Alumni donations to universities, specifically those from younger alumni, have dropped in the past few years, according to a report released last week by Blackbaud, Inc., an organization which provides information and services to non-profit groups.
The report, titled the "2011 Index of Higher Education Fundraising Performance," evaluates various higher education institutions' funding sources in the past year.
"The opportunity to bolster participation rates has all but disappeared in an era where younger alumni are not inclined to support higher education at the same rates as their parents and grandparents," according to the report. "This trend, for most programs, is likely not reversible and we'll continue to see participation rates decline."
John Mastrobattista, Blackbaud Inc. senior fundraising analyst, said in an email the report is based on "actual donor transaction data posted to fundraising databases" by hundreds of institutions of higher education.
"The primary purpose of the annual index is to help our clients compare their individual indicators of program performance to a larger sample of other schools," Mastrobattista said. "Benchmarking performance against other schools, and discussing the circumstances that led to particular fundraising results, helps program managers innovate and adapt as technologies, attitudes, and economic conditions change."
Matrobattista said fundraising success "is somewhat dependent on strategies at the schools, the general economic environment, and many variables particular to each school," as he acknowledged the difficulty of engaging students and recent graduates in fundraising.
Jennifer Wyss, the University's director of development for the University Annual Giving Office, said University trends mirror the report's overall findings.
"Young alumni give at lower rates and lower amounts than do older alumni," she said.
University spokesperson Carol Wood said in an email alumni donations made as part of the "Campaign for the University of Virginia: Knowledge is Power" fundraising drive have dropped between September 2008 and Nov. 30, 2010.
Fourth-year Commerce student Dan Morrison has pledged to the Giving Campaign for the Class of 2012, this year's version of the annual fundraising effort executed by the Fourth Year Trustees to generate revenue for the University.
"We feel compelled to give back to the intangibles of the University, and so I know, for example, I gave back my gift to the McIntire School of Commerce, and that's largely because I think I paid for the degree, but I haven't necessarily paid entirely for the experience, for the friendships, for the instruction as far as tutelage," Morrison said. "The people I've talked to that have given back often say this is what made [their] experience."
Despite this, Shaun Keister, co-author of the report and vice chancellor of development and alumni relations at the University of California-Davis, said in an email he was not optimistic about the "giving behaviors" of young alumni. "This could be our new reality," Keister said.
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