About the Foundation

Give Back to Your Profession

The FSAE Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in December 1984 to enhance FSAE’s programs and services through education, grants, research, and certification initiatives.

The FSAE Foundation continues to be supported entirely by voluntary, tax-deductible contributions and grants from donors.

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Foundation Mission: Support education, research, professional development, publications,
and public relations efforts for the association management professional.


For the past 20+ years, the Foundation has awarded 448 grants totaling $268,420 for members to attend educational conferences or earn their CAE/CMP designations. Over $412,700 has been used to underwrite speakers and education at the FSAE Annual Conference and over $429,000 has been used to implement Foundation initiatives, including industry reports and surveys.

Giving back to your profession guarantees that association professionals will continue to have the best education and resources available to excel in their career, and in the industry.

The FSAE Foundation is directly responsible for providing the following to FSAE members:

  • Scholarships/Grants for professional development education and certifications

  • Executive Series Luncheons on current issues/events - free for all association staff members

  • Think Tank symposium of association leaders to solve industry issues & generate new, practical ideas as well as publish white papers to educate others on findings

  • Research surveys/reports, such as the Compensation Survey and Economic Impact Survey

  • Underwriting speaker fees for our Annual Conference


Foundation Matching Partner: Hancock Whitney
Small change and checks collected at Power Luncheons will be matched by Hancock Whitney Bank (up to $300) to help member donations go twice as far. Since 2022, they have matched over $5,324!


Our Vision

Through being a bellwether in the field of nurturing leaders in association management, the FSAE Foundation will develop engaged and qualified professionals whose use of best practices and standards of excellence benefit all in association management and its supporting industries.

Our Values

We intend to move the FSAE Foundation from an "A" organization to an "A+" organization by strengthening the leadership position of the FSAE Foundation as a "thought leader" among key constituents - donors, FSAE members, and other leaders in the association management arena.

Our efforts will be guided by the following values:

  • Leadership in professional development and certification of association management professionals

  • Excellence in scholarship, research, education, training, and collaboration

  • Integrity in everything we do

  • Accountability and service to each other, our state, and our industry

  • Respect for the intrinsic worth of individuals and their ideas, including staff, boards, members, suppliers, volunteers, and donors

  • Commitment to racial, cultural, demographic, and gender diversity in our policies, personnel, and programs

  • Prudent application of knowledge and resources