The president of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education talks about why college advancement officers need to rethink, restructure, and communicate better about their fund-raising campaigns, in light of public perceptions that the institutions are greedy and not managing resources efficiently. Emphasis is on carefully defining…

An estate planning seminar is a personal and cost-effective tool for alerting college constituents to a financial opportunity. Such seminars are not hard to coordinate, are a service to alumni and friends, and may bring long-term benefits to college and participants. Experiences at a number of colleges illustrate diverse approaches. (MSE)

In response to increasing costs and growing reliance on external funding for college faculty research, a plan for promoting faculty success in gaining financial support for research is proposed. The plan is based on information in the literature concerning prerequisites for success in getting external support. (Author/MSE)

Basic principles of designing a reunion gift program include beginning small, researching class prospects, gathering volunteers, determining the financial goal, communicating needs and intentions, organizing volunteers, advertising well, and making the donation at the reunion a major event. More ambitious plans can be tied into the program later.…

Most college fundraising volunteers are uncomfortable asking for money. A training technique designed to help volunteers overcome these fears takes three hours and addresses attitudes about money and requesting it, good and bad solicitation, and the elements of effective solicitation. A program schedule and practical exercises are offered. (MSE)

Trends in college fund raising are identified in three areas: (1) in campaign design, goals are bigger and campaigns longer; (2) demographics of donors and volunteers have changed, with donors more skeptical, less generous, and harder to find and volunteers more scarce; and (3) government and corporate contributions are critical. (MSE)

A coherent, comprehensive communication plan to support college fund raising includes setting goals and objectives, determining target audiences, defining campaign themes, tying the plan to a campaign timetable and geographic priorities, determining the most effective tactics for delivering campaign messages, resolving cost questions, and…

Four basic models of the organization of college and university communications offices are described: advancement, news bureau model, agency, and marketing models. Pros and cons of each are discussed, and the structure of this function at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) is presented as an ideal…

Ideas are offered for targeting groups in college and university fund raising, including reunion class giving, using volunteers, soliciting parent giving, asking faculty and staff to give, and helping students establish an early giving habit. Specific solicitation strategies are provided for each group. (MSE)

Outlines training suggestions for college volunteers in fund-raising phonathons: presenting the basics (nature of charitable giving, fund-raising on their campus, the annual fund, and specific reasons for soliciting); using role-playing as a training technique; monitoring and retraining as needed; and keeping volunteers motivated. Use of…

A survey of almost 150 colleges and universities found many are beginning to use integrated marketing approaches. Institutions report the most significant increases in all targeted areas (annual fund, applicant pool, enrollment yield) when their integrated marketing programs have the support of an alumni or trustee committee. Other findings…

Advice for the college scholarship administrator in dealing with donors include conveying clear policies, avoiding restrictions, setting minimum endowment levels, educating estate professionals, publicizing scholarships, and having donors meet recipients. Suggestions for handling internal tasks include simplified administration, clear fees policy,…

The design of a University of Hartford (Connecticut) decision-support information system for college advancement programs is detailed, specific research and management applications are examined, and the analyses and reports generated by the system are discussed. Early collaboration between institutional researchers and advancement and alumni…

A survey of alumnae of three Catholic liberal arts colleges investigated applicability of a theoretical model proposing that selected demographic, background, and opinion variables would affect alumnae giving. Results indicate that most of the demographic/background variables studied had only weak to moderate correlation with giving patterns.…

This booklet describes the earliest phases of planning a development program for a Catholic school. To ensure the success of such a program, there is need for the following: an initial common, basic understanding of and commitment to where the school is going on the part of all involved in the leadership of the school; involvement by leaders and…