We know your numbers—the amount you need to raise—are weighing heavily on your mind. But one thing is certain—the economy will rebound. This is a great time to get to know, cultivate, and steward your donors like never before. Why? When the rebound happens, you won't be caught flat-footed. Your donors and prospects will be primed to give as soon as they are ready and able. You need to be involving those donors and prospects in the life of your school now.

New parents are just like new students to your school. They need a warm welcome, an introduction to other parents, and an education on what it really means to be part of an independent school community. They've written their first tuition check, and in a heartbeat, they will be receiving an annual fund solicitation.

The Apple, a Web site "Where Teachers Meet and Learn," is an ongoing source of information, communication, and inspiration for teachers. Among the resources at www.theapple.com are news, lessons, videos, as well as "Ask a Teacher" and "In the Workplace" forums. Recently, the site posted these 10 ways for teachers to boost their job satisfaction and effectiveness in the classroom.

Every day, there are stories in the news that public school districts are forced to cut programs for budgetary reasons. Chances are this has happened in your community. This can be a perfect opportunity to offer after-school, evening, or weekend programs to your community that will introduce your school to a wider audience.

Volunteers form the backbone of many a good fund-raising effort. You appreciate their efforts—why not show them how much with a few of these unique gift ideas?

For many nonprofits (including private-independent schools), the current economic circumstances are particularly hard-hitting—restricted resources may mean that you are less able to help as many people as you would like. To combat this, some nonprofit organizations are experimenting with different ways to reach potential donors and strengthen their bonds with current ones. Here are some tactics you may want to consider.

Your annual report may be one of the most expensive pieces your office produces. With money tight and budgets frozen—or slashed—schools are going online with their reports. You can invest in the message and the design, while reducing or eliminating the high cost of printing and postage. Here are some things to think about before taking the leap that can help control costs in the transition.

The Annual Fund. Yes, everyone expects your school to have an annual fund-raising campaign. But are your parents, alumni, and faculty emotionally invested in it? A robust annual fund is critical to all of your fund-raising efforts. It is the first place where your prospects/donors will invest their dollars into your school. Here are several steps you can take to strengthen the emotional ties. After all, educating and making connections with your school and its mission are what cultivating supporters is all about.

Looking for long-gone alumni? Thanks to the Internet, it is getting a little easier to find them. Schools are starting to use social networking sites such as Facebook to their advantage. Facebook was launched in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg as a social network for his fellow Harvard students. In only two weeks, half of the student body had signed up. Other schools in the Boston area demanded the service and within four months, Facebook added 30 more college networks. Now, anyone over age 13 can join, and there more than 100 million users.

There's a new free, online "college guidance" tool for students and parents. The American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) is appalled at the state of higher education, finding that many major colleges and universities no longer require classes in what it has identified as seven key subjects: composition, literature, foreign language, history, economics, mathematics, and science. This lack of "general education" will have a significant impact on the country's ability to innovate and compete in the global marketplace, the nonprofit organization says.