Laura M. Macknick, MA, CFRE
Professional Experience
Laura M. Macknick, MA, CFRE has over 20 years experience working in nonprofit fundraising, grant writing, communications, public relations and event planning. She has personally guided donors to make more than $20.5M in charitable contributions and managed fundraising projects of more than $60M in her career.
Macknick currently serves as the Executive Director for the 80/20 Foundation Trust. In addition to this role, she owns her own nonprofit and fundraising consulting firm, Macknick Philanthropy Advisors. Prior to these efforts, she served as the Director of Development for Trine University in Angola, Indiana and worked on the "Invest In Excellence" $125M campaign. Before joining Trine, she was the Executive Director for Resource Development at Ivy Tech Community College Northeast in Fort Wayne and helped launch the “Dream Big” $47M capital campaign. Previous to her tenure with Ivy Tech, she also served as the Director of IU Health Arnett Foundation where she worked to launch the new 509(a) organization in partnership with the statewide foundation system through intensive board development, initiating a fundraising plan and campaign, and closing a significant seed gift to the program. Macknick also served for many years in capital campaign and major gift fundraising development for Purdue University during the $1.7B “Campaign for Purdue” and the $304M "Access & Success" campaigns. Early in her career, she worked at smaller community nonprofit organizations in Tippecanoe County where her responsibilities included managing all annual, capital, major, and planned gift development, communications, marketing, public relations, event planning, and management of other staff, having significant management roles in notable large special events such as the Feast of the Hunters' Moon and the Taste of Tippecanoe. Her earliest work experience includes restaurant management and insurance sales.
Macknick serves as a member of the Steuben County United Way Board of Directors. She also volunteers on a committee with the Women's Care Center of Northeast Indiana.
For many years, Macknick had developed curriculum for nonprofit capacity building workshops that she has facilitated statewide from 2002-2018 with Indiana United Ways and their Nonprofit Resource Network, focusing primarily on fundraising and marketing. In 2018, Macknick joined North Central College in Naperville, IL as adjunct faculty to help teach Master's courses in their emerging Nonprofit Management program in the areas of Marketing and Fundraising.
Macknick obtained her CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) in spring 2016 and is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) for professional development. She is also active with her parish on the Steering Committee, aiding St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church on their current capital campaign.
A recipient of the Greater Lafayette Commerce’s “Top 40 under 40” inaugural young professional award in 2007, she was also named a top young professional in the “Discover Lafayette” magazine in fall 2009.
As a West Lafayette, Indiana native she completed her Bachelor’s degree in History at Purdue University in 2001 and her Master’s degree in Nonprofit Administration and Philanthropy from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI in 2015. Macknick is also a graduate of the Leadership Lafayette program.
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family, following sports and volunteering.