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Nine years of working for the Iowa State University Foundation has turned Angela Joens, senior director of donor relations and University of Iowa graduate, into a Cyclones fan. Joens, who helped build ISU’s donor relations program from the ground up, has been elected to the Association of Donor Relations Professionals (ADRP) board of directors. This summer she will become an ISU alumna, when she receives her master of public administration degree.

How did you get into working in donor relations?

I think you just kind of stumble into it. I went to the University of Iowa for my undergraduate degree. After graduation I looked and looked. There was this teeny, tiny, little ad in the Cedar Rapids Gazette for a fund-raiser for the American Cancer Society (ACS) and I thought, “I want to make a difference in the world.” I sent this balloon bouquet with a cheesy poem and my resume attached. They said, “We have to at least interview her.” I worked as a field representative for (ACS) and moved my way up in the state organization. Then I decided I wanted to try the for-profit world and went to work for a start-up company, RuffaloCODY. I was a writer, and then moved up to writing manager and then I did marketing. One of my first clients was Iowa State. I met Shaun Keister (now vice president of development outreach for the Iowa State University Foundation) and asked him, “If you ever find my dream job, would you call me?” He did call me and said, “We have had two failed searches for director of donor relations,” and I said, “That sounds cool.”

What is the biggest project you have worked on at ISU?

We have developed a whole program. At the time, in 1999, everyone knew donor relations was important, but no one knew what it was. There were places where people were doing parts of donor relations well, but no one was doing the whole thing well. We knew we wanted to report to our donors about how their funds were being used. We did not know what it should look like. We wanted to be an organization that was accountable to our donors – accountable and transparent. We wanted to find out more about our donors. I have done a lot of speaking about this nationally. People guess what donors want and we actually ask our donors; it’s kind of a novel concept. We have built a nationally recognized program.

What do you like best about your job?

The donors. We launched Campaign Iowa State: With Pride and Purpose in October. It was 18 months of planning and I don’t think I slept for the last three months. Nine hundred thirty people (registered to attend), which is double the size of any event I have ever been involved with. They just love Iowa State. I have always believed in fund raising, but when you see how committed people are to one place; I do not even know what that loyalty feels like. And of course my great staff; I got to kind of hand-pick them and we are a really good team.

What is your advice for building a program from the ground up?

Hire people that are passionate and who love making a difference. They are the ones that will work till the wee hours making sure every name tag is just perfect.

What do you like to do for fun?

Travel, I love to travel. Read. I am trying to finish my master of public administration degree at Iowa State. I will officially be an Iowa State alum this summer. Everyone says, “Who are you more loyal to, Angie, Iowa or Iowa State?” I have been at Iowa State two times the amount of time I was at Iowa. Now I say I am pretty loyal to Iowa State. I love spending time with my family.

How will you be involved as an ADRP board member?

I was nominated for it this last spring. It is a 12-member board; they decided to increase the size to 16. I had my first board meeting in February. I signed up to be on the marketing committee and the membership committee. We are trying to recruit more members and trying to get our name out to other nonprofits and groups that have donor relations programs.