1992 as a teacher of physical education. In 1994 he was appointed as the head of the department and, for the next nine years', guided an exceptional team of teachers through a period of significant expansion for the college. Following three years' as the director of admissions, Dave was appointed to his current post in August 2006.

Away from the office Dave has pursued a passion for sport psychology, completing a master's degree in 2000, which he used to provide voluntary consultation services to a range of athletes and National Sports Associations' based in Singapore.

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Lorna Somers
Director of Development
McMaster University and
Vice President
McMaster University Foundation

Lorna is Vice President of McMaster University Foundation and Director of Development of the University, located in Hamilton, Canada. Working in university advancement since 1988, Lorna has been involved in the establishment and management of comprehensive fundraising programmes, including principal and major gift fundraising, gift planning, corporate and foundation giving programmes and the University's Annual Fund. She is currently directing the largest campaign in the University's history - the $400 million "Campaign for McMaster". Lorna regularly speaks at CASE events around the world, including the European, African and Asia-Pacific regions' Annual Conferences, and currently serves on the CASE Board of Trustees and is Chair of the International Committee.

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Alan Watkinson
Director of Advancement, Trinity College
University of Melbourne

Alan Watkinson was appointed as director of advancement at Trinity College, University of Melbourne, in August 2007 after having worked for 22 years at Scotch College in Melbourne. He was head of the English Faculty for 17 years and for the last six years at Scotch, he held the position of director of development.

He is a graduate of Trinity College, Cambridge University, where he read the English Tripos. He completed his doctorate in education at the University of Melbourne. Watkinson works extensively with major gift prospects and was instrumental in setting up the bequest program at Scotch College and working with bequestors at Trinity College. He is also heavily involved with alumni relations, the reunion program at Trinity and the Annual Giving Program.

He has presented throughout Australasia and in South East Asia as a keynote and workshop speaker on a variety of topics. He was treasurer of the Victoria-Tasmania Chapter of ADAPE from 2002-2006, and vice-president of that chapter from 2004-2007. He became president of ADAPE Australasia in March 2006 and became the inaugural chairman of the ADAPE Board of Directors when ADAPE became a company in 2009.

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This faculty member has earned a CASE Crystal Apple award in recognition of excellence in teaching at 10 or more conferences, workshops, and institutes.