I recently had a really interesting conversation with about a dozen of my 30-something friends. The question that sparked the discussion went like this. I asked the group:
Do you give money back to your college?
Almost none of them actually answered the question directly. Instead, I heard:
- Why would I send them money when I barely have enough for myself?
- Don’t they realize there is a recession?
- Don’t they realize we are just starting out?
Whoa. Overwhelmingly negative, knee-jerk reaction to that one.
But the one answer that really stuck with me was:
- I would have given money eventually if they didn’t hammer me all the time to give!
Ouch – someone who started off with a positive inclination towards support had been turned off completely.
I followed up with this question:
What is the one experience you had in college that you feel most positive about?
Everyone had an answer for this one:
- A sports team they played for
- A scholarship they received
- A professor / program that helped them
- A club or greek organization they were a part of
Ok, so there is some connection there about something. Next question.
Would you give money to this group/sport/program/scholarship to insure that someone else could benefit as you did?
One person said they would not give no matter the situation. Most, however, said they would give money to specifically meet this need, if they were able.
What does it all mean?
This conversation is about as anecdotal as it gets. I can’t with any certainty say that my group of friends represents our entire generation as a whole. That said, I think it is pretty telling when a group of otherwise socially and philanthropically involved adults, who have given to charities willingly (albeit in less than ‘name-the-building-after-me’ amounts) would have such a hard time coming around to the idea of giving to their alma mater. There is a disconnect here, and a serious one at that. I don’t have statistics, but I do have trustworthy results from one source: me.
What I care and don’t care about
What motivates me? Excites me? Compels me? What takes me from passive observer to active participant?
I care about how the Nazareth College basketball team is doing, because I used to be on the team and I like basketball. I care about how the student athletes are doing, especially those on the advisory committee I used to be on. I care about certain professors because they cared about me. I don’t care about the annual fund. I don’t care about “Academics” or “Student Life” or “Scholarships” in the abstract, but I do care about the Information Technology minor, the annual thanksgiving basket drive and the William McGowan scholarship for business majors that I received one year.
The truth is, I don’t care enough about Nazareth College on the whole to just throw money in its general direction. I do care enough about pieces of Nazareth College, though. I think people give to parts of their university, and that the collective parts ultimately make for a better whole.
Make me feel that my help matters
People give to specific causes because they are assured their money will do what they want it to do – or even better, because they will actually witness the impact on the exact thing they care about.
I can’t afford to endow a scholarship, or name a building, or present a big check to the president. I won’t (probably ever) be a ‘top prospect’ as a donor.
I can, however, afford to give fifty dollars to buy a new basketball for the team this year, or buy a turkey and fixings for the thanksgiving basket. The amount of money is less important to me than the idea that something meaningful has been accomplished with it, and you know what – if I have proof that a little of my money was well spent, I’m more likely to give a little more next time.
The technology for achieving this type of philanthropy is out there, higher education just needs to start using it. I’d encourage you to take a listen to the awesome podcast of the presentation that Jeff Stevens from University of Florida did on this topic at HighEdWeb 2011.
The takeaway
Operate under the assumption that every alum cares about something your institution does (or could do) enough to support it and you are left simply with the task of finding out what that something is and how you can enable people to support it. If you’ve done a good job of lifetime engagement management, you should already know what interests and affinities people have based on the data you’ve collected, how those connections have evolved throughout their relationship with you, and what will most likely resonate with them. Stop asking people to donate money into ambiguity!
Fran Zablocki 