Matthew Gerken

Matthew Gerken joined American Philanthropic after serving as a program officer at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, where he organized the Institute’s first-ever collegiate debating symposium. He studied intellectual history as an undergraduate at Yale, and has experience in education, event planning, and foundation research. An Illinois native, Matt lives in the Chicago area with his wife and sons.


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Foundations should embrace the pro-grantee revolution

The pandemic has encouraged foundations to adopt new “grantee-friendly” processes. These should stick around after the pandemic. The first in a two-part series.

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Top 5 changes for nonprofits from the COVID legislation

In light of the economic impact of the coronavirus, the U.S. Senate just passed a $2 trillion relief act. Here are the five items that affect nonprofits.


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Market turmoil underlines the importance of small donors & diversified support

The current economic downturn leaves many organizations exposed to market volatility. How should you prepare—or have prepared—for a bear market?

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20-minute fundraising fix: planned-giving language check

Do you have 20 minutes for a quick fix to improve your fundraising? Here’s how to improve your planned-giving language!


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Millennial donors don’t matter

Should you listen to your board when they start recommending that you reach out to younger donor audiences?

Does your job title scare off your donors?

A new study by Nonprofit Management & Leadership investigates the best job titles for fundraisers. The crucial thing is that they avoid jargon and put the donor first.


When “thank you” doesn’t matter

A new study raises questions about the value of thank-you calls for nonprofits. The study, however, has several outstanding questions.

What Do Confederate Flags Have to Do with Notre Dame?

In the wake of the fire damaging the Cathedral of Notre Dame, philanthropic elites pledged hundreds of millions of dollars in support of restoration. Is this a good use of philanthropic funds?


Two cheers for Giving USA

While Giving USA’s annual reports fulfill a need for serious study of the charitable sector, fundraising professionals would do best to ignore all the buzz and focus on data that is more relevant to their specific organizations.