Jonah Halper sits down with Erik Kessler, Executive Director of The Moriah School in NJ, to unpack a decade-long experiment many schools quietly hint at but rarely discuss openly: what really happens when you don’t have a professional development director. They talk about the “event-only” model, the strengths and limits of relying on talented lay solicitors, and the biggest invisible loss that shows up over time: stewardship, consistency, and strategy.

Erik shares why Moriah eventually brought back a development director and how it reshaped the donor experience through simple but powerful touchpoints, from personalized notes to meaningful grandparent programming. Together they explore the shift from siloed event giving to an annual campaign mindset, why retention drives new donors, and how connecting donors to what they personally care about turns fundraising into genuine partnership instead of a once-a-year transaction.