The Fortify Foundation Podcast
The Fortify Foundation Podcast welcomes you to meaningful, in-depth conversations on topics related to Christian education, planned giving, fundraising, and more. We are building a community of people passionate about the future of Christian education. If you are an administrator, principal, pastor, teacher, support staff, parent, grandparent, or friend who loves or has been impacted by Christian education, this podcast is for you. Join us as we strive to sustain Christian schools for generations to come.
Episodes
30 episodes
Getting Back to the Mission! Building an Authentic & Impactful Christian School
If someone were to ask you, what is the framework by which your school operates? What would you say? God has given Christian educators an absolutely incredible mission, but a lot of times the day to day challenges keep us from more fully accomp...
•
49:44
Building an Effective Fundraising Strategy
In this episode, we discuss the key elements to an effective fundraising strategy. Sometimes it can be the simple things that often get overlooked. What is the reason for fundraising and what kind of impact is it really having? Are we effective...
•
53:53
Can Events Still Help Our School?
What type of events has your school been running and are you being as effective as you can be with them? We explore several opportunities that your school could be implementing and evaluating to maximize impact. Often, we do great at the ...
•
1:11:57
Setting and Evaluating Tuition Rates in Christian Schools
We all know the importance tuition has on our overall budgets. But when is the last time you truly evaluated your school's tuition rates? Was the conversation geared towards increasing tuition or was there ever a consideration of decreasing the...
•
1:11:12
How to Turn a Tax Obligation into a Kingdom Opportunity w/ Guest Brad Blackburn
IRA's, RMD's, & QCD's! What do these acronyms mean and how can they provide a kingdom opportunity for both your donors and your school? Brad Blackburn, the founder of Dyadic Financial Management, joins us in this episode and sha...
•
57:58
Challenges Christian School Boards will Face in the Next 5 Years
If a person had said to your school board, "We are going to spend a year in our homes and all of your students are going to do virtual school", your board would have probably considered having that person committed. However, we all did it, and ...
•
1:04:45
Perspective from a Philanthropist - What is Your Eternal Rate of Return?
In this episode, we have a conversation with philanthropist Wade McGuinn of McGuinn Homes. When learning about fundraising / development, we often focus on methods from within fundraising groups. But how often do we cross over the table and lis...
•
51:55
Enrollment Health, Marketing Mission, and Financial Legacy w/ Guest Andy Lynch
Fortify Foundation exists to financially sustain Christian schools. Often, Christian schools struggle to find the right path in marketing who they are and what they are seeking to accomplish which leads to missed opportunities in growing their ...
•
1:05:51
The Role of the Board in Fundraising
Yes, you read that title right! A truly effective board should be contributing to the fundraising efforts of your organization! If it's not happening, why not? Could this possibly be an area for growth? What would that effectively look like for...
•
49:56
Board Governance (2 of 2) w/ Guest Jeff Pickren
As we continue our series on effective boards / board governance, Fortify Foundation invites Jeff Pickren of Covenant Christian Academy to share some wonderful insights on some of the past challenges they've faced along with current changes to ...
•
50:59
Board Governance (1 of 2) w/ Guest Sean Corcoran
Sean Corcoran is a 19 year veteran as a school head. He provides some incredible insights on what it's like to shift the model in board governance. Suggesting, implementing, and adapting to change isn't always easy but sometimes it's necessary ...
•
51:41
Board Relationships, Assessments, and Strategy Changes
The Fortify team continues the discussion of board effectiveness by evaluating several areas that often plague many boards. What kind of relationship should administrators have with their board members? Are there missed opportunities from havin...
•
1:19:08
What Constitutes an Effective Board
In this episode, Edward Earwood, Ruston Pierce, and Brandon Allen discuss some of the differences between an effective and ineffective board. They take the time to answer some of the lingering questions that often get missed. What is the role o...
•
1:34:20
Executing a Capital Campaign (Part 3 of 3)
We've talked about whether or not a school is ready for a capital campaign and how to plan for that campaign. In part 3 of this series, we walk through the actual campaign process. What to expect, how to plan, understanding and overcoming many ...
•
1:09:25
Crafting a Capital Campaign (Part 2 of 3)
Now that you know your school has the capacity for a capital campaign, what are some things you need to consider prior to launch? What is the biggest reason for either a campaign's success or failure? In this episode, we cover the 6 c's of craf...
•
1:16:25
Is Your School Ready for a Capital Campaign? (Part 1 of 3)
Our school is growing! That is great news! Is the next step really a capital campaign? Join us as we explore several considerations before a school should enter a capital campaign! This is part 1 of a 3 part series where we dive in...
•
1:14:51
How To Gain New Donors
Today, we dive into 3 key areas that every school needs to think about when Attempting to Gain New Donors:1. What are thing you need to consider doing?2. What might be some things that you need to reconsider doing?3. Developing a St...
•
54:56
Playing the Long Game - Special Guest Tyson Chastain of Johnson Unversity
Johnson University has an incredibly rich heritage. But that doesn't mean it hasn't been immune to economic challenges. In this episode, we dive deeper into some of the best practices for fundraising and understanding how endowment plays a cruc...
•
1:01:57
Fundraising Fears
Funding your mission starts with being willing to promote your mission. In this episode we explore common fears that cause us to stall in our fundraising efforts.
•
49:23
Capturing Communication in the Midst of Chaos
How do you deal with the constant tyranny of the urgent that end of year events and summer planning brings?
•
1:09:51
Strategic Planning Part 2
Strategic Planning is important to the short and long term health of your organization. Join us as we unpack the process, details for execution, and outcomes you can expect!
•
40:56
Strategic Planning Part 1
Strategic Planning is important to the short and long term health of your organization. Join us as we unpack the process, details for execution, and outcomes you can expect!
•
55:38
What Exactly Does Fortify Do?
In this episode, we dive into the various areas that we are looking to impact Christian education. We aren't the typical foundation that just holds funds and processes donations. We are an institution setup to work on behalf of all Christian ed...
•
1:12:24
