Member Spotlight: Michelle Morrissey

Name: Michelle Morrissey
Institution: University of New Hampshire
Position: Director of Donor Communications
ADRP member for 4 years.

How long have you worked in donor relations/stewardship and how did you get involved in this profession?

I’ve been in Donor Relations at UNH for the past five years, having come from a communications role at an independent school, and then the bulk of my career as a journalist, working at various daily and weekly newspapers in New England. I loved working in newsrooms and telling good stories, so when the opportunity came up to do the same kind of story sharing in education, I jumped at it. 

Could you tell us something about the organization you work for?

Officially, the University of New Hampshire inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students engage with an award-winning faculty in top-ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study.

Unofficially, UNH is also my alma mater (class of ’97, and soon graduate class of ’22) , and a place that is very dear to me. It’s where I learned how to be a journalist, a communicator, a professional—and also where I had fun, made mistakes, worked hard, and found success. I think of this all the time when I’m doing my work in UNH Donor Relations, and always feel a responsibility to do right by my school in everything I do in my role. 

What do you like most about being a member of the ADRP?

The peer-to-peer support of the listserv/digest has been the most beneficial, followed by the professional development events/webinars as a close second. We’re a pretty small shop in UNH Donor Relations, so being able to reach out to a network when we want feedback on an idea or challenge has been great. It’s also been a great opportunity for us to share our expertise, successes, even lessons learned.  

What is your greatest donor relations/stewardship achievement?

A colleague and I revamped our student thank-you letter writing process a few years ago, rebranding it into the UNH Gratitude Project, to engage students better in learning about where their scholarships come from, to inspire them to say thank-you to their donors in a meaningful way. I’ve had the opportunity to build on the Gratitude Project’s success every year, and now we’re sending out hundreds of student letters (and this year, ThankView videos!) to hundreds of generous donors. My aim is that we’re not only stewarding our existing donors, but teaching students about the power of philanthropy, so that in the future, they’ll think to give back to UNH to help some future Wildcat. Many of the students who are part of the Gratitude Project say that is their goal at some point in the future, so I think it’s working!

How big a role does the use of social media play in your work?

It’s been a huge role this year, with the launch of the UNH Foundation’s first social media presence via a Facebook page. I’ve seen some steady growth since launching in November 2020, but I have plans to do even more to build our audience — namely advertising and working to integrate more with the UNH channels with strong followings. It’s a place where we can share the positive news of what donors make possible, and for me professionally, it’s been an opportunity to add some social marketing skills to my communications toolkit. 

What is the most important professional goal you are currently pursuing, i.e., attaining a degree, preparing to give a presentation, launching an initiative at work or in your community, etc.?

I’m working on a master’s of liberal studies degree, with a concentration in nonprofit narrative—finding ways to help nonprofits learn how/when/where to use storytelling techniques to increase their engagement with donors, volunteers and constituents. 

What has been your biggest work challenge during Covid-19?

I have to say, I’m pretty proud of how our department, and UNH as an institution, have weathered this crisis. Those early days were scary, as they were for everyone, and figuring out how to deliver the same level of stewardship to our donors was something everyone was tackling, industry-wide. Each of us on our team looked for the silver linings of what remote work and engagement allowed us to do. Any work challenge really became about just working while personally processing how the events of the last year unfolded. Some days it was easy to throw myself into the work as an escape from the latest bad news, and some days it wasn’t, and that’s just how it was. 

Is there a resource, i.e., book, blog, website, etc., that you would recommend to other ADRP members?

You know, most of what I read for work probably wouldn’t fall under strictly donor relations topics. I’m fascinated by a moving story, and so finding those either here at UNH or at other higher ed institutions is always inspiring to me. I would say if you’re in higher education, look at some other alumni magazines or websites other than your own and see how they are covering philanthropy and stewardship, you might pick up a new technique. If you’re in another industry, same idea—look at what your peers are doing, and use ADRP as a resource for great examples of stewardship work. Check out award-winners from organizations like ADRP and CASE (for higher ed). For example, I was so inspired by this video from Michigan Medicine that won an ADRP award—give it a watch, it’s worth the 3:30 minutes of your time.

What is the best piece of professional advice you have ever received?

“You can do anything for a year.” It’s this idea that even if something seems new or scary, just try it on and see how it fits. If you end up not liking it after a year, you can always make a change later, or… you also might just love it. It helps you realize that going after new opportunities is always worth the risk of not knowing how they’ll work out. Nothing is forever—and while to some people that might sound scary, I find it oddly comforting to know that endless opportunities are out there waiting. 

Are there any particular stories, insights, etc., from your experiences in donor relations and stewardship that you would like to share with our colleagues?

There’s a time and place for high-end stewardship and formality, but there’s also a time and place for something not-so-fancy. Sometimes, going with an idea that’s pretty ‘organic’ can yield great results. One recent example is a video I worked on where we got to surprise a student with a scholarship. When I learned that we would be awarding a new, “full-ride” scholarship last spring, I suggested to the development officer that we do something special, and capture that emotional moment when the sophomore finds out the rest of her college career will be paid for. Working with that colleague, plus the faculty member who would make the announcement, and even the donor, we concocted a secret plan. I told the student she was one of many I wanted to interview on Zoom to talk about college affordability, and asked if her mom might join us, since parents are a big part of paying for college. All the while I was asking her general questions, I knew in a few moments, this family would be getting some amazing news. We didn’t do anything too fancy — I simply recorded our Zoom call, storyboarded the script and pulled the most important clips for how we’d share the story in text and video clips, and worked with a videographer colleague to create the final piece. You don’t always need a big budget line to do something that will let your donors know they’re making a difference.