AFP Member Spotlight: Kelly Scanlan, CFRE

AFP Member Spotlights are a recurring series of interviews with AFP members, highlighting the unique individuals and career paths that exist within the fundraising profession. If you know an inspiring fundraising professional who deserves to be featured, please email [email protected].

In this member spotlight, we interviewed Kelly Scanlan, CFRE, director of development and communications at the Latin American Community Center. Originally intended as a way to get some real-world experience before a career in nonprofit research, her year as an AmeriCorp VISTA changed her career trajectory, resulting in a lasting passion for development work. She shared with us how, in her current role, she has immersed herself in the organization’s programming, which has been instrumental in helping her understand how to best connect donors with the aspects of the mission they are the most passionate about.

Q: How did you start your career in the fundraising profession and what led you there? 
A: Nonprofits have been a part of my life since I joined Girl Scouts in the first grade and discovered my love of volunteering. It was not until my late teens, however, that I realized working in nonprofits was a possible career path. For the longest time I thought everyone I saw at nonprofits were volunteers like me. 

Initially, as someone who loved research and academia, I thought I wanted to get a Ph.D. and have a career focused on research related to the nonprofit sector. However, as I was finishing up my master’s program, I came to the realization that I did not feel adequately prepared to research the nonprofit sector since my only experience working for a nonprofit was in a volunteer capacity. That led me to take a break from academia to do a year as an AmeriCorp VISTA working in development for a nonprofit in Philadelphia.

I figured it was a finite one-year commitment that would expose me to the realities of working for a nonprofit and make me better prepared to re-enter academia when my contract ended. However, that one year turned into two which then became my entire professional career. 

Through those first two years in AmeriCorp I realized that development had all of the elements I loved about research. Looking up data and studies to explain the need for a program was like the hours I would spend in the library working on a research paper. Talking with program staff about the impact programming was having on those served was like a small taste of program evaluation. Meeting with donors and learning what made them tick and their reasons for giving was like the interviews I would do when working for research studies. However, in contrast to research, development gave me a more concrete way to see the impact of the work I was doing. I did not have to wait for a paper to be published, I could walk outside my office and see programming that was happening because of funding the agency received. I also loved how development felt less rigid, there was more variety in my day to day, and it offered more room for creativity and problem solving. 

After finishing my second term of AmeriCorps service, I began working at my current employer, the Latin American Community Center (LACC), first as a grant writer and now as their director of development and communications. It is a career path my 22-year-old self would have never expected but I am confident that it truly was the perfect profession to blend my research-focused brain with my heart that has a passion for making an impact.  

Q: When and why did you decide to become an AFP member? 
A: I was first introduced to AFP when I was an AmeriCorp member in Philadelphia through a “Meet the Funders” panel the AFP Greater Philadelphia Chapter was hosting. At the time I was new to fundraising, so it was great both to meet funders as my employer at the time intended, as well as introduce me to other people in similar roles and learn more about development as a profession and my future options. When I moved to an organization in Delaware, I was immediately interested in joining AFP but between being new to the organization and then shortly after that, everything shutting down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I was not actually able to become a member until I moved into my director role in early 2021. 

Joining AFP was especially helpful during that time as I was adjusting to going beyond the grant writing side of fundraising and getting more involved in all areas of development, on top of navigating being in a supervisory role for the first time. The monthly educational sessions my chapter offered were a great resource and I loved being able to network and learn from other people in development roles as I was taking on this new role myself. Since then, I have also advocated for all development staff in my organization to be able to join AFP and attend trainings because it makes us better in our roles and exposes us to new ideas and ways of doing things. 

Q: Are you doing anything innovative at your organization (or a past organization) that you think other fundraisers could benefit from?
A: Something that I have always prioritized is finding ways to get involved with programming. The impact of this is two-fold. The first is it helps to strengthen relationships with program staff. They see you as someone who understands the value of their work and is there to help, not just someone who is adding more work to their plate by asking for information for grants and donor appeals. It also helps you to know what works best for program staff in terms of communication. 

The other benefit is it enhances your ability to talk to donors about the work your agency does. You are not just relying on information and data you are given; you have your own personal experiences you can draw from in order to give those conversations with donors a more personal touch. It gives you a more in-depth understanding of the impact your organization has on those served and helps build your personal connection to the mission.

One of my favorite things I have gotten to do at the LACC, that is completely unrelated to my role in development, is I have been able to teach Zumba classes for the seniors in our Los Abuelos program. It is only an hour of my time each month but through those classes I have gotten to know people who have been involved with my organization, in some cases, since it was founded 56 years ago. They have shared with me why they participate in programming, told stories about their experiences with the agency, and they have shared needs they still see in the community and ideas for what can be done. This has grown my understanding of the organization and its impact while also giving me a deep connection to one of our programs that I am able to share with donors. While I know most fundraisers would not use Zumba as a way to connect with programming, just taking an hour or two of your time each month to interact with programs in some capacity can really enhance your ability to connect with what your agency is doing and share that passion with donors. 

Q: What is your favorite word? (only one word) How has this word influenced or inspired your career?
A: I would say my favorite word is awareness. In development, it’s easy to become so focused on your own tasks that you don’t always notice the work happening around you. I’ve felt that frustration when I reach out for program information or data and don’t get a timely response. In those moments, it’s tempting to think something along the lines of, “It’s just three questions. Why can’t you answer me?”

But awareness shifts that perspective. It means considering what might be happening in the other person’s day. It is possible they are dealing with an especially challenging client issue, or perhaps email simply isn’t their preferred method of communication and a phone call would be more effective. That kind of awareness not only eases frustration but also strengthens relationships, allowing development to better represent the agency’s work to donors and partners.

Q: What professional accomplishment are you most proud of? 
A: Several years prior to working at the LACC in development, I was first introduced to the agency through interning with their programming for middle and high school students. This experience built my passion for educational equity, especially in regards to access to post-secondary education. When I came back to the LACC in 2019 I was able to do fundraising for a variety of educational programs and projects, including a capital campaign to build a new early learning center, but it was not until 2022 that I had the opportunity to have in-depth involvement in programming related to post-secondary access. 

As we looked at community needs that had become more pronounced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, I was asked to be a part of the team that was re-evaluating our former Hispanic Student Recognition Program to see how we could make a greater impact on the students served. This led us to create the Minerva Marrero Hispanic Scholarship Program which awarded its first scholarships in 2023. I was able to be a part of the whole process — determining the evaluation criteria and application process, reviewing student applications, and of course raising the funds so that we had the capacity to provide these scholarships. Now the program just celebrated its 3rd year of scholarship recipients. In these 3 years, we have distributed $75,000 worth of scholarships to 21 Hispanic high school seniors in order to support their education after high school. 

While there are development projects I have led that have raised significantly more funds and impacted more individuals, reading the personal statements these students submit each year and meeting them in person each summer at our scholarship award ceremony is always the highlight of my year. They are such incredible youth with such bright futures ahead of them. I am proud to be just a small piece of their journey. 

Q: How has being an AFP member and participating in the AFP affinity groups benefited you in your career? 
A: AFP has been an invaluable resource, providing training that has advanced my professional growth, a mentorship program, and opportunities to connect with other development professionals. A great benefit of my specific AFP chapter is how small and connected Delaware feels. Since you are seeing a lot of the same people at each AFP event, it really gives you the opportunity to connect with other nonprofits, learn what is working and is not working, commiserate over shared frustrations, and in some cases explore ways to partner. With development being a relatively small department at my organization, most people I work with don’t necessarily understand the ups and downs that come with working in this field. With AFP, you are with people who truly get it. While the organizations may have different missions and programs, we are all working in a similar manner to try and improve our communities. 

While Delaware being small is a great strength, I think the affinity groups are beneficial for the opposite reason as they can expose you more to what is going on outside of your AFP chapter and larger issues that impact fundraising. You also have an element of shared experience that brings you together in the affinity group that you might not be able to find at the same level within one’s AFP chapter. Because of this shared connection, I feel like when I am in meetings for the affinity group, I am surrounded by individuals that understand, at least to some extent, my experience on a professional level, a more personal level, as well as how those two things can be interconnected.

Q: In your opinion, what is the biggest challenge facing the nonprofit fundraising profession today?
A: In the U.S. specifically, I think right now the biggest challenge is uncertainty surrounding funding availability. With changes to federal funding and how that trickles down to state funding as well as impacts corporate, foundation, and individual giving patterns, dollars that many organizations depended on are decreasing or disappearing altogether. At the same time the competition for those dollars that do exist is only growing. It makes it difficult to plan for the future, because you don’t know if funds you once counted on will still be around the next time you need to go and request them. While you can predict what funding will be impacted and plan ahead, there is no guarantee those predictions are what will become reality. This requires development professionals, and agencies as a whole, to be more creative and adaptive to regular change and to regularly strategize for the futures and develop plans for multiple possible outcomes. In this time of uncertainty, it makes it even more important to connect with your donors, understand their reason for giving, and develop messaging that they connect with. 

Q: What advice do you have for other fundraising professionals? 
A: I would say, if you have an idea for fundraising, or even your organization in general, that you are truly passionate about, that you think will have positive outcomes, don’t be afraid to challenge the status quo. Just because something is the way your organization has always done something does not mean there isn’t room for new ideas, change, and growth.