How Blackbaud AI Empowers Private Schools to Transform Fundraising Through Innovation

School leaders weigh more than just annual funds—they must also consider enrollment goals, budgeting for operations, net tuition revenue gaps, financial aid and major campaigns. Institutions of all sizes face similar challenges that impact fundraising strategies. Smaller teams need ways to engage parent participation while increasing annual funds. Larger schools may be hyper-focused on an upcoming capital campaign and have a team of gift officers assigned to specific portfolios. Both groups are looking for better methods to identify alumni with greater giving potential and to bring in new donors. And above all, sustaining positive relationships with families is just as crucial as meeting financial targets.

Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT® and its rapidly developing AI capabilities directly address these needs. Using the latest technology, schools can run their fundraising efforts with greater efficiency, more personalized engagement and improved results—ushering in a new era for K–12 advancement.

Aspirational Leadership: AI in the Hands of the Head of School
Imagine a head of school using AI to strengthen community ties—tools that allow leaders to personalize every interaction with families, alumni and donors. Let’s look at an example: 

Heads of schools connect with their families every day, for every reason, from thanking them for a gift, to inviting them to sit on a committee, to responding to a complaint. Imagine how much more effective the conversation would be if before the call they could quickly look at a real-time summary of their history with that parent—including past contributions, events attended and their child’s activities—ensuring prompt and informed communication. A new feature for Raiser’s Edge NXT, allows you to ask Blackbaud AI for insights using natural language, and gain essential insights in moments. With this information the head of school might:  

• Thank the parent for their multi-year commitment to a scholarship fund, highlighting the tangible impact their support has had on student success. 

• Share updates on programs for which the parent has previously shown interest, such as the performing arts or athletics, making each communication more relevant and engaging.

And the moment they hang up, the head of school can ask Blackbaud AI to add a quick note about the phone call to the parent’s record, documenting any follow up actions.

Knowing the parent’s preferred communication style and past feedback, the head of school can anticipate questions or concerns, leading with empathy and understanding and strengthening relationships with families.

A+ Prospect Research: AI in the Hands of Fundraisers
Just as a skilled teacher guides a classroom through complex lessons, K-12 advancement teams can now navigate the intricacies of fundraising with the support of intelligent software. These tools empower teams to identify promising donors, tailor engagement and ensure each campaign is as thoughtfully planned as a curriculum—setting the stage for key benefits like:

• Uncovering Hidden Fundraising Potential: Capital campaigns and ambitious budget targets often push development teams into overdrive. With Prospect Insights in Raiser’s Edge NXT, advancement teams can use predictive analytics to identify and prioritize top donor prospects, uncovering hidden giving potential and streamlining outreach for focused, effective fundraising efforts. 

• Recognizing Donors with a Personalized Approach: Advancement teams can use AI acknowledgements to send personalized, heartfelt thank-you messages that reflect each donor’s unique contributions. Blackbaud’s generative AI technology uses donor and campaign data, along with tone optimizers to help fundraisers craft notes that go beyond generic templates, recognizing a parent or alumni’s commitments, ensuring every donor feels genuinely valued. 

• The Smart Way to Suggest Giving Amounts: The Intelligent Ask™ feature in Blackbaud Donation Forms uses artificial intelligence to personalize donation ask amounts based on what’s known about each site visitor—maximizing both donor engagement and gift value. This feature helps nonprofits and educational institutions raise more by tailoring the giving experience to each individual. It’s part of Blackbaud’s broader strategy to help organizations optimize donor conversion through smart, data-driven design.

Why AI Leads the Way
The real strength of AI lies in its ability to foster genuine connections and amplify generosity by drawing personalized insights from a wealth of data. As AI technology evolves, schools embracing it will set the standard for innovative, impactful fundraising that shapes thriving communities for generations to come.

In the coming year, Blackbaud will continue to develop capabilities poised to redefine what’s possible in K-12 fundraising, such as: 

• Campaign Optimization Strategies enriched by Blackbaud AI to provide targeted recommendations, including leveraging recent alumni and parent engagements, setting targeted gift ranges for donors, cultivating key relationships, storytelling and more.  

• Brand Voice-Based Content Generation that uses AI to weave each school’s unique voice into marketing campaigns, echoing the school’s signature blend of warmth and innovation in messages sent to parents and local sponsors. 

• AI-driven planned giving prospect identification that helps schools identify donors most likely to make legacy gifts, enabling advancement teams to nurture these important relationships more effectively. 

With these innovative AI-driven tools, fundraising is no longer just about reaching targets—it’s about strengthening relationships and celebrating the spirit that makes each school unique. Here’s to new possibilities and the collective efforts of families, educators and donors working together to build something truly extraordinary.