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Institutionally-related foundation boards
Foundation Board AI
AI oversight and fluency for foundation directors who steward donor trust.
30 days~18 hours totalSelf-pacedCertificate + digital badge
About this program
A 30-day program for directors of institutionally related foundations and other philanthropic boards. You learn how AI is reshaping fundraising, donor relations, investments and grant-making, and how to oversee it while protecting donor privacy, gift intent and public trust. Each day pairs a governance topic with a hands-on AI skill.
What you'll be able to do
- Oversee AI use in fundraising and donor relations ethically
- Protect donor data and honor gift intent in an AI era
- Ask sharp questions about AI in investment management
- Use AI safely to prepare for board and committee work
- Strengthen the foundation's relationship with its affiliated institution
- Leave with a foundation AI oversight plan
Who it's for
Directors, officers and senior staff of college and university foundations, hospital and community foundations, and other philanthropic boards.
Curriculum
Week 1
01Stewardship in the AI Era
Prompting basics30 min
Prompting basics30 min
02How AI Works — for Directors
AI as a tutor30 min
AI as a tutor30 min
03Summarize Committee Material
Summarization & briefing35 min
Summarization & briefing35 min
04The Opportunity Map for Foundations
Structured brainstorming35 min
Structured brainstorming35 min
05Foundation Board Readiness
Building rubrics30 min
Building rubrics30 min
06Risks at a Glance & Verification
Verification & spotting hallucination35 min
Verification & spotting hallucination35 min
07Open the Conversation
Drafting communications30 min
Drafting communications30 min
Week 2
08Donor Privacy & Data Protection
Privacy-safe data handling40 min
Privacy-safe data handling40 min
09Prospect Research & Wealth Screening Ethics
Exploring multiple perspectives35 min
Exploring multiple perspectives35 min
10Vendor Due Diligence & Comparing Models
AI-assisted due diligence + model comparison40 min
AI-assisted due diligence + model comparison40 min
11Gift Intent, Restrictions & AI
Structured analysis & mapping35 min
Structured analysis & mapping35 min
12AI in Donor Communications
Tone & audience adaptation35 min
Tone & audience adaptation35 min
13Building the Guardrails: Foundation AI Policy
Policy co-drafting40 min
Policy co-drafting40 min
14Foundation AI Risk Register
Structuring outputs40 min
Structuring outputs40 min
Week 3
15AI in Investment Oversight
Drafting evaluation criteria40 min
Drafting evaluation criteria40 min
16Scholarship & Grant Administration
Workflow mapping35 min
Workflow mapping35 min
17The Foundation–Institution Relationship
Comparative analysis35 min
Comparative analysis35 min
18Staff Capacity & Culture
Tone & audience adaptation30 min
Tone & audience adaptation30 min
19Supporting Your Executive Director
AI role-play35 min
AI role-play35 min
20Roadmap & Change
Roadmapping35 min
Roadmapping35 min
21One Real Conversation
Meeting prep30 min
Meeting prep30 min
Week 4
22AI in the Work of the Board
Board-packet analysis35 min
Board-packet analysis35 min
23Public Trust & Transparency
Multi-audience communication35 min
Multi-audience communication35 min
24AI and Planned Giving
Explaining complex topics35 min
Explaining complex topics35 min
25Partnerships & Shared Services
Capability gap analysis30 min
Capability gap analysis30 min
26Overseeing AI Partners
Building scorecards30 min
Building scorecards30 min
27Committees, Charters & Policy Adoption
Governance-document drafting35 min
Governance-document drafting35 min
28Build Your Reusable Director Assistant
Building a reusable assistant40 min
Building a reusable assistant40 min
Week 5
29Foundation AI Oversight Plan
Orchestrating multiple skills45 min
Orchestrating multiple skills45 min
30Mastery Showcase & Commitments
Demonstrated mastery40 min
Demonstrated mastery40 min
Final
✓Final assessment
10 questions · pass mark 80% · retake anytime15 min
10 questions · pass mark 80% · retake anytime15 min