President's Perspective: Moving Faster Than Ever
I read recently about the winds that have enabled passenger planes to fly faster than usual, with a Virgin Atlantic jet leaving Washington Dulles airport and arriving at London Heathrow 45 minutes ahead of schedule. The plane reached a highly unusual peak of 802 mph according to a Washington Post article. This is becoming more common. I take this route frequently when visiting our CASE office in London and working with members in Europe; a 45-minute early arrival is significant. I have also experienced the reverse—flights traveling westward taking longer because of the headwinds.
This feels a particularly apt metaphor for the context in which we work. On the one hand, we are at institutions that seem to be moving faster than ever, with raised expectations, new opportunities, and increased institutional complexity. We are seeing strong commitment to our institutions, as evidenced by alumni engagement, philanthropic support, community interaction, and, most fundamentally, student interest in attending our institutions.
On the other, we are facing significant headwinds. In many parts of the world, we continue to see questioning of the educational enterprise. This was in full view in late 2023 as the United States Congress questioned presidents of institutions in relation to tension on campuses as an outcome of the tragic Israel-Hamas conflict. It continues with the challenges to efforts to support greater diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging at educational institutions in some parts of the United States.
Furthermore, a small but vocal group of institutional donors are publicly, and inappropriately, pressuring university boards. In Australia, a government-sponsored commission looking at doubling philanthropy by 2030 recommended in its first draft for public comment that philanthropic contributions for building projects at private primary and secondary schools should not be tax deductible, a position we argue is out of step both with the philanthropic intent behind said gifts and our professional standards. And in the UK, a front-page story about international student recruitment has raised concerns. These are just a few examples of the challenges our sector faces.
As we celebrate our 50th year as an association, I am reminded that the complexity of the work and impact of the institutions we support has long been a challenge to communicate. In January, at our Washington, D.C., headquarters, our staff gathered to mark the beginning of our anniversary year that included the launch of CASE at 50: A Narrative History of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, elegantly written by Rob Moore. The book is rich with stories of CASE’s founding and growth over the decades, taking us to the present day in which our association is a global force representing 97,000 advancement professionals at 3,000 institutions in more than 80 countries. We have regional offices in London, Mexico City, and Singapore to serve our worldwide membership.
When the American Alumni Council and the American College Public Relations Association merged in 1974 to form CASE, members of those two associations were asked to commit to a broader mission for their new association, which came in the form a light blue card bearing the “We Will” pledge listing 16 commitments. (The full list also appears in this issue of Currents in the article “CASE at 50.”)
I’ve been thinking a lot about the first and last commitments of the pledge. The first is: “Promote unity, responsiveness, and oneness to a complex constituency which must cope with a changing society and changing demands in educational institutions.” CASE’s complex constituency includes all of you who function in different disciplines that together advance education. We use the holistic definition of advancement when we think about our work—Advancement is a strategic, integrated method of managing relationships to increase understanding and support among an educational institution’s key constituencies, including internal and external communities, supporters, and stakeholders.
We are all in this together, whether we work in alumni relations, communications, fundraising, marketing, or data analysis and strategy. The specialties are numerous and yet our goal is the same: championing the good work at our institutions and gaining support through reputation, revenue, and good will.
The 16th commitment is: “Intensify our efforts to advance understanding and support of education.”
Fifty years on, while the specifics of the contexts in which we work have changed, we have been true to these commitments. I consistently hear that CASE serves as a constant—an anchor for the profession of advancement inclusive of all its disciplines. As you work to champion the value of your institution, you can look to CASE for direction, support, best practices, and as your advocate for the work you do.
About the author(s)
Sue Cunningham is President and CEO of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), which supports over 3,000 schools, colleges and universities worldwide in developing their integrated advancement work (alumni relations, communications, fundraising and marketing operations). As CASE President and CEO, Ms. Cunningham provides strategic and operational leadership for one of the largest associations of education-related institutions in the world with members in over 80 countries. She started her leadership role at CASE in March 2015.
While at CASE, Ms. Cunningham has engaged CASE in two strategic planning processes. The first, which engaged thousands of CASE volunteers, resulted in Reimagining CASE: 2017-2021, and created an ambitious framework for serving CASE’s members and championing education worldwide, which included a comprehensive restructure of CASE’s volunteer leadership and governance structure. Building on the strengths of this plan, she led a recalibration exercise that resulted in Championing Advancement: CASE 2022-2027. This Plan articulates a clear strategic intent: that CASE will define the competencies and standards for the profession of advancement, and lead and champion their dissemination and application across the world’s educational institutions.
Among the key initiatives that have developed under her leadership include the redesign and delivery of a new global governance structure. In addition, CASE acquired the Voluntary Support of Education survey and created CASE’s Insights, CASE’s global research and data efforts. CASE published the first global and digital edition of CASE’s Global Reporting Standards and Guidelines, which operate as the industry-leading Standards for the profession, and launched the first global Alumni Engagement survey in addition to annual fundraising surveys. CASE created an ambitious competencies model across all advancement disciplines and a related career journey framework; opened the CASE Opportunities and Inclusion Center which focuses on equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging; and has reinvigorated a global advocacy agenda to communicate the value of education. Ms. Cunningham serves as a Trustee and Secretary for the University of San Diego, and is a member of the Executive Committee of the Board. She is a member of the Signature Theatre (Arlington, Virginia) Board of Directors, Chairs their Governance Committee, and sits on the Executive Committee. She is a member of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat steering committee, the International Association of University Presidents Executive Committee, and the International Women’s Forum. She has recently been named to the new, US-based Council of Higher Education as a Strategic Asset. She is the author of ‘Global Exchange: Dialogues to Advance Education’.
Prior to her appointment to CASE, Ms. Cunningham served as Vice-Principal for Advancement at the University of Melbourne where she led the Believe campaign resulting in surpassing its original $500 million goal; and the Director of Development for the University of Oxford where she led the development team through the first phase of the largest fundraising campaign outside of the United States (at the time): Oxford Thinking, with a goal of £1.25 billion. She served as Director of Development at Christ Church, Oxford and as Director of External Relations at St. Andrews University.
Before working in education, Ms. Cunningham enjoyed a career in theatre, the arts and the cultural sector. She is an Honorary Fellow of the Melbourne Graduate School of Education and a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. In 2012, Ms. Cunningham received the CASE Europe Distinguished Service Award, and has received the coveted CASE Crystal Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching. Ms. Cunningham was awarded a master’s degree from the University of Oxford, a bachelor’s degree in performing arts from Middlesex University, and is a graduate of the Columbia University Senior Executive Program.
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March-April Issue of Currents
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