You're pledging to donate if the project hits its minimum goal and gets approved. If not, your funds will be returned.
$100,000 left to reach the funding goal.
NASAGA (North American Simulation Gaming and Simulation Association) is a community of educators, facilitators, trainers, researchers, and game designers dedicated to advancing the use of experiential learning, serious games, and simulations. For more than five decades, NASAGA has been at the forefront of helping people discover how play, creativity, and interactive methods can transform learning and development across industries. More than that, NASAGA is a family of low-ego experts in the field pf applied play that seeks to welcome all who love using games to connect with one another.
With reduction in academic and organizational funding dedicated to practical application of games and play, our membership base needs more support than ever - both financial and in places in which they can continue to make the world a better place. At the same time, we are also seeing a lack of communication between other nodes of professionals in this space and see a massive need for a unified hub for information sharing and strategic planning.
As such, we are looking to fundraise for our organization to hire part time positions for operational support, membership services, communication and outreach.
Improve membership services to practitioners of applied games and experiential learning. We will issue a Q4 2027 survey of members and non-members about that support they need in using games and play to make the world a better place. In Q1 2027 we will develop programming and support services to meet these needs of our membership
Increased digital participation in NASAGA digital events. We will continue to host monthly games nights and offer monthly game jams and salons where individuals can gather to share information and develop game-based learning experiences.
Establish NASAGA as the hub organization for all applied games and experiential learning professionals. Through deploying NASAGA staff, volunteers, and members to digital and physical gathering spaces, we will increase awareness of our organization and be the point of connection for all communities using games and play for transformative experiences.
Our metrics of success include:
Formal presence of NASAGA (including sponsorship or event-hosting) at major 'serious games' or applied play conferences including but not limited to Play Make Learn, Serious Play, Meaningful Play, Games for Change, and Trade Days at GenCon and Origins.
Increased Membership satisfaction ratings on a follow-up survey issued in Q4 2027.
Increased NASAGA Membership by 20% by the end of Q4 2027
Additional $30,000 of fundraising raised outside of this request to prepare for a renewed NASAGA conference in 2028 and the outreach and advertising needed to make it a well attended event.
Increased donations to our scholarship fund that will allow NASAGA to award 5 $1000 scholarships to individuals doing work in education or improving human connection to attend conferences listed above.
Contracted part-time Executive Director ($20k), Communications and Outreach ($10k), Community Support ($10k) positions, as well as marketing, outreach, and travel expenses for members in 2027.
Additional funding will allow us to move our website off Squarespace, and offer grant, scholarship, and sponsorship support to other players in the field.
Brian Stauber - Board Chair; Founder, Stauber Coaching and Consulting
Alex Suchman, Advisor; CEO and Co-Founder, Barometer XP
Jesse DeRose - Board Member; Founder, Understory Consulting
James Colquitt, PhD - Secretary, Assistant Dean of Simulation at Ohio State College of Nursing
Trent Hergenrader - Professor, Rochester Institute of Technology
Additional board members and practitioners
NASAGA has been a player in the field of experiential learning, serious games, and simulations for over 50 years. Our 2026 conference, supported by the team above, was the most well attended since before the pandemic. Our current membership base holds positions and multiple North American Universities and are known players in the space.
The most likely cause of failure is failure of donor support to manifest. The world of serious games and applied play has historically been dependent on academic grants and financial support, which is no longer a reliable source. As such, we will need to be innovative in who we select for target outreach efforts.
The outcome if this fails is the status quo: Continued siloing of applied games practitioners across the US and wasted effort on resources in similar studies and projects.
We have raised roughly $5000 through scholarship donations, membership fees, and one independent donor.