When alumni stay engaged with their college or university, it creates a richer experience for the entire campus community. Students benefit from an extended professional network and dedicated mentorship. Faculty and staff can see the impact of their work on those who graduated and went on to fulfilling careers. Alumni benefit from increased connection and ongoing relationships with a community that was foundational to their lives. And institutions can boost their fundraising and volunteer base.
In short, colleges and universities that prioritize alumni engagement build communities that are strong, connected and passionate about giving back.
By using a volunteer management platform, institutions can provide regular, meaningful ways for their alumni to engage with their communities — and stay connected to their alma mater. Here are four ideas to get started.
For your institution to track alumni volunteer engagement, you'll need a directory that allows you to search for and contact alumni. Keep your alumni connected with your institution and one another with an online alumni directory. Allow alumni members to submit their details, sign up for regular updates and opt in — or out — to letting others search for them.
You can then leverage this network to engage with the local community. With volunteer management software like GivePulse, you benefit from a customer relationship management (CRM) platform that stores alumni details alongside volunteer management tools that track volunteer engagement.
Help your alumni build connections with one another in the city, town or country they live in by creating local alumni chapters. These affinity groups can help alumni network and provide opportunities for fundraising, meet-ups and volunteering.
Using a volunteer management platform like GivePulse, you can create subgroups for each local chapter. Use these subgroups to list opportunities, events and fundraisers. Make sure you select one or more leaders within the group who can manage communications and logistics. Empower them to manage the chapter by delegating them as administrators who can oversee the subgroup.
Volunteering is a great way to bring people together to make a difference, so brainstorm fun ideas with the chapter's leadership team. Set goals for the number of impacts logged to "gamify" the process and motivate everyone to get involved. You can offer opportunities to engage on campus at major events like Homecoming, online volunteering options like tutoring and opportunities in the local community, like mentoring youth at a local school.
One way alumni love to give back is by connecting with students from their alma mater. Use your alumni management platform to connect alumni and students with similar backgrounds, aspirations and locations. For instance, if you have a student studying business from New York City, a mentor who runs a successful business in New York could be a great connection.
Mentor-mentee relationships are beneficial for both students and alumni. They allow students to build a professional network and land experiential learning opportunities like internships before they graduate. For alumni, they offer opportunities to use their expertise to give back, providing a greater sense of fulfillment and connection to their alma mater.
Using GivePulse, you can set up a simple, custom application form that students and alumni can use to register their interest in a mentorship program. Then, use the information submitted to match mentors to mentees and start building connections.
Everyone wants to feel that they're making a difference — that's why so many people are looking for volunteer opportunities near them. Partner with your local alumni chapters to host days of service where alumni come together to volunteer at a food bank, clean up a local park or support a local community organization. You can also include current students if you hold events like this during the summer or winter break — a great way to develop multi-generational connections.
Use GivePulse to list events, manage attendees and sign volunteers up for particular shifts. You can even sell memorabilia like t-shirts when guests register, so they can remember the day for years to come!
GivePulse exists to help everyone be a part of social change. Many students participate in service or philanthropy during their college and university years. When they graduate, their desire to make a difference continues. Keep your college or university community connected by offering your alumni meaningful, accessible ways to give back.
GivePulse offers an all-in-one alumni management system to help you track and increase engagement with your alumni, donors and volunteers.
Ready to see how we can help you streamline and enhance your alumni engagement strategy? Schedule a demo with GivePulse today.
About GivePulse
GivePulse's mission is to enable everyone in the world to participate and engage in lifting their community to new heights. We do so by providing a platform to list, find, organize and measure the impact of service-learning, community engagement, philanthropy, corporate social responsibility and volunteerism.
Founded in 2012 in Austin, Texas, GivePulse works with 650,000+ groups, including colleges and universities, nonprofits, businesses, K-12/school districts and cities and municipalities. Together, we connect millions of people in an effort to create positive social change.
Start making a difference today by visiting www.givepulse.com.