NATIONAL CATHOLIC DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE

The National Catholic Development Conference, Inc. (NCDC) was founded in 1968 to assist its members in developing ethical and successful methods of fund raising. Rev. Richarch Drabik, MIC, was the first president. Voting membership is open to those Catholic institutions listed in the Official Catholic Directory. Nonvoting associate and corporate membership is open to those individuals and institutions who are not eligible for active membership. In 2001, it was the largest development organization and included dioceses, religious orders and provinces, hospitals, and educational institutions.

The professional beginnings of the NCDC can be traced back to 1955 when a group of mission procurators and development directors began meeting under the aegis of the Mission Secretariat in Washington, D.C. In the early 1960s members of the Catholic Press Association (CPA) with fund-raising concerns began to hold annual meetings. They called themselves the Catholic Fund-Raising Conference and met in conjunction with the CPA convention. Directly out of this group the NCDC was formed. It was incorporated in New York State, March 5, 1968. The year following its incorporation, the NCDC drew up its Precepts of Stewardship, a set of ethical guidelines for fund raising. Originally nine in number (now six), these include the requirement of official church approval, good stewardship practices, integrity in business associations, and the good taste and sound theology which must be associated with religious fund raising. Conditions for membership include adherence to these Precepts and to the 1977 NCCB Principles and Guidelines for Fund Raising in the United States. The annual highlight of the Conference's activities is its development convention, held usually in September, which attracts several hundred attendees. The Conference's services to members include a continuing education program, a development resource library, and a public-information program, "Giving is an Act of Faith," established to compile and disseminate material on fund-raising institutions and their programs. The NCDC has established six regional planning groups that serve religious fund-raising professionals in designated areas of the U.S. It also offers a Planned Giving Professionals Mentoring Program for its members who have limited experience in planned giving. The Conference also tracks pertinent legislation relevant to development professionals.

The NCDC maintains a liaison with the episcopal and religious conferences of the U.S., and it represents its members on postal-affairs committees and before regulatory and legislative groups. It publishes the periodical called Dimensions, and issues a report called The Monitor, which trackes postal legislation.

See Also: international catholic stewardship council.

[p. j. hayes/

e. dill]