Increasing alumni donations a tough task

Universities pressed to raise revenues as province cuts back

Students cheer on the Saint Mary's Huskies at the homecoming football game. Photo courtesy: Saint Mary's University

Vandna Raina worked the phone lines for alumni donations during her undergrad at Saint Mary's University. She now finds herself on the other side of the line as a new member of the alumni council.

Raina was an international student from Ethiopia but completed her A-level exams in England.

She studied her first two years of undergrad at Dalhousie University then finished her degree at Saint Mary's.

It is a strong sense of community that has kept Raina in touch with SMU.

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SMU alumni association president Greg Poirier speaks at the Silver Grad Luncheon. Photo courtesy: Saint Mary's University

"Since I was an international student it was easier to fit in at Saint Mary's because of their diverse student population and smaller class sizes. At Dal, I was just a number," said Raina.

Saint Mary's has more than 30,000 active alumni with an average of 72 new contributors every year since 2004. Alumni financial participation has averaged 3.1 per cent from 2004 to 2011, but it remains unchanged at 2.7 per cent for the past three years. This falls well below the university's target range of 10 to 15 per cent.

According to the alumni office at St. Francis Xavier University, there are currently more than 28,000 active alumni and an average of 21 per cent donated to the university from 2004 to 2011.

Alumni donations are the only form of revenue universities can actively fundraise considering the province will be cutting $14 million from university operating grants next fall. Saint Mary's 2009 annual financial report (pdf) identifies "weak alumni financial participation" as one of its internal weaknesses.

Greg Poirier graduated from Saint Mary's MBA program in 2003 and is now the president of the alumni council. He says universities at large have seen a drop in alumni giving due to the current economy. Poirier also says there is a correlation between the campus way of life and how students give in the future.

"A large portion of our student base is from HRM, which is fantastic, but those students don't participate in as many campus events and they don't necessarily form those bonds that students living in residence would," said Poirier.

Students of St. FX, Poirier says, most likely moved to Antigonish from their home towns to attend the university and therefore the campus becomes a close-knit community.

"Saint Mary's has the blessing and the curse of being a commuter school. Neither student population (day or international) tends to be an aggressive group of givers as out-of-province or out-of-town students," said Poirier.

The SMU alumni association has a number of activities to keep alumni connected with the university. The primary ones include the alumni magazine, Maroon and White, e-newsletters, Facebook and varsity athletic events such as homecoming.

Out-of-province alumni are also kept in the loop through local SMU alumni chapters, the strongest branch being in Toronto.

Despite the large number of engagement programs, a SMU grad of 2010, Vanessa Chagljevich says that the alumni association should focus on the target groups that are most profitable.

"I think they're wasting their time. It doesn't make sense to ask recent graduates and retirees for money," she said. "But it's still important to keep these groups informed about the school."

Poirier says the alumni association is doing a better job of engaging younger alumni than it has in the past. He also says activities such as the one-world alumni dinner and prize draws at university events are targeting a more financially sensitive demographic.

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