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Planned Giving 101: The Fundamentals of Gift Planning

Presented by:

  • Aaron Levinson, Vice President, Planned Giving, Los Angeles Jewish Health
  • Cynthia Hizami, Director of Planned Giving, West Coast Jewish National Fund
  • Sara Whelan, Trust and Estate Administrator, Loyola Marymount University
  • Steven Adamian, Associate Senior Vice President, Gift Planning, Children's Hospital Los Angeles

Our goals for the course are simple: Invest in your professional development and value. Strengthen your practical knowledge and planned giving skill set at this “roll up your sleeves,” hands-on workshop. Join highly regarded instructors for a workshop focused on providing you with valuable knowledge that can be immediately applied in your daily work. Taught over three consecutive weeks to enable you to put what you learn into practice between sessions and share your experiences with your cohort, this course will increase your capacity to advise donors on basic and more complex gift planning topics and opportunities.

COURSE OUTCOMES:
- Provide an understanding of planned giving fundamentals
- Develop familiarity with the income, estate, and gift tax structures that affect gift-giving and the transfer of wealth
- Explore outright and deferred methods of charitable giving
- Provides an overview of charitable gift substantiation rules for maximum tax benefits
- Suggestions for planned giving in economically challenging times

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?:
- Anyone new to the field of planned giving who desires a solid, basic foundation in the planned giving fundamentals.
- Those who are in small fundraising shops who want to improve their ability to share planned giving options with their donors.
- Financial advisors and major gift officers.

INSTRUCTORS:

 

Aaron Levinson
VP, Planned Giving, Los Angeles Jewish Health

Aaron Levinson currently serves as Vice President, Planned Giving for Los Angeles Jewish Health, formerly known as Los Angeles Jewish Home. Aaron is a past president of the Southern California Council of Charitable Gift Planners and also served as an instructor of planned giving at UCLA Extension. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from UC San Diego, his Master’s Degrees from Hebrew Union College and the University of Southern California, and was awarded an honorary doctorate by Hebrew Union College in 2020. 

Cynthia Hizami, JD
Director of Planned Giving, West Coast Jewish National Fund
Cynthia Hizami is the Director of Planned Giving for the West Coast for Jewish National Fund, a non-profit which raises money in America for programs, projects, and infrastructure in Israel. Over the course of her career, she has practiced as an attorney in many areas, including estate and tax planning, business litigation, and civil litigation. Cynthia received her B.A. at Tulane University and her J.D. from Tulane Law School.

Sara K. Whelan, JD

(she, her, hers)
Trust & Estate Administrator, Gift Planning and In-Kind Gifts
Loyola Marymount University

Sara Whelan joined Loyola Marymount University as trust and estate administrator, gift planning in 2022. Her role involves directing and managing the settlement of trusts and estates, and she is responsible for managing all of the University's in-kind gifts. She also serves as a Staff Senator. Whelan brings a decade of experience working in the legal field, having previously worked as an administrator, office manager, and paralegal in various law firms.

She earned her Bachelor of Arts from LMU in political science and her Juris Doctorate from the University of West Los Angeles. Over the last decade, she has also been a full-time mom, community leader, and fundraiser for schools and local nonprofit organizations. She currently serves as a Board Member for the Friends of Ballona Wetlands and has enjoyed being a Girl Scout leader for the past 10 years. In her free time, Whelan likes to hike with her husband and two children, explore vineyards and sample their fruits, travel, bake, try new restaurants, and spend time with her friends and family.
 

Steven Adamian, JD, CSPG

Steven Adamian is the Associate Senior Vice President of Gift Planning at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where he leads the gift planning office. He previously held a similar role at a private university. Before transitioning to philanthropy, Steven practiced law for 10 years, beginning as a trial attorney and litigator. Over time, his practice evolved toward more purpose-driven work in estate planning, trust administration, and advising tax-exempt organizations. He earned his B.S. in Business Administration from Cal Poly Pomona and his J.D. from Loyola Law School. Steven is a Certified Specialist in Planned Giving and a former board member of the Southern California Council of Charitable Gift Planners.

 

 

 

 

 

Cancellation Policy
SoCalCGP regrets that refunds will not be given for no-shows. A refund of full registration is permitted prior to an event by submitting a written request to [email protected].

SoCalCGP reserves the right to change speakers and/or cancel an event due to unforeseen circumstances without penalty. The total amount of any liability of SoCalCGP will be limited to a refund of the attendee’s registration fee.

Consent Clause

Photo Release
Registration and attendance at, or participation in, SoCalCGP meetings and other activities constitute an agreement by the registrant to the use and distribution (both now and in the future) of the registrant or attendee’s image or voice in photographs, videos, electronic reproductions, and recordings of such events and activities by SoCalCGP and other third parties, including but not limited to the venue, sponsors, and destination organizations (i.e. CVBs). Your registration may include technology that monitors your activities throughout the meeting, such as session attendance.

Email/Mail Release
SoCalCGP will provide attendee contact information and email addresses to program partners and exhibitors of certain SoCalCGP events. The information provided to program partners and exhibitors will only be used to inform the attendee of promotions and networking opportunities with the program partners and exhibitors at the event. Attendee information is never given to any other parties. SoCalCGP does not sell attendee information. For those SoCalCGP events with program sponsors, you will have the option during registration to choose whether you wish to receive notifications and opportunities from the program sponsors via email or mail.

Continuing Education

SoCalCGP is approved as continuing education provider #3889 of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California and designated this activity for a maximum of 2.0 hours of credit. SoCalGP is also approved for CFRE continuing education credits. Full participation in the General Meeting is applicable for 2.0 points in Category 1.B – Education of the CFRE International application for initial certification and/or recertification.

An application for continuing education credits for CFP® is submitted when the course content is within the CFP® Board guidelines.

Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits for CPAs through the California Board of Accountancy are self-reported and it is the obligation of each licensee to select a course of study consistent with CBA requirements.

Certified Specialist in Planned Giving (CSPG) continuing education credits for Planned Giving are self-reported and the appropriate attendance certificate will be provided after the event.