Association of Fundraising Professionals International (www.afpnet.org) announced that AFP Triangle Chapter will receive the 2009 Friends of Diversity Designation.  The designation will be announced to Chapter Presidents at the AFP International Conference in Baltimore on April 11, 2010.  

The Friends of Diversity designation indicates that the chapter serves as a model for all chapters to emulate in accomplishing diversity related goals set forth by AFP and chapter leadership. 

2009 Diversity Chair, Oshana M. Watkins, comments on the award: "This awards shows that we are dedicated to embracing diversity and educating our community on the benefits of inclusiveness.  I am excited that our diversity plan will be recognized nationally and serve as a model for other chapters across the world." 

2010 Board President Dee Blake says, "This recognition is the culmination of over a year's worth of planning and implementation to ensure our chapter reflects the depth and richness of the members, clients, volunteers and donors who interact with us."

Diversity in fundraising is the seeking and achieving of a broad representation of experiences, perspectives, opinions and cultures. Inclusiveness is an essential source of vitality and strength for the effective pursuit of an organization's mission.

As a chapter, we would like to diversify our membership, and we need your help!!!

There are many ways to help:

• Join the diversity committee

• Submit ideas on diverse programming

• Recruit your peers from different backgrounds
• Tell others about our chapter scholarships 

If you interested in helping us in achieving this goal, please contact Clarenda Stanley.

Ever wish you could network with fellow fundraisers who have the same issues as you do?  Well, you can!

At AFP, there are currently seven diversity community groups in existence. These AFP members network and learn from each other online via email, the www.afpnet.org website, at AFP conferences and chapter meetings, and through special Discussion Topic Groups set up just for them.

The AFP diverse community groups are for AFP members only, and include:

*        African American Community of Fundraising Professionals

*        Asian Community of Fundraising Professionals

*        Faith-Based Community of Fundraising Professionals

*        GLBT Community of Fundraising Professionals

*        Hispanic Community of Fundraising Professionals

*        Jewish Community of Fundraising Professionals

*        Rural Community of Fundraising Professionals

To find out more about AFP Diverse Community Groups, visit www.afpnet.org and click on the Diversity button in the blue menu in the left column.

To join a Discussion Topic Group, log into the AFP website as a member. Then go to the yellow Login button at the top of the blue navigation column and follow the instructions. Then go to the Discussions link in the green navigation column on the right side of the page. In the center field, scroll down to the "AFP discussion lists" section, where you can choose your discussion group or groups. Select one or more, and hit the Submit button.