Advancement Institute
We provide UT San Antonio's advancement professionals and academic leaders with a variety of custom trainings, professional development workshops, and collaborative experiences.
We will empower you to better understand the world of fundraising in higher education, offering expertise from UT San Antonio Advancement and Alumni Engagement and other entities.
We can strengthen our culture of philanthropy across the UT San Antonio community and further drive our university toward a bold future together.
Advancing Together
The UT San Antonio Advancement Institute offers education and training geared toward enhancing your skills as an Advancement and Alumni Engagement professional involved in all aspects of philanthropy and engagement.
Academic leaders and university partners are invited to participate in select professional development events throughout the year.
Signature Trainings
Learn about your strengths as well as the strengths of your colleagues to help enhance communication, engagement, and overall job satisfaction.
Participate in interactive sessions designed to strengthen collaboration across Advancement & Alumni Engagement. Topics will highlight institutional priorities, constituent insights, and opportunities for cross-team partnership, building a shared foundation for our future as one advancement organization.
Join sessions covering a variety of topics such as managing donor portfolios, partnering with faculty members, discussing gift agreements with donors, and incorporating digital donor engagement.
Participate in engaging discussions that help build a sense of belonging for all employees while enhancing engagement, satisfaction and productivity.
Weekly open house hosted by members of Advancement Services. This session serves as an opportunity for AAE members to ask specific questions about NXT, portfolios, gift recording, and more. Specialized trainings will be offered periodically; topics will be shared in advance.
Faculty Resources
Upcoming Webinars
Join CASE® for a session exploring how creative storytelling and purposeful design can strengthen connection and reputation across university communities. The teams at Royal College of Art and University of Sheffield will share how imaginative campaigns using approaches like film and digital media can inspire pride, build belonging and engage diverse audiences.
Modality: Virtual
Wednesday, April 8, 2026
6:00 AM - 7:00 AM
The Annual Giving Status Report highlights the latest trends and current best practices in the field of annual giving. Based on data collected from hundreds of colleges, universities and independent schools, this report identifies the primary drivers of annual giving success and offers insights that can be used to set goals, develop strategies, and benchmark results. It’s an invaluable resource for anyone that wants to understand the state of the industry and prepare their annual giving program for future success.
Modality: Virtual
Thursday, April 9, 2026
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Join CASE® for a session exploring how creative storytelling and purposeful design can strengthen connection and reputation across university communities. The teams at Royal College of Art and University of Sheffield will share how imaginative campaigns using approaches like film and digital media can inspire pride, build belonging and engage diverse audiences.
Modality: Virtual
Wednesday, April 15, 2026
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Speaker: Lisa Barr
Leveraging DAFs for Planned Giving Success will equip major gift officers, planned giving officers, and other development professionals with knowledge about donor-advised funds (DAFs) so that they can speak with confidence about this gift vehicle. Attendees will learn the benefits of working with DAF donors to increase philanthropic commitments to their charities; how a DAF can accept complex assets; how to use DAFs to bring multiple generations into the philanthropic conversation; how DAFs can be used for estate planning purposes, and more.
Modality: Virtual
Tuesday, April 21, 2026
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM
Life income gifts are often seen as a tradeoff, donors commit significant assets, so their annual giving must decline, right? A new first of its kind study from BWF and TIAA Kaspick challenges that assumption, revealing more than 20 years of data showing that life income gifts can increase outright giving while deepening donor relationships. Join this webinar to learn how these gifts strengthen overall fundraising, create mutually beneficial outcomes, and transform stewardship into long term partnership insights that can directly elevate your strategy and energize your work.
Modality: Virtual
Thursday, April 23, 2026
11:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Alumni donor counts at U.S. higher education institutions have been declining for more than two decades, reflecting a significant shift in alumni attitudes. To better understand these changes, the National Alumni Survey was created and has gathered over 150,000 responses from alumni at more than 60 institutions in the past three years. The resulting data offers valuable insights that can guide decision making and strengthen engagement strategies. This session will explore key trends, outline actions institutions can take now to influence donor behavior, and provide next steps to inform future strategy.
Modality: Virtual
Friday, April 24, 2026
11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
On Demand Trainings
Access on-demand webinars, subject guides, samples, articles, and more.
Learn about the impact that AI will have on your work in advancement.
Explore webinars, blogs, samples, and so much more to help enhance your work in advancement.
Other Resources
Participate in professional development programs offered to all advancement professionals, from entry-level newcomers to senior executives.
Explore a variety of training on topics such as leadership, personal and professional development, computer skills, administrative skills, safety, and more. Sessions are offered in-person, virtually, and on-demand.
Access a variety of courses, explore best practices, and gain new knowledge.
Do you have suggestions for additional training topics?
Email our Senior Director of Advancement Talent Management, Genevieve Tobias, for more information.
