Jessica Wade

Relationship Management Analyst
Science History Institute

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Episode #18 in "People in Fundraising" takes us out of the higher education and healthcare sectors to one of the coolest museums in the country: The Science History Institute in Philadelphia! The Institute is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2022-23, and I am grateful to Jessica Wade, the Relationship Management Analyst, for being my guest to describe what's in store for this milestone!

 

Jessica talks about how she got to The Science History Institute after working three jobs at the same time for over two years - and how this museum non-profit's mission, people, and collections have inspired her to stay for close to the last decade. She describes her multi-faceted role as "being around many people, or a lot of books!" About 50% of Jessica's time is devoted to prospect management & research, with the balance on fundraising and development events and other projects. I loved Jessica's response to how she describes her specific role and non-profit profession to family and friends about halfway through our chat.

 

In addition to Jessica's Institute job, she is currently Vice President and Conference Director for Apra Pennsylvania. Apra PA is one of the most active and generous of Apra's regional chapters. Jessica is in the thick of planning her first chapter conference, which will be this October. Stay tuned for more details!

 

Thank you Jessica for a fascinating overview of your role and The Science History Institute's collections, as well as some of your favorite pieces at this non-profit. And thanks for letting me nerd-out on our shared passion for European history!