Dr Beth Breeze receives OBE for services to philanthropic research & fundraising
Melanie May | 9 December 2022 | News
Director of the Centre for Philanthropy at the University of Kent, Dr Beth Breeze, has received an OBE from the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle for her services to philanthropic research and fundraising.
Dr Breeze has dedicated the last 25 years to improving the practice and understanding of private action for the public good.
She spent a decade as a charity fundraiser before doing a PhD at Kent on contemporary UK philanthropy and co-founding the Centre on Philanthropy, part of Kent’s School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research, in 2008. She now leads a team undertaking research and teaching a range of programmes for professionals working in nonprofit organisations, including a Masters in Philanthropic Studies by distance learning. Her latest book, In Defence of Philanthropy, won the Skystone Partners prize.
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Since 2019 Dr Breeze has also directed the university’s Global Challenges Doctoral Centre which seeks to support research to help meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Dr Breeze commented:
“The honour is greatly appreciated and I see it as recognition for the importance of the field in which I am fortunate to work, along with so many wonderful colleagues at Kent, across the UK and globally. It is such a pleasure and a privilege to study, write about, and teach philanthropy. At a time when there are many misconceptions about why some people choose to give away some of their resources, my driving motivation is to better explain the necessity of private donations and the complexity of the philanthropic impulse in action.”
As well as offering a Masters programme, this year also saw the Centre for Philanthropy launch its Fundraiser Apprenticeship. The 13 month course starts in March and will provide fundraisers with the skills, behaviours and knowledge to develop, build and sustain relationships with donors.
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.