July 12, 2010

The Wrong Type of Solicitation

Sexual harassment is a problem few fund raisers discuss openly, but many say it is time to confront the issue

The Wrong Type of Solicitation 1

Michael Ventura for The Chronicle

People who raise money for a living should be required to take "a class in the sexual politics of fund raising," says a consultant to nonprofit groups, Polly Aris Stamatopoulos, in Washington.

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Michael Ventura for The Chronicle

People who raise money for a living should be required to take "a class in the sexual politics of fund raising," says a consultant to nonprofit groups, Polly Aris Stamatopoulos, in Washington.

By Holly Hall

Four years ago, Judi Taylor Cantor, in charge of planned giving at a New England university, rented a car for what she thought would be an ordinary visit with a longtime donor. The man wanted to add money to a previous gift.

"After lunch we returned to his home, where we discussed the gift contract and he gave me a check," recalls Ms. Cantor, now a fund-raising consultant in Westwood, Mass. Up to that point, "there was nothing unusual about the visit."

But just as she was