"Funding the Future NOW" Podcast
Jul 27, 2026 · 24 min · 10 segments
In this episode of *Funding the Future Now*, Dr. Randy Dirks talks with Christine Mangino, president of Queensborough Community College (CUNY), about earning donor trust through radical transparency…
Christine ManginoGuest
Randy DirksHost
Put it this way, if you're in a canoe and there's three people and one person behind you is paddling with you, the other person has his paddle in the boat and the person at the back is paddling in the other direction.
And so when you get that consistency, faculty, staff, students, all board, all rowing in the same direction, that creates momentum.
You've said belonging, academic excellence, and economic mobility are inseparable.
For a nonprofit leader trying to grow support, how does creating a genuine sense of belonging for students, staff, and donors actually translate into stronger commitment and long-term giving?
I think we have worked really hard over the last six years to create the sense of belonging for everybody, for students, for obvious reasons, for faculty and staff, because you want them to like where they work, right? Because then they're also giving their all to the students.
When people come to campus, you can feel that, right? Especially when you go to events, right? You see the excitement, you see the collaboration between students and faculty and staff.
And recently, two years ago, we partnered with this organization, American Indians, Association of Indians in America.
at watching our faculty and our students dancing together on our great lawn, that members of that organization have now brought potential donors to other events on campus because they see and feel that culture.
And this past year, for the first time, we invited some of our donors to our graduation.
And one of them was walking in with me to the stage and he was just so excited to be in his regalia.
Put it this way, if you're in a canoe and there's three people and one person behind you is paddling with you, the other person has his paddle in the boat and the person at the back is paddling in the other direction.
And so when you get that consistency, faculty, staff, students, all board, all rowing in the same direction, that creates momentum.
You've said belonging, academic excellence, and economic mobility are inseparable.
For a nonprofit leader trying to grow support, how does creating a genuine sense of belonging for students, staff, and donors actually translate into stronger commitment and long-term giving?
I think we have worked really hard over the last six years to create the sense of belonging for everybody, for students, for obvious reasons, for faculty and staff, because you want them to like where they work, right? Because then they're also giving their all to the students.
When people come to campus, you can feel that, right? Especially when you go to events, right? You see the excitement, you see the collaboration between students and faculty and staff.
And recently, two years ago, we partnered with this organization, American Indians, Association of Indians in America.
at watching our faculty and our students dancing together on our great lawn, that members of that organization have now brought potential donors to other events on campus because they see and feel that culture.
And this past year, for the first time, we invited some of our donors to our graduation.
And one of them was walking in with me to the stage and he was just so excited to be in his regalia.
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