The Council on Foundations is launching a new peer space for foundation staff that manage and lead scholarship programs. These engaging peer events are designed to be informal, peer-led conversations with fellow foundation staff (of all types) to share best practices and explore common challenges in scholarship programs. Whether you are new to managing scholarships or have years of experience, you’ll gain fresh ideas and build relationships with colleagues. 

How do we show we’re making a difference? How can you evaluate your narrative strategy?

Metrics provide tangible evidence of the effectiveness of your communications efforts, which is crucial, especially if your efforts are underfunded. They hold you accountable to your strategy by tracking whether you are following through on your plans and building the necessary habits for change. In times of scarce resources, metrics show tangible ways that communications contribute to the mission and success of an organization, making it easier to justify your communications and narrative budget. If the desired results are not achieved, metrics can help you identify where adjustments are needed. 

In this session, you’ll learn to develop an evaluation plan that shows how your strategy is making a difference. We’ll cover all the elements of an effective narrative strategy, including goal-setting, identifying what you can measure, establishing meaningful output and outcome metrics, sharing your results, and applying your insights to update your strategy. 

You’ll leave this session with a foundation for showing how your work contributes to your organization’s mission. 

This session is one of three workshops in the Better Stories, Better Language Communication Workshop Series, a collaboration between the University of Florida's Center for Public Interest Communications and the Council on Foundations. These three workshops will offer you the skills and tools to tell more complex, robust stories about the charitable sector and your work. You'll learn how to create a more accurate narrative and build trust through transparent storytelling and intentional language.

You understand the value of better stories and better language, but you may not have the support and resources you need to engage in this work long-term. This workshop will help you identify your specific needs in terms of resources, skills and support, as well as the people who control those resources. 

You’ll learn how to articulate the concrete benefits of different approaches to storytelling and make specific requests of colleagues and leaders who can help - enabling you to bolster your own foundation’s story while contributing to the larger narrative of philanthropy’s value to society.

Join us as we explore how to demonstrate the benefits of more dynamic storytelling and discover how to make a compelling case for new approaches and ideas using cutting-edge social, behavioral, and cognitive science.

This session is one of three workshops in the Better Stories, Better Language Communication Workshop Series, a collaboration between the University of Florida's Center for Public Interest Communications and the Council on Foundations. These three workshops will offer you the skills and tools to tell more complex, robust stories about the charitable sector and your work. You'll learn how to create a more accurate narrative and build trust through transparent storytelling and intentional language.

Learn to tell fascinating, compelling stories about how change happens and how the charitable sector works with communities to make a difference on today’s most pressing issues. We’ll discuss how narratives are formed, the essential elements of stories that build trust and understanding, and how to create collaborative narratives that show how communities and the charitable sector work together to drive change. Everything you learn will be rooted in insights from our Philanthropy's New Voice report, the largest study ever conducted on narratives in the charitable sector. 

We’ll also discuss the essential elements of telling stories that are authentic, accurate, and ethical. This includes applying the principles of "asset framing" to highlight strengths and potential, how to select and represent characters inclusively in storytelling efforts, applying storytelling techniques that create meaningful transparency and foster trust, and the importance of committing to and sustaining engagement in narrative change work over time.

This session is one of three workshops in the Better Stories, Better Language Communication Workshop Series, a collaboration between the University of Florida's Center for Public Interest Communications and the Council on Foundations. These three workshops will offer you the skills and tools to tell more complex, robust stories about the charitable sector and your work. You'll learn how to create a more accurate narrative and build trust through transparent storytelling and intentional language.