Stewardship School


NEXT CLASS: TBD - Online Instruction
Instructors: Shanon Doolittle & Vanessa Chase

Here's how to create a custom stewarding plan.

Maybe you’ve read tips on donor retention in blog posts or attended webinars on this topic. They gave you lots of great information on the theories of donor retention but left you wondering how to actually do it. And more importantly, how to make stewardship work for you and your organization.

Enter: Stewardship School

Stewardship School is an online instructional and inspirational learning experience designed to help you create a custom plan for keeping your donors loyal and giving for years to come.

Do you want happier donors?
 Do you want to raise more money?
 Do you want to stand out?

Then join us for Stewardship School.

Over 6 weeks, you will create a donor happiness plan that is based on exactly what your donors want from your nonprofit.

It’s a new, proven approach to donor retention that will help you create better and happier relationships with your donors. And more importantly, in a way that won't overwhelm you or add stress to your existing workload.

Are you ready to learn how to love your donors?

Stewardship School is a 6 week online learning experience delivered through weekly videos, worksheets, and group coaching calls. Your instructors are Shanon Doolittle and Vanessa Chase.

Week 1: Getting to Know Your Donors

The real secret to successful donor retention is getting to know who your donors are and what preferences they have in their relationship with your non-profit. During this week’s lesson we will lay the important groundwork for the rest of the course as you will learn how to survey and research your audience to build an in-depth audience profile.

Week 2:
 Reviewing Your Stewardship Efforts

It’s important to review what you’re currently doing in light of what you’ve just learned about your donors in week #1. We’re going to review your current stewardship efforts this week to determine how well your non-profit is meeting your donors’ needs. This will include walking you through a comprehensive checklist, auditing what the rest of your non-profit is doing for communications (not just the fundraising department!) and determining your current retention rates.

Week 3:
 Putting Your Donors First

You know that it is important to be “donor-centric.” But how do you implement that concept in your work? This week we’re going to build on what you’ve done in the first two weeks to put your donor at the center of your stewardship efforts. You’ll learn from examples of good and bad donor-centric communications, and will come away with several exercises to help you revise your own work.

Week 4:
 FALL BREAK

School isn't school without a Spring Break. This week, you'll rest and relax. (Yes, really.) Or if you need to catch up on homework, it's a good time for that too. But do get outside and play. The monkey bars are calling your name!

Week 5:
 Making Stewardship Fun for You and Your Donor

This week you’ll learn how to add surprise and delight to your donors’ journey! We’ll take you beyond the number 10 envelope to think about unique stewardship opportunities that are personal and put your donor first. We’ll also cover where you can find stewardship inspiration and give you plenty of actionable ideas to fun up your stewardship efforts.

Week 6: 
Creating Your Unique Donor Happiness Program

In your final week of Stewardship School, you’re going to bring together everything you’ve learned to create a unique donor happiness program just for your non-profit. This includes both a 3 month and 1 year plan. You will also learn time and calendar management strategies to ensure that you actually implement your plans and we’ll discuss why simplifying is the best way forward!

If you need help creating a custom donor retention plan for your nonprofit, then you need Stewardship School. It is an online learning experience complete with the resources and support you need to stop losing donors and raise more money.

Your tuition for Stewardship School includes:

  • Weekly videos + worksheets to get your big ideas out of your head, onto paper + into action.
  • 6 group coaching calls (held weekly) where you'll get help with your homework + personalized stewardship advice
  • Unlimited email support from Shanon + Vanessa because whether you need extra tutoring or encouragement, we're here + happy to help
  • Fun + useful school supplies delivered directly to your doorstep to help you became a star student + gratitude champion
  • New + inspiring stewardship ideas surprise guest lecturers


An uninspired donor retention strategy costs your organization thousands of dollars each year. And most likely, you're losing money every day because you’re not treating your donors as well as they could be treated.

Are you okay with that? (Yeah, neither are we.)

Grab your seat at Stewardship School today for only $249.



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