A Dream Realized

A 1995 article about women and wealth, “Reinventing Fundraising: Realizing the Potential of Women’s Philanthropy” by Sondra Shaw and Martha Taylor lit a fire under UT Director of Development Dorothy Bryson.

The article emphasized two major points:
1. American women owned 60% of the nation’s wealth.
2. Nationally, for four decades, fundraising was operated on a male model.

Dorothy realized women were not presently acknowledged at the University of Tennessee as major donors and immediately shared the article with her kindred spirited female UT colleagues. Meeting privately at lunch and after work, the group gained momentum in their enthusiasm and synergistic interaction on the topic of women and wealth. All agreed the support of their mission by upper management would be imperative as the next step in accomplishing their goal.

The idea of developing a separate female philanthropic group was proposed to Jack E. Williams UT System vice president of development and alumni affairs. Appointed to his position on June 1, 1997, Jack was in the perfect place at the perfect time to readily accept and support this determined group of women and eagerly championed their cause. He viewed the optimism of the Alliance Founders as a sign of unquestionable success when approaching women with wealth as major donors.

Over the years I, along with other colleagues, saw the impact that women had on philanthropic gifts to the various campuses of the University. Within the University of Tennessee’s System, the widow of a UT alum and one of the leading California motion picture directors, preserved his will which directed half his estate to come to UT. Another astute businesswoman and UT alum from Gatlinburg, headed a gift of land to UT which resulted in an endowment which today exceeds $10 million and supports several programs within the UT System. The Alliance over the years has indeed influenced and strengthened women in philanthropy within the UT System. – Jack Williams

On October 27, 1997, with Jack’s approval, the Founders presented UT System President Joseph E. Johnson (1990-1999) the written proposal to establish the Alliance of Women Philanthropists. The following is a quote from the proposal, “It will come as no surprise to you that the five of us are interested in the subject of women as major donors.” It was obviously no surprise to Dr. Johnson and with Dr. Johnson’s approval, the rest is history. It is worthy of noting that Dr. Johnson always supported women during his tenure at the University of Tennessee.

President Johnson’s approval established the Alliance of Women Philanthropists. The dynamics of giving at the University of Tennessee were immediately changed and ultimately inspired and embraced an untapped resource of extremely gracious female benefactors. The inaugural meeting of the Alliance of Women Philanthropists was held in 1998 in Atlanta, Ga.

A Mission Defined: Fanning the Flames of Philanthropy

Following UT President Joe Johnson’s historic endorsement of the Alliance in 1997, the eight founders became increasingly cohesive and resolute in advancing to the next phase: fortifying the Alliance’s infrastructure by forming a dynamic core group of charter board members.

Carefully chosen from various parts of the United States, the twenty-five charter board members represented a previously untapped reservoir of potential financial support sparking a widespread enthusiasm for philanthropy among women across the UT community.

The First Executive Board of the Alliance of Women Philanthropists:

Women had often been overlooked for the role they played in deciding the size and direction of gifts and the board desired to shift this imbalance. The original mission was a memorable acronym focused on strengthening the VOICES of women by:

Valuing the contributions women have to offer the University.
Offering women leadership roles within the University.
Increasing the institution’s financial support from women.
Creating an awareness within the UT community.
Empowering women to realize their full philanthropic potential, and
Supporting the issues, needs and accomplishments of women.

With a mission in place the founding members and inaugural board members began preparing for their first meeting.

The inaugural meeting of the Alliance was conducted in Atlanta, Ga. at The Ritz Carlton Hotel on May 1-2, 1998. The founding staff members secured a meeting site and created an agenda designed to empower and inspire UT’s women of philanthropy. The weekend was filled with new and renewed friendships as those who attended participated in educational sessions and focus groups to share their knowledge and insights.

Both UT staff and Alliance board members had such a great response to the topic of women and philanthropy in our programming format. After begging one of my favorite donors to serve on our new board, she wisely counseled us to ‘Stick to the subject of women and money, and you will maintain interest!’ Following her counsel, we were astonished with the interest and attendance of men as well as women. They loved it and so did we!
Dr. Margaret Kelley

The weekend opened with a nationally recognized fundraiser and keynote speaker, Maddie Levitt, who inspired all to take charge and continue giving generously to the University of Tennessee. At the time, Ms. Levitt was heavily credentialed as a successful 130 million dollar fundraiser and was the “perfect” person to speak at the inaugural meeting. She shared her simple, persuasive and successful guidance for fundraising: “I did nothing but ask!” She shared heartfelt moments from her childhood and the example her parents set to give more back to your community than you take out.

I was taught about how to give by my family. During my childhood, people lived under the bridge – we took food to them. On Christmas day, my mother would ask me what gift I could take to give to one of the families. This stands out in my mind. I guess we were always generous with our church. When my husband died, that’s when I really started giving the larger donations. I wanted to do something to honor my husband.
Jo Ann Cline Yates
Charter Executive Board Member

The Alliance executive board and University staff were now prepared and motivated to organize the first Alliance Symposium. Many symposiums would follow, and women would continue to be empowered and recognized for their philanthropic efforts.