Next Generation: The Founders Are Coming

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By: Sarah Marczynski

In: Catch All

Just when we got used to Millennials and their quirks and buying habits, the next generation is already here.  The Founders generation aka Generation Z were born after 1995 and have a different identity then their Millennial predecessors.

Nonprofithub.org recently posted an article by Angela Cuadros defining and explaining the new generation and how nonprofits can interact with them.

  • Founders have been surrounded by technological advances, so they are connected to and multitask across 5 screens: TV, phone, laptop, desktop, and any portable music player.
  • Since they’ve always had access to the Internet, they’ve never had to live without computers and are consequently, much more savvy with these tools.
  • They have different spending habits than the millennials.  Since they watched Millennials struggle through the Great Recession, Founders are actually more likely to be financially conservative.  They have a deep entrepreneurial spirit and are motivated by advancement not money, even more so than the Millennials.
  • Nonprofits can engage with this group by communicating visually and interactively; websites and emails must be mobile-friendly.  But, once you’ve hooked them, they prefer face-to-face communication over other forms of engagement.
  • Members of this generation have grown up around changing norms, so allow them opportunities to create and to improve upon your cause.

time for the founders

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Sarah Marczynski
Sarah joined the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera in 2010 working with the Marketing and Development staffs and quickly became interested in community engagement and education. She holds a Master’s of Public Administration focusing in Nonprofit Arts Management from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where her capstone and other work under Dr. Christopher Horne examined attendance patterns in high-art cultural institutions and network relationships between local arts agencies and cultural partners. She also holds a Bachelor’s of Vocal Music Education from UTC, where she studied under Dr. Kevin Ford and Ron Ulen. Sarah has been active in the Chattanooga arts community, serving as the founding chair of the Chattanooga Young Artistic Network (CYAN), graduating from the Holmberg Arts Leadership Institute, and working with the Chattanooga Boys Choir, the Choral Arts Society, the Hunter Museum of American Art, the Chattanooga Bach Choir. Outside of the arts world, Sarah pretends to be an excellent cook (but she's broken 2 ovens), reads Jane Austen novels, and watches way too much House of Cards.
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