The relationship between fundraising practice and job satisfaction at historically Black colleges and universities

Abstract

Fundraising, as studied from a communications/public relations perspective, is an understudied function. This research examines fundraising at public and private historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), specifically exploring how these fundraisers incorporate various fundraising strategies into their communication outreach programs with donors and how the utilization of various fundraising communication styles influence how fundraisers view their jobs and the relationship with their employers. Through a survey of 87 HBCU fundraisers, the researchers found that fundraisers largely use one-way fundraising strategies rather than using interactive relationship-building ones. In addition, the location of the institution's fundraising office played a statistically significant role in what models an organization used. Finally, job satisfaction was correlated with the type of fundraising communication HBCU fundraisers engaged in. © 2010 Macmillan Publishers Ltd.