Giving USA 2026: Donor Advised Funds Deep Dive
Video Overview (24 minutes)
Join Alford Group for a Deeper Dive into Donor Advised Fund Giving: In this vlog, Sharon Tiknis and Dr. Danielle Vance-McMullen discuss DAF donor personas and giving behaviors, consider strategies for attracting and maintaining relationships with DAF donors, reflect on how DAF giving is reflected in the 2026 Giving USA’s Report on Philanthropy and what impacts we might anticipate The One Big Beautiful Bill will have on DAF donors and other philanthropy.
Video Transcript
Giving USA Report Details
First published in 1956, Giving USA: The Annual Report on Philanthropy is the longest running, most comprehensive report on philanthropy in the United States. It is researched and written by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Alford Group is a longtime supporter of Giving USA and member of The Giving Institute.
Related Resources:
Giving USA 2026: Rewriting the Philanthropic Playbook Webinar
DAF Research Collaborative https://www.dafresearchcollaborative.org/
Sharon Tiknis
Chief Client Experience Officer, Alford Group
Sharon Tiknis has held leadership positions in the nonprofit sector for over 35 years, developing distinguished philanthropic programs and assembling influential volunteer leaders to build organizational capacity and drive results. Having worked previously with Alford Group, Sharon returned to the firm in 2014.
Dr. Danielle Vance-McMullen
Associate Professor, DePaul University
Dr. Danielle Vance-McMullen is an expert in donor behavior, fundraising, and nonprofit competition in new charitable giving contexts. Her current work in this area examines the rise of Giving Tuesday and the decline of workplace giving using big administrative data and behavioral experiments. Her article on Donor-Advised Fund giving during recessions was recently published in Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. Dr. Vance-McMullen’s research has also been featured in the Chronicle of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Times’ Fresh Research Podcast. Before completing her PhD in Public Policy at Duke University, Dr. Vance-McMullen was a consultant at The Alford Group in Evanston, IL, where she specialized in strategic planning, Board development, and fundraising audits and plans.