Representatives from leading Jamaican preparatory, secondary and tertiary institutions will gather on Friday to explore fund-raising strategies at an endowment and development conference.

The conference, labelled 'Leveraging the Success of your Alumni', has been designed to help schools develop strategies and methodologies to centralise and professionalise their alumni relations and fund-raising.

R. Danny Williams, chairman of Jamaica College, is scheduled to speak on the role of past students in rebuilding their schools.

The conference will showcase a combination of local and international speakers, thereby enabling a transfer of best practices from experts in the United States and Jamaica, to organisations in the process of or thinking about establishing a development office.

According to Williams, the event represents a response to the increasing financial challenges facing local schools.

"We have to face the reality that schools have monetary needs that the government cannot meet," he said. "At the same time, many of our schools have large groups of alumni who are very successful and have resources that can be brought in to fund the development of the schools. What is unique about this conference is that it gives schools a road map for tapping into that potential, by explaining fundraising strategies that have worked for successful institutions."

Other speakers include K. Churchill Neita, Q.C., former president of the KC Old Boys' Association; Lance Cowan, president of the Calabar Old Boys' Association; and Gary Fraser, dean of students' at New York University.

The Endowment and Development Conference will take place at the Knutsford Court Hotel, New Kingston, on Friday at 9:00 a.m.

For more information and registration, contact Near Shore Solutions Ltd. at 754-9156.