Texas Fundraiser Sherry L. Bowers, CFRE, ACFRE, Earns Highest Professional Credential from AFP

 The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the largest community of professional fundraisers in the world, has awarded its highest professional certification, the Advanced Certified Fund Raising Executive (ACFRE), to Sherry L. Bowers, CFRE, of Corpus Christi, Texas.

Available only to senior-level fundraisers who have worked in the profession for 10 or more years, the ACFRE is a distinguished achievement earned by only 114 professionals since the inception of the program in 1992.

Bowers is currently the executive director for Mission of Mercy, which works to provide free medical care to uninsured Texans, and has been involved with the organization for more than six years. Prior to joining Mission of Mercy, she served as executive director for both the American Heart Association and The Spirit Center. Bowers also possesses extensive experience as a development professional in the Corpus Christi area, having supported efforts at the American Red Cross – Coastal Bend Texas Chapter and the South Texas Lighthouse for the Blind.

“Becoming an ACFRE is about confirming my commitment to the highest standards in all that I do, along with my dedication to this profession as a manager, mentor and leader,” said Bowers. “My advice for young professionals entering the field of fundraising would include finding a credentialed mentor and register for conferences, webinars and classes focusing on ethics, management and leadership.”

The ACFRE program is the most rigorous certification process available to professional fundraisers.  The process includes a comprehensive application, detailing achievements in practice, education, publishing, teaching, and service to the profession; a written examination that measures a candidate’s knowledge of fundraising as well as the philosophical, ethical, and social aspects of philanthropy; a portfolio representing the candidate’s body of professional work; and an oral peer review in which the candidate must articulate a mastery of advanced-level knowledge in fundraising management, leadership, and ethics.

The ACFRE Certification Board of AFP, chaired by Scott Staub, ACFRE, oversees the ACFRE candidate review process.