Universities Uncertain How Their Alumni Will Respond

In the next few years, the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic will change universities considerably. For many alumni, the school they attended may experience serious financial hardship. Alumni who still follow the athletics of their alma mater may have to endure a season or whole year without cheering on their favorite team. Finally, any alumni looking to connect with their classmates at reunions, dinners, or networking events will have to wait for the foreseeable future as large gatherings are still deemed unsafe and are outright banned in many states. While the short-term restriction of alumni networking to virtual meeting places is less impactful than the consequences facing many students and university finances, it nevertheless is another challenge facing university staff and communities. 

Although not caused by restrictions on alumni networking, many universities are facing serious financial hardship. Alumni and fundraising coordinators expect the restrictions on alumni events will make fundraising more difficult. Additionally, events that alumni consistently supported financially, such as athletics or the arts, are currently on hold. This means that ticket sales are also on hold as well as active in-person participation through volunteering. While private schools are well known for receiving private donations that offer significant financial support, publicly funded universities are facing serious challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic as they have increasingly received private donations over previous years while state funding has decreased. Over the last decade state, funding for public universities has fallen by 16%. This all has lead to even greater financial struggles for universities. Although examined in more detail in next week’s blog on sports, the cancellation and postponement of sports seasons also affect alumni engagement. These decreases are not solely responsible for diminishing financial strength in academic institutions across the country, but a fall in donations and revenues traditionally collected from alumni has left universities further concerned about their budgets. 

These challenges are forcing universities to fill gaps in the budget with either tuition increases or an additional call for alumni donations. While charities and organizations across the United States have been able to solicit donations virtually and through virtual events, it has yet to be seen whether universities will see similar amounts of generosity as they struggle to fill their coffers. With the in-person, social aspect of alumni engagement on hold, dinners, reunions, happy hours, and alumni networking will be forced into social media, zoom, and email newsletters. Seminars and speaker series are conducted over zoom which has allowed schools to reach a broader audience despite losing the closeness of sharing a space. Alumni who moved across the country or even into a different one can now connect with their former classmates through virtual events when before it required a substantial commitment of time and money. There is uncertainty whether this could eventually result in more donations or if the lack of physical proximity and experience will continue to make fundraising difficult.

Just like many other aspects of life, the COVID-19 pandemic greatly restricted nearly all alumni and alumni organizations’ ability to participate in traditional networking and social events. The use of virtual events has had a positive impact on allowing more alumni to connect, but overall, universities are struggling to return to normalcy. The word that is consistently thrown around when considering alumni networking and fundraising is uncertainty. Today’s circumstances are unprecedented and no one knows, save for speculation, whether fundraising will slow down or speed up. Some have found virtual networking has connected them even more than in-person events while others cannot wait to return to traditional ways of socializing. The next several months will give a sure answer to many questions as we see how universities employ quality fundraising strategies and how alumni coordinators navigate virtual networking. 

Looking for guidance as your school or nonprofit organization faces uncertainty? Reach out to info@nmblstrategies.com to learn how the team at NMBL Strategies can put their 30+ years of executive experience to work for you.