Jumpstart will increase its revenue by approximately 10% per year to raise the $6m required to fund this plan for the next four years. To do so, Jumpstart will focus on three fundraising areas: (1) national corporations and major gifts, (2) individuals and foundations, (3) government revenue. This three-pronged approach to combines local and national efforts and will create a stronger, more sustainable financial foundation for the organization.
Jumpstart already has a diversified national funding base of private, government and in-kind
supporters. This strategy builds on that foundation and invests resources in increasing individual and
Chief
foundation giving in the five target cities of this plan. This plan will replicate the success Boston and San Francisco have had in monetizing success of School Readiness for All initiatives and unlocking new funding sources. Over the last three years in Boston, for example, Jumpstart has collected multi-year support from seven new foundations and nine corporate sponsors. It also raised two $1m grants from local funders. Boston is one of Jumpstart’s strongest areas for fundraising, and San Francisco has duplicated this success, both programmatically and from a funding perspective. This fundraising strategy will quickly replicate this growth plan by realigning fundraising resources:
National Development
The national development structure has been extremely successful to date, and Jumpstart is ready to take this success to the next level. The President, who has been involved in operations as well as fundraising up until this point, is fully transitioning operations to the Chief Operating Officer (who was hired in January 2010). He will now have the capacity to invest all of his time stewarding major national donors, representing Jumpstart at various events and conferences, serving as the national spokesperson for the organization and traveling across the country to support Executive Directors’
fundraising efforts. A Chief Development Officer will be hired by this summer to lead three primary functions, as demonstrated above. Generating support from individuals, foundations and
corporations have been a staple at Jumpstart, but this new structure will provide the tools and resources necessary to work together as a larger fundraising group while diving deeply into the relationships required to steward major funding from all types of donors.
Major Gift and Individual Giving. Jumpstart is investing resourcing in generating a major gifts program that will leverage supporters in new and more effective ways. The Chief Development Officer will cultivate two to five $1m annual contributions from individuals within the next four years. The National Board of Directors, which currently generates 15% of total individual revenue, has committed to producing 25% of private funding by 2014. This individual giving team will also create a robust Annual Fund to cultivate the ongoing support from smaller-level donors.
Foundations. Jumpstart will grow its foundation giving with an increased focus on securing higher level multi-year gifts. The national team will commit to securing at least one $1m supporter within the next four years. Several current supporters of Jumpstart with this capacity include the MetLife Foundation, the University of Phoenix Foundation, the Tiger Foundation and an anonymous foundation. Jumpstart may also ask this group to lead a challenge grant to secure additional major gifts from other foundations.
Corporate Giving. The national development team will focus on corporate sponsorships and will work to bring on three to five $1m corporate donors, as well as several in the $250-500,000 range, within the next four years. Ideally, national sponsors will generate opportunities to partner their local operations with Jumpstart’s city offices, as well. Jumpstart success with campaigns such as Read for the Record will increase opportunities to acquire leads, enhance relationships and monetize support;
Read for the Record has generated at least seven new sponsorships over the last two years. Please see Appendix I for an overview of Read for the Record to get a better understanding of how this campaign has transformed Jumpstart’s public presence and corporate opportunities.
City-based Development
City-based development aligns this fundraising strategy aligns with the neighborhood focus of this growth plan. Jumpstart has five Executive Directors raising funds in each of the cities targeted for
growth – Boston, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.27 – and each Executive Director has local development staff and support. By moving to this intentional
neighborhood saturation model, Jumpstart’s value proposition expands, and Executive Directors will be set up for success in raising more money from more committed individuals and local foundations:
Much of Jumpstart’s fundraising success has come from local teams working in partnership with national development, and half of Jumpstart’s private funds come from local sources. Boston and San Francisco have been so successful raising money since launching School Readiness for All initiatives that they have been able to support national operating investments that help their local teams and the larger organization as well. This trend of raising enough funds at the city level to sustain itself while contributing to Jumpstart’s ability to operate and innovate is a core element of this fund development strategy.
Jumpstart expects each Executive Director to cultivate one or two multi-year gifts from individual donors and/or foundations at the $1m level or above within the next four years. Executive
Directors are also responsible for building strong Local Advisory Boards, which will be expected to contribute substantial personal gifts to support local activities, as well generate leads for additional large donors. Local foundations will be the other critical component to local sustainability, and each Executive Director is responsible for identifying and cultivating large grants to support their work Government Funding
Government funding will remain a key element of Jumpstart’s success. Today, public funds make up more than 40% of Jumpstart’s current funding base, and during the next four years Jumpstart intends to grow its annual Corps member population by 50%. Because Jumpstart’s Corps is
primarily funded through AmeriCorps and Federal Work-Study, it is critical that Jumpstart grow its government funding during this time. Fortunately, with the passage of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, AmeriCorps funding is expected to increase between 2010 and 2014, and Jumpstart expects its AmeriCorps funding to grow over the same time period. Additionally, service opportunities through AmeriCorps are projected to increase dramatically from 75,000 to 250,000 by 2017. As one of the largest and most experienced part-time AmeriCorps programs, Jumpstart will expand its program during this exciting time for national service. There also are a number of federal initiatives separate from AmeriCorps that Jumpstart has been and will continue to pursue, including the Social Innovation Fund and the Investing in Innovation Fund which is expected to be included in the upcoming reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. These are promising funds that could add significant capital during the next four years.
27 Jumpstart recently hired an Executive Director of Chicago who will start in June 2010. Locally-based funds are also raised in Atlanta and Seattle by Executive Directors in D.C. and San Francisco, respectively.
Deliver
RISK ASSESSMENT, CONTINGENCY PLANS AND EXIT STRATEGIES