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Unlocking the Potential of Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs): Building Long-Term Relationships
Friday, November 14, 2025, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM CST
Category: Education Event

Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) are changing the landscape of charitable giving, and fundraisers who understand how to engage with DAF donors are better positioned to unlock their full potential. In this session, you’ll explore how DAFs work, uncover what motivates account holders, and learn practical strategies to identify, cultivate, and steward these donors. Through real-world scenarios, we’ll tackle common challenges - from integrating DAFs into major gift conversations to navigating organizational roadblocks - and highlight opportunities to deepen donor relationships over time. Join us to gain actionable insights that will help your organization build lasting connections and maximize the impact of DAF contributions. 

Learning Objectives

  1. Explain how donor-advised funds (DAFs) function and why donors choose to use them.
  2. Describe the characteristics, giving patterns, and motivations of DAF account holders.
  3. Apply strategies to identify, cultivate, and solicit DAF donors effectively, including opportunities for broadening and deepening engagement.
  4. Analyze challenges in DAF donor stewardship and propose effective strategies to foster enduring relationships

This program is pending 1.5 CFRE hours.

  

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DATE & LOCATION

Friday, November 14, 2025
9:00 to 10:30 AM 

In-Person Location
DePaul University - DePaul Center, Room 8204
1 E Jackson Blvd, Chicago, IL 60604

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COST

AFP Members: $40
Non-AFP Members: $60
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PRESENTERS

Dr. Danielle Vance-McMullen
DePaul University

Danielle is an Associate Professor of Public Policy and Nonprofit Management at DePaul University and Co-Founder of the Donor Advised Fund Research Collaborative (DAFRC). She leads DAFRC’s efforts to collect and analyze large-scale data on DAF giving, with a focus on advancing evidence-based understanding of donor behavior. She earned her PhD in Public Policy from Duke University.

Priya Balachandran
Northern Illinois Food Bank

Priya is a passionate nonprofit professional and strategic researcher who leads and manages prospect development at Northern Illinois Food Bank. She is an active leader in philanthropy associations, co-leading AFP Chicago’s Continuous Learning Council, serving on the Apra Illinois board, and sitting on the Executive Committee of the Association of Certified Nonprofit Professionals. Priya also helped launch and co-leads Feeding America’s PhilOps and Prospect Research Community of Practice. She has presented for Apra International and its local chapters and serves as faculty for Apra’s Fundamentals program.

Kristin Carlson Vogen, J.D.
Kristin most recently served as associate vice president, philanthropic strategies & innovation at The Chicago Community Trust. The throughline of her career has been connecting opportunities for donors of all ages and all generations to fulfill their philanthropic goals. From impact investing to collective giving, from private foundations to donor advised funds, from gifts of appreciated securities to gifts of cash, Kristin has helped families and individuals deepen their donor experiences. She earned her law degree from William Mitchell College of Law.