No summer lull for Fairmount this year – our office is buzzing with new projects and new team members to help advance our work for the nonprofit sector. We’ve been fortunate to spend these months with three hugely talented students assisting with our client services, and our own capacity-building efforts.

Intern Cristina Bermudez (Yale University, BA, Psychology and Economics, Class of 2021) has spent her summer working hand-in-hand with our admin team on operational data analysis, systems-building, and enhancement. Graduate-level Research Assistants Ibrahim Choudhry (University of Pennsylvania, MPA, Fels Institute of Government/MSW, School of Social Policy and Practice, Class of 2018) and Mollie Williamson (University of Pennsylvania, MPA, Fels Institute of Government Class of 2019) deploy their keen research and analytical skills to benefit a range of planning and fundraising project teams. We asked them to share more about their expertise and their experiences working at Fairmount Ventures. MORE

Aria Auerbach, Project Manager, brings a strong focus on planning, organization, and systems-building to her resource development and strategy work at Fairmount. Her client projects benefit from her range of past experience in development, volunteer engagement, and events strategy, including expertise in prospect identification and management. Aria earned her B.A. in Psychology from Wheaton College and her M.B.A. from Drexel University. MORE

We’re back with another in our series of Q+A’s with our team members, showcasing the many passions and personalities behind Fairmount Ventures’ growing team. Margaret Walker, Project Manager, focuses her work at Fairmount on developing personalized fundraising and capital campaign strategies and providing clients with the tools, structure, and support they need to succeed. Her projects build on her extensive past experience managing campaigns and activating volunteer solicitors. Margaret earned her B.A. in Religious Studies from the University of Pennsylvania.

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You can go to school and earn an advanced degree in executive leadership, but no one is formally trained to be a board chair. Nonprofit board chairs are often successful professionals accustomed to playing an active role in driving change, making bold moves, and giving orders in their own organizations – in short, traits that can make for a disastrous board chair.

What, then, are the traits of a great board chair? Here’s what we’ve learned from a review of recent research, as well Fairmount Ventures’ experience over many years of working with hundreds of boards. MORE

We’re fortunate at Fairmount to have such a wide-skilled range of team members contributing to our work. Among them, our graduate-level Research Assistants provide essential research support that informs the recommendations our project consulting teams develop for clients. At the office on any given day around their studies, you’ll find Abigail Dym (University of Pennsylvania, MPA, Fels Institute of Government/MSEd, Graduate School of Education, Class of 2018); Peter Kramer (University of Pennslyvania, MPA, Fels Institute of Government, Class of 2019) and Angie Wang (University of Pennsylvania, Masters of Behavioral and Decision Sciences, May 2018) drawing on their data and analytical skills to benefit a host of planning and fundraising projects.

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Anneliese Van Arsdale, Project Manager, assists clients in all facets of resource development, from grant writing to capital campaign management. She leans on her frontlines experience to inform her understanding of the challenges clients face as she helps them pursue strategic goals, embark on big projects and seek financial sustainability. Anneliese earned a B.A. from Kenyon College, where she studied dance and drama.

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Among the most important decisions an organization will make is selecting its leader. Yet, a recent study estimated that while 66% of nonprofit executives expect to leave their jobs within five years, only 13% of nonprofit organizations have succession plans.  If selecting its top executive is so critical, and one of the few variables over which a nonprofit has total control, how do we get it right?
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Molly Botnick, Associate, is dedicated to helping nonprofits pursue social justice and to assist them in serving their communities more effectively. With a background in social work and direct service, she brings a ground-level perspective of the issues facing underserved Philadelphians to Fairmount Ventures. Molly earned her B.A. in International Studies at Kenyon College. MORE