Gifts to AAPOR

AAPOR's fundraising efforts are intended to support projects, awards and activities in the field of public opinion research that are beyond the scope of the association's annual budget. Gifts to AAPOR fall into two categories – the General Fund (Council-designated), and specific restricted funds (the Seymour Sudman Fund, the Roper Fellow Award Fund and the Heritage Interview Series Fund).

AAPOR General Fund (Council-designated):
Gifts made to AAPOR’s General Fund can be directed by the Executive Council to meet needs identified in any of the following areas:

• Your gift can help underwrite the cost of expanding educational programs such as webinars, online courses and regional workshops. 
  
• Your gift can help us fulfill the promise of the Transparency Initiative. We have an unprecedented opportunity to influence how research organizations document their work, to increase the confidence of data consumers and to establish a rich archive for methodological research.
  
• Your gift can give AAPOR an even larger voice in public discussions of polls and surveys, reinforcing the critically important principles of our Code. We can extend our outreach to young researchers and students and expand production of Task Force reports. We can serve as a catalyst and organizer of research on pressing methodological questions.

Restricted Funds:
Contribute to the annual Burns "Bud" Roper Fellow Award program, named for the late Burns "Bud" Roper who provided a substantial bequest in his will to establish the fund. Roper Award Fellows are members whose primary work responsibilities are related to survey research or public opinion and who have recently started their careers. They receive financial assistance to help them attend the annual conference and/or participate in conference short courses; most are first-time conference attendees. Since 2005, there have been 39 Roper Fellows.

The Seymour Sudman Fund was endowed in 2003 in the memory of Seymour Sudman, following a generous contribution from Ed Blair, a former graduate student of Sudman's. The fund supports the annual Seymour Sudman Student Paper Competition Award.

AAPOR launched the Heritage Interview Series Fund in 2002 to organize and preserve knowledge about the founding of the field of public opinion research, and the innovations and new ideas that have had significant impact on our field, by systematically interviewing individuals who have made significant contributions. More than 20 interviews have been conducted and preserved, nearly all of which are now available for AAPOR members to view online. The effort is ongoing.

We encourage you to make your tax-deductible contribution to AAPOR today!

Barbara O'Hare, Development Committee Chair

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