Mi ACADEMY
Build the fundraising skills your ministry has been missing.
Mi Academy is a self-paced online program for ministry leaders. Eight specialties built to transform your approach to fundraising, with AI coaching from Mi Advisor every step of the way.
About Mi Academy
The online extension of Mission Increase's proven approach.
For decades, Mi has trained ministry leaders to fundraise as Christian ministry. It is a complete approach, rooted in Scripture, refined alongside thousands of ministries.
27+
Years serving Christian ministries
10,000+
Ministries reached
$3.5B
In Cumulative Kingdom Impact
See Mission IncreaseTraining In Action.
About the Training
Training that builds fundraisers, not just fundraising plans.
For 27+ years, Mi has trained ministry leaders to fundraise as Christian ministry. It is a complete approach, rooted in Scripture, refined alongside thousands of ministries.
Built on Biblical Conviction
The Ten Principles of Transformational Giving anchor everything Mi teaches. Ten biblical truths inspire generosity and guide leaders who steward resources for Kingdom impact.
Built on Proven Frameworks
Champion Development, P-E-O (Participation, Engagement, Ownership), and practical tools are decades in the making, refined through real ministry alongside real leaders.
Built for What's Next
Most fundraising training chases one quarter's number. Mi training builds leaders, and ministries that thrive long after the training ends.
Rooted in Scripture
An approach grounded in the Word.
Mi Academy teaches fundraising as Christian ministry. The frameworks at the heart of this program, champion development, hospitality, the renewing of the mind, are drawn from Scripture and refined over years of work alongside ministry leaders. We are not optimizing donor pipelines. We are forming leaders whom God uses to build His Kingdom.
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Romans 12:2
How It Works
A learning path designed for the reality of ministry life.
Mi Academy is structured around eight specialties, each one a core area of competency that transforms how your ministry operates. You progress through four tiers of depth, with Mi Advisor coaching you every step of the way.
How Each Skill Develops
Four tiers of growth.
Proficiency in each specialty develops across the four course tiers, with Mi Advisor coaching you at every step.
Introductory
Catch the vision
Foundational
Build your competency
Intermediate
Deepen your expertise
Advanced
Lead and equip others
What You Get
Eight skills you'll develop in real time.
Each specialty is focused on one main ministry outcome. By the time you finish the program, your ministry has a complete set of living documents you return to and update as your work grows.
Specialty 1 · Transformational Giving
Personal Invitation Plan
Specialty 2 · Champion Development
Ministry P-E-O Chart
Specialty 3 · Communications
Case for Support
Specialty 4 · Relational Fundraising
Fundraising Campaign Plan
Specialty 5 · Community
Recurring Giving Program Plan
Specialty 6 · Culture
Annual Fundraising Plan
Specialty 7 · Collaboration
Large-Scale Event Plan
Specialty 8 · Leadership
Board Development Plan
Achievement
Recognition of every milestone.
Mi Academy formally recognizes your progress at three levels: with each course you finish, with each Specialty you complete, and with the full program.
Each Course
Course Certificate of Completion
Awarded when you complete each individual course in the program.
32 in totalEach Specialty
Specialty Certification
Awarded when you complete all four courses within a Specialty.
8 in totalThe Full Program
Mi Certification
Awarded when you complete all eight Specialties, the full Mi Academy program.
The capstoneMi Advisor
Online · Personal Invitation Plan
Mi Advisor lives inside every paid course, available 24/7 wherever you are in your learning.
Coaching, On Demand
Meet Mi Advisor
Mi Advisor is an AI coach grounded in Mi's methodology and theology of fundraising as ministry. It walks beside you as you draft, refine, and finalize each working document, asking the right questions for your context and offering help applying Mi's frameworks.
It does not replace the work of learning. It makes the work doable. Available 24/7 inside every paid course.
What Mi Advisor Does
Program Structure
Built for the way ministry leaders actually learn.
Each specialty progresses across four depth tiers. Take a single specialty top-to-bottom, or take all eight. The choice is yours.
Global Access
Available worldwide, in four languages.
Mi Academy is available in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese. Click the language initials in the bottom right corner of any page to switch instantly. Course content and platform interface translate together.
Ready to begin? Start free, no credit card needed.
Start FreeSubscription Tiers
Start where you are. Grow when you are ready.
Try the program for free, or subscribe for full access at the level that fits your ministry.
Approximate conversion shown for reference. Checkout is processed in USD.
Basic
Taste the program. Start with the courses that ask nothing from you. Share with others.
$0
No credit card. Basic signup.
Plus
The full program. All 32 courses, all 8 specialties, and practical knowledge.
$49/ month
Full program access. 24/7
Premium
A live Mi Coach (a real human!), one hour every month (per ministry).
/ month
Plus + monthly coaching. 3 user seats.
What Premium adds
One hour, one-on-one, every month with a real Mi Coach.
See what's included
Mi Coaches are seasoned ministry consultants who have walked alongside hundreds of nonprofit leaders. Each month, you sit down with yours for an hourlong working session: review your drafts, talk through a stuck point with a champion, plan your next event, navigate a board challenge.
Independent consulting at this level typically runs $300+ an hour. With Premium, that hour is built into your subscription, every month.
- Live video session with your dedicated Mi Coach
- Agenda you set, focused on your ministry's real situation
- Coach reviews your working documents between sessions
- Continuity month over month, not one-off advice
Premium includes 3 user seats. Cancel anytime.
Just One Specialty?
Interested in a single specialty?
If your ministry only needs help in one area right now, say a Case for Support, a Board Development Plan, or a Recurring Giving Program, you can purchase a single specialty on its own.
You get all four courses in that specialty, Mi Advisor coaching for the working document, and the specialty forum. Upgrade to Plus or Premium any time.
From Ministry Leaders Like You
What leaders are saying.
"With the guidance of Mission Increase, we’ve moved from piddling alongside Jesus to focusing on God’s direction for the ministry. Mi helped us develop a long-range, strategic plan and a succession plan to ensure that David's Table outlives me... It is not an exaggeration to say that Mi was a huge part of saving David's Table."
"Skeeter" Powell
David's Table
"As a nonprofit leader, gathering resources to support my community is important. Mission Increase has come along side of us to build capacity in our organization so that we can continue to serve and grow."
Teresa Searcy
Robert H. Williams Cultural Center
"I am new to this position and felt overwhelmed thinking about having to constantly ask donors for money. The training gave me valuable tools to use and the training also shifted my perspective on asking people to give; I realize now that asking people to share in my organization’s mission is both a joy and a privilege."
Bethel Wiley
Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation
The Full Program
4 depth levels. 8 specialties. 32 courses.
Each specialty is a four-course progression. You see what is possible, draft its main working document with Mi Advisor, refine it with deeper understanding, and finalize it as a leader ready to equip others.
Specialty 1
Transformational Giving
Invitation, philosophy, and identity: fundraising as genuine ministry.
Builds toward Personal Invitation Plan
Introductory
Introduction to Mi Philosophy
Why fundraising can feel like ministry, not a necessary evil.
What you will do
Get a vision for fundraising as ministry, grounded in the Ten Principles of Transformational Giving.
Foundational
Making the Invitation (x5)
Inviting champions across all five ways of being involved.
What you will do
Draft your Personal Invitation Plan with invitations across praying, giving, serving, learning, and sharing.
Intermediate
Fundraising as Ministry
The theology and psychology behind transformational giving practices.
What you will do
Refine your Personal Invitation Plan with deeper theological and psychological grounding.
Advanced
Champion-Sustained Ministry
Leading a ministry sustained by champion community, not transactions.
What you will do
Finalize your Personal Invitation Plan and learn to equip others to invite well.
Specialty 2
Champion Development
Moving champions from first contact to ownership, and on to multiplying others.
Builds toward Ministry P-E-O Chart
Introductory
Introduction to P-E-O
Why treating all supporters the same misses the point.
What you will do
Discover what changes when you stop treating supporters the same and start developing each one.
Foundational
P-E-O
Mapping individual champion journeys with the P-E-O framework.
What you will do
Draft your Ministry P-E-O Chart across all five categories of involvement.
Intermediate
Champion Development
The principles behind effective champion cultivation.
What you will do
Refine your chart with the principles behind effective champion cultivation.
Advanced
Multiplication
Champions who develop other champions.
What you will do
Finalize your chart and learn to develop champion-developers.
Specialty 3
Communications
A compelling case for support powers every message, appeal, and conversation.
Builds toward Case for Support
Introductory
Introduction to Case for Support
Can you explain your ministry in one minute in a way that moves people?
What you will do
Draft your Case for Support with Mi Advisor as your guide.
Foundational
Communications Calendar
Deploying your message year-round across every channel.
What you will do
Deploy your Case for Support across a year-round communications system.
Intermediate
Mission Messaging
Principles behind compelling, audience-resonant mission communication.
What you will do
Refine your messaging with principles for resonating across diverse audiences.
Advanced
Owners and Advocates
Equipping champions to communicate your mission to their networks.
What you will do
Finalize your communications and equip champions to advocate to their networks.
Specialty 4
Relational Fundraising
Campaigns and major gifts built on real relationship, not transactions.
Builds toward Fundraising Campaign Plan
Introductory
Introduction to Relational Fundraising
When every ask feels like a genuine invitation.
What you will do
Discover how every ask can become a meaningful invitation, not a transaction.
Foundational
Fundraising Campaigns
Designing campaigns that deepen relationships, not deplete them.
What you will do
Draft your Fundraising Campaign Plan with relational depth and stewardship.
Intermediate
Cause vs. Organization
Champions who fall in love with the cause, not the brand.
What you will do
Refine your campaign so champions fall in love with the cause itself.
Advanced
Champion Appreciation
Honoring champions in ways that deepen relationship.
What you will do
Finalize your campaign with deep, gratitude-rooted champion appreciation practices.
Specialty 5
Community
Recurring giving sustains a community; involvement across all five categories deepens it.
Builds toward Recurring Giving Program Plan
Introductory
Introduction to Champion Community
When supporters become a community, everything changes.
What you will do
See what becomes possible when your supporters become a champion community, not a list.
Foundational
Recurring Giving Programs
Building a recurring giving program that creates consistent funding.
What you will do
Draft your Recurring Giving Program Plan with structure, onboarding, and retention.
Intermediate
Fostering Involvement (x5)
Moving champions from passive support to active co-ownership.
What you will do
Refine your program with cross-category engagement systems.
Advanced
Building Community
Building a champion community that becomes self-sustaining.
What you will do
Finalize your program and build a champion community that becomes self-sustaining and multiplying.
Specialty 6
Culture
Healthy internal culture produces a plan, and a ministry people want to join.
Builds toward Annual Fundraising Plan
Introductory
Introduction to Ministry Culture
The invisible force shaping your fundraising effectiveness.
What you will do
Examine the invisible force shaping your ministry's fundraising effectiveness.
Foundational
Fundraising Plan
Creating a strategic plan that engages the whole community.
What you will do
Draft a strategic Annual Fundraising Plan that fits your ministry's season and capacity.
Intermediate
Culture of Participation
Why culture determines fundraising outcomes.
What you will do
Refine your plan around shared ownership and a culture of participation.
Advanced
Metrics and Success
What Kingdom-oriented success really looks like.
What you will do
Finalize your plan with Kingdom-oriented metrics that measure what matters.
Specialty 7
Collaboration
Gathering people together to inspire shared ownership of mission and collective impact.
Builds toward Large-Scale Event Plan
Introductory
Introduction to Mission Increase
What Mi is, what we teach, and how we come alongside ministry leaders like you.
What you will do
Get oriented to the Mi community and the three pillars of training, coaching, and peer connection.
Foundational
Large-Scale Fundraising Events
Designing fundraising events that build community while raising funds.
What you will do
Draft a complete Large-Scale Event Plan for your next fundraising event.
Intermediate
Leverage Testimony
Gathering, shaping, and deploying testimony to multiply engagement.
What you will do
Refine your event plan with strategic use of testimony and audience design.
Advanced
Collective Impact
Collaborating at a Kingdom scale rather than competing for attention.
What you will do
Finalize your event plan and explore Kingdom-scale collaboration with peer ministries.
Specialty 8
Leadership
Personal leadership, board governance, and equipping champions to lead alongside you.
Builds toward Board Development Plan
Introductory
Introduction to Ministry Leadership
Leading from character and abundance, not technique and scarcity.
What you will do
Reframe leadership from technique and scarcity to character and abundance.
Foundational
Board Basics
Recruiting, orienting, and working effectively with a governing board.
What you will do
Draft your Board Development Plan, from recruiting through orientation.
Intermediate
Board Roles and Governance
Strategic governance and board-staff dynamics.
What you will do
Refine your plan with strategic governance and board-staff dynamics.
Advanced
Champion Leadership
Champion and board leadership grounded in Kingdom values.
What you will do
Finalize your plan with Kingdom-grounded board and champion leadership.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions leaders ask us most.
How do the subscription tiers work?
Basic is free and gives you access to the Introductory courses. Plus is $49 per month and unlocks the entire program (all 32 courses, all 8 working documents, Mi Advisor, forums, certificates). Premium is $199 per month and adds one hourlong live coaching session per month with a real human Mi Coach. Cancel any time.
What if I only want one specialty?
You can purchase a single specialty on its own if your ministry only needs help in one area right now. You get all four courses in that specialty, Mi Advisor coaching for the working document, and the specialty forum. You can upgrade to Plus or Premium any time.
Can I share my subscription with my team?
Yes. Premium subscriptions include 3 user seats. You, your executive director, and your board chair can all work through the program on their own time, with separate progress tracking and certificates.
Is Mi Academy available in other languages?
Yes. Mi Academy is available in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese, thanks to a partnership with Wycliffe Bible Translators. Click the language initials in the bottom right corner of any page to switch instantly. Course content, quizzes, forums, and the platform interface all translate together.
What is Mi Advisor?
Mi Advisor is an AI coach grounded in Mi's methodology and theology of fundraising as ministry. It walks beside you as you draft, refine, and finalize each working document, asking the right questions for your context and offering help applying Mi's frameworks. Available 24/7 inside every paid course. Mi Advisor is included with both Plus and Premium tiers.
What does the live coaching session in Premium include?
Premium subscribers get one hourlong live coaching session per month with an Mi Coach (a real human, not Mi Advisor). The session is yours: review a draft, work through a stuck spot in your fundraising plan, or get pastoral support for a hard ministry season. You schedule it when you need it.
What certificates do I receive?
Every course you complete earns a Certificate of Completion. Finishing all 4 courses in a specialty earns a specialty certificate with 4 course badges. Completing the full program and passing the final comprehensive quiz earns Mi Certification, a recognition you can share with your board, staff, and funders.
Can I take courses out of order?
Yes. Courses are designed to stand on their own. That said, each specialty is built so the four tiers deepen on one another, so most learners take them in order within a specialty. Across specialties, follow your ministry's needs.
What happens after I complete the program?
Mi Certification is the formal milestone, but the working documents are the fruit. You leave with eight living documents, a Personal Invitation Plan, a Case for Support, a Board Development Plan, and the rest, that you return to and update as your ministry grows. The forums and Mi Advisor remain available as long as your subscription is active.
God is forming you as a ministry leader. Mi Academy is here to help.
You do not have to figure this out alone. Start with one free course, or subscribe and begin building the working documents your ministry has needed for years.