Development Directions
ISPD’s team writes a monthly newsletter on advancement, enrollment management, and strategic planning in Catholic schools and parishes.
The 2026 Guide to #iGiveCatholic: A Four-Week GivingTuesday Plan for Catholic Schools
Catholic schools and parishes that treat the four weeks before Giving Day as a plan (case and page, then team and match, then Advanced Giving, then a scheduled Giving Day and a fast thank-you) raise more and keep more of their new donors.
Before You Plan, Listen: Three Ways to Seek Input from Your Parishioners
Catholic parishes can seek input from parishioners in three proven ways: a one-page parish survey, 50-minute input sessions with 10 to 15 randomly invited parishioners, and the Ultimate Question (a Net Promoter Score). Each should be done at least once a year, and the results should always be shared back with the community.
The Education Freedom Tax Credit: What Your Catholic School Should Do Before the New Year
The federal scholarship tax credit begins January 1, 2027, creating a new opportunity to support Catholic school scholarships. Individual donors may qualify for a credit of up to $1,700 annually for eligible cash gifts to a scholarship granting organization (SGO) in a participating state. For Catholic school leaders, the work begins now. Gifts made in 2026 do not qualify for this credit, so your year-end appeal should continue supporting the annual fund. Meanwhile, prepare your community, connect with an SGO, and help donors understand the scholarship opportunity ahead. This guide explains how the credit works, what schools can do...
The Warm Catholic Parish: What Happens After a New Family Walks In
Over decades of attending Mass at parishes across the country, ISPD's team has watched that five-minute test play out hundreds of times, and the pattern is consistent enough that we eventually wrote it down. Not as a checklist, but as a story about a young family visiting a parish for the first time and what happened next. We call it "The Warm Catholic Parish."
The Annual Fund’s First 30 Days: Setting the Table Before the Invitation
In Catholic school development, the Annual Fund isn't a one-time appeal — it's a yearly process that invites three gifts from your people: prayer, service, participation, and financial support. Here's the mistake most schools make: they treat the Annual Fund as "starting" the day the first letter goes out. By then, it's already too late. The real work happens in the 30 days before a single pledge card is mailed. That window quietly sets: Your case for support — why should people invest? Your organizational structure — who is inviting whom? Your leadership standard — what does participation look like...
Your Parents Aren’t Ignoring You. They’re Drowning.
Parents aren't ignoring your messages. They're triaging them. Three practices that turn scattered school communication into a system families actually read: a weekly newsletter on a fixed cadence, a pyramid that matches the channel to the weight of the message, and one app that finally holds every group.
Back-to-School Night Ideas for Catholic Schools 2026-27
Making Your Back-to-School Night a "WOW" Moment: Field-Tested Ideas for Catholic Schools Back-to-School Night is one of the most important first impression moments of your school year—especially for new families who are discerning whether a Catholic school is right for their child. Yet too often, schools repeat the same familiar routine: pull last year's agenda, change the date, and watch parents rush through classrooms in crowded hallways. The evening ends, the boxes are checked, but a major opportunity has been missed. This year, let's break the pattern. Why Back-to-School Night Matters More Than You...
2026 ISPD Circle of Catholic Champions
2026 ISPD Circle of Catholic Champions ISPD is announcing the third year of our Circle of Catholic Champions. This is a combination of individual Catholic leaders, parishes, schools, and (arch)dioceses that ISPD has worked with in the past 37 years. They represent the following traits that exhibit true Catholic Development – Advancement – Stewardship excellence: Commitment to engaging people Belonging leads to believing culture Proactive thinking Excellent stewardship of resources they have been given Collaborative leadership Ability to create and share an innovative and dynamic vision Mission-driven results Commitment to bringing people to Christ and Christ to people ...
The 2026 Guide to #iGiveCatholic: A Four-Week GivingTuesday Plan for Catholic Schools
October 29, 2026
10 min
Catholic schools and parishes that treat the four weeks before Giving Day as a plan (case and page, then team and match, then Advanced Giving, then a scheduled Giving Day and a fast thank-you) raise more and keep more of their new donors.
Before You Plan, Listen: Three Ways to Seek Input from Your Parishioners
October 19, 2026
4 min
Catholic parishes can seek input from parishioners in three proven ways: a one-page parish survey, 50-minute input sessions with 10 to 15 randomly invited parishioners, and the Ultimate Question (a Net Promoter Score). Each should be done at least once a year, and the results should always be shared back with the community.
The Education Freedom Tax Credit: What Your Catholic School Should Do Before the New Year
October 4, 2026
7 min
The federal scholarship tax credit begins January 1, 2027, creating a new opportunity to support Catholic...
The Warm Catholic Parish: What Happens After a New Family Walks In
September 20, 2026
9 min
Over decades of attending Mass at parishes across the country, ISPD's team has watched that five-minute test play out hundreds of times, and the pattern is consistent enough that we eventually wrote it down. Not as a checklist, but as a story about a young family visiting a parish for the first time and what happened next. We call it "The Warm Catholic Parish."
The Annual Fund’s First 30 Days: Setting the Table Before the Invitation
September 8, 2026
6 min
In Catholic school development, the Annual Fund isn't a one-time appeal — it's a yearly process that...
Your Parents Aren’t Ignoring You. They’re Drowning.
August 25, 2026
13 min
Parents aren't ignoring your messages. They're triaging them. Three practices that turn scattered school communication into a system families actually read: a weekly newsletter on a fixed cadence, a pyramid that matches the channel to the weight of the message, and one app that finally holds every group.
