Deborah Kaplan Polivy, Ph.D.

I loved having the opportunity to work with you on this wonderful and exciting project. Your insight, wisdom and experience are a tremendous asset and compliment my work beautifully.

— Maxine Stein, Director of Development, National Yiddish Book Center

Polivy’s article “Three Thank You Templates and You’re OUT!” was recently published at eJewish Philanthropy. She analyses a specific series of thank you note templates sent to one donor and explores issues and approaches to donor correspondence.

Because I coach so many fund raising professionals, a friend called the other day to ask my opinion of the way in which she was thanked by a nonprofit organization. Within a short time she had received three template letters and wondered if that was “normal”. She described the scenario as follows…[read more]

Here’s an excerpt from an article about planned giving recently published by Deborah Polivy:

Why don’t we use the correct language when speaking about endowment building? Why don’t we say building an endowment to ensure ongoing resources for our Jewish communities and organizations? We often use the terms “planned giving and/or “legacy giving” when what we really mean are contributions that will be placed into an endowment fund, either currently or at death, the distributions from which will be made according to some Board or Finance Committee spending formula…

Read the rest of the article at eJewishPhilanthropy.com.

Deborah Polivy’s article “Annual Gift, Endowment Gift, or Both?” appeared on Page 1 of the December issue of Planned Giving Today.

Planned Giving Today is the premier monthly resource serving the planned giving community and connecting readers to leading professionals in the field since 1990.

December Issue of Planned Giving Today

Deborah has been hired by Ohr Torah Stone Colleges and Graduate Programs in Efrat, Israel to help the organization establish an endowment program in honor of the 70th birthday of Rabbi Shlomo Riskin.

Rabbi Riskin founded the institution in 1983 with the mission to  “work toward the unification of the Jewish world by promoting a Judaism based on tolerance, openness and inclusion”.

cover of the Ohr Torah Stone brochure

Deborah was just appointed as a consultant for NeighborWorks America, “a national nonprofit organization created by Congress to provide financial support, technical assistance, and training for community-based revitalization efforts.”  Her first assignment was to provide board training on effectiveness and fund raising for the Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven, Inc.

Here are some quotes and pictures from the workshop:

“I thought last night was terrific!  You were terrific and the board actually showed some spark.  They seemed very responsive to you and you were so direct and no nonsense.  I’m looking forward to next week’s workshop.”

“Another great session.”
-Julie Trachtenberg, Resource Development Specialist, Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven, Inc.

Workshop participants at the Neighborhood Housing Service of New Haven

Deborah completed assignments for two very different clients in 2009 – Bikur V’Ezrat Cholim, a social service organization in Jerusalem, Israel and the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, a family oriented facility in Springfield, Massachusetts – and yet the issues that each faced were the same.  Both organizations needed a new or refurbished building and neither had a fully operating development department. Deborah conducted a Feasibility Study for a capital campaign for each and made recommendations about not only such a fund raising initiative but also about creating an in-house development department.

Cover layout - National Yiddish Book Center Marketing Piece

The endowment development project for the National Yiddish Book Center is complete. It primarily entailed three different parts.

1. Reviewing current endowment policies and procedures and recommending changes.
2. Drafting marketing piece and working with staff and design firm (see above and below).
3. Training staff on endowment development (ongoing).

Internal spread - National Yiddish Book Center Marketing Piece

Deborah Polivy and Maxine Stein, Director of Development of the National Yiddish Book Center, described how they completed this endowment development project, including the marketing brochure, in 4 months at the 2009 AFP Rhode Island Chapter Fundraising Day, “They did it. Yes, you can.”  Audiences members described the presentation “as clear and easy to understand.”

Deborah also received rave reviews for a presentation made to Women in Philanthropy of Western Massachusetts.

Evaluations from participants included the following quotes.

“She Rocks.”

“Reinforced things I’ve been doing, and raised some new questions for my Board.”

“She is always great!”

Deborah’s newest client is the National Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Massachusetts where she will help the organization design and implement a new endowment development program.

Upcoming speaking engagements include Bay Path College on Fundraising in These New Economic Times — Reflections from the Field (January 9, 2009); Women in Philanthropy of Western Massachusetts in Holyoke on Some Thoughts About Cultivation (January 13, 2009) and a similar topic at the Northshire Nonprofit Network meeting in Manchester, Vermont (November 7).