September 11, 2019 – Diversity in Philanthropy: It’s No Longer One-Size-Fits-All

Diversity in Philanthropy: It’s No Longer One-Size-Fits-All

September 11, 2019

Birgit Burton, Trina Olidge, Keatley Scroggins, and Lula Dawit

As professionals, we engage on a daily basis with donors, board members, colleagues, and volunteers from various backgrounds. Sometimes, without meaning to, we judge people. These judgments affect our interactions and our day-to-day work. Join Birgit Burton, Trina Olidge, Keatley Scroggins, and Lula Dawit (fundraisers and planned giving officers from Atlanta, Georgia) as they share information and observations, gathered through research and their own experiences. They will help us on our journeys to recognizing our own unconscious biases as we interact with the world around us. This opportunity for self-reflection can be helpful as we each strive to become more effective professionals and, ultimately, more open and sensitive human beings.

Birgit Smith Burton, Executive Director of Foundation Relations, Georgia Institute of Technology. Birgit Smith Burton is a respected leader in the fundraising profession having raised more than $500M during her 30-year career. As the executive director of foundation relations at Georgia Tech she led her team in raising $309M toward the institute’s most recent successful $1.8B capital campaign. Burton is a well-regarded speaker on the topics of fundraising and diversity. She has authored articles on diversity in the fundraising profession and co-authored the book, The Philanthropic Covenant with Black America. She was proud to be selected by Georgia Tech leadership to participate in the first cohort of Leading Women @ Tech, which identified the next community of leaders who will guide the institution in the 21st century. She serves on the boards of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Global, the A.E. Lowe Grice Scholarship Fund, and Hosea Helps. She is Vice Chair of AFP Global Membership Division. Birgit is an advisor for the Aspen Leadership Group and founder and chair of the African American Development Officers Network, which for 20 years has supported diversity in the fundraising profession by promoting professional development and facilitating interaction among its members. Burton earned a bachelor’s degree in media communications from Medaille College.

Trina S. Olidge brings depth and understanding to a changing academic landscape with over 15 years of experience in both public and private institutions, including minority serving and large research organizations. In her current role as director of gift planning at Georgia Institute of Technology, she educates donors on charitable gift planning vehicles and tax strategies to help achieve their philanthropic goals. Olidge came to Georgia Tech from Georgia State University, where she was senior director of development for the College of Arts and Sciences. Previously, Olidge served as assistant vice president at Morehouse School of Medicine, and has held major gifts positions at both the University of Georgia School of Law and The Westminster Schools. Her career in higher education spans over fifteen years and began at Tulane Law School as assistant dean of external affairs & diversity. She has also worked in industry as an investment analyst with Goldman Sachs and G.E. Capital, before returning to Atlanta to join a boutique international consulting firm following law school. Olidge earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from Howard University and a juris doctor from the University of Georgia School of Law. She currently serves as chair of the Advocacy, Policy & Ethics Committee for the Greater Atlanta Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. She loves international travel and spending time with her husband and two children in Atlanta. Inspired by the example of her parents, she brings authentic passion and commitment to the pursuit of excellence in education.

Keatley Scroggins, J.D., C.F.R.E. Director of Development for Georgia Institute of Technology Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts recently returned to Atlanta, Georgia after working in higher education in the far corners of the country. In 2017, she joined the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts at Georgia Institute of Technology as the director of development for the college where she is responsible for driving philanthropic activity and securing resources that promote the technology-oriented liberal arts of the future. Keatley has served as a Director of Parent Giving for Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina, where she led a team focused on engaging current and past parent donors and prospects and driving fundraising results. She has also worked in fundraising and related leadership roles at the University of Oregon, Dartmouth College, and Morehouse College. Keatley is an alumna of Princeton University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, and Samford University, where she received a Juris Doctor. She has been involved with the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners, holds a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) designation and serves on the executive committee of the African American Development Officers (AADO) Association. She has volunteered as a Court Appointed Special Advocate and coaches students who are applying to college. Outside of work, Keatley enjoys traveling, spending time outdoors, yoga, and watching football.

Lula S. Dawit has a passion for philanthropy and the arts. After completing her J.D. and LL.M. in Taxation from the University of Florida, Lula moved to Atlanta in 2010 to practice law in the area of wills, trusts, probate administration and business litigation. In 2015, Lula made the leap from law practice to philanthropy. Lula is currently the Director of Advancement for the College of the Arts at the University of Florida. Prior to this role, Lula served as the Director of Planned Giving for the Woodruff Arts Center, the third-largest arts center in the country and Spelman College. Lula is an active member of the Fiduciary Planning and Probate sections of the State Bar of Georgia. She is President of the Georgia Planned Giving Council, Immediate-Past President of the Bernard A. Zuckerman Museum of Art’s Advisory Board at Kennesaw State University, and a member of the 2014 LEAD Atlanta class. In her spare time, Lula enjoys going to museums, the theater, concerts, camping and visiting national parks.

Deadline to register is Monday, September 9th at 12:00 Noon (CST).