Solicitation and Donation
I’m convinced that one of the hardest things to do in the world is to ask for money. Of course, the ability to solicit funds is a very useful skill, and improved skill comes only through study and practice. That’s part of the reason why I became a “class agent” for Rose-Hulman upon my graduation in 2004.
As a class agent, it’s my job to solicit donations from my peers on behalf of Rose. Easier said than done. If there’s one thing that’s harder than asking for money, it’s asking friends for money.
But enough about that. What’s really surprised me has been the decline in the alumni donation rate over the past few years. Once at about 50%, it has shurnk to only 29%. On a similar note, the much-maligned “senior dollar giveback” thing has seen reduced participation, from about 84% to about 70%. I’ve plotted this below for your evaluation. (I should note that while the alumni participation data was obtained directly, the dollar giveback data was inferred from individual class participation rates. Also, something strange happened to the 2006 data point, so I have chosen not to plot it.)
What is the cause of this decline? Are people that strapped for cash? Are people becoming less satisfied with their Rose-Hulman experience?
Also you may want to discount the senior dollar donation from 2005 as many students withheld their donations as a statement of protest for a specific change they wanted to see in the school and not because of refusal to give to Rose…
Was that the Midgley debacle?
i don’t remember any sort of “dollar giveback” thing. maybe i just missed it – but i don’t recall it happening at all in symbolic or otherwise fashion…
despite this though, i do get semi-annual “give rose money” newsletters of which i have responded to some – and better yet, my company actually matches me dollar for dollar on my donations.
i think one thing that might tie alumni back to the school is a good description of what the solicited money will work towards. some people have a hard time giving money unless they can reason what it goes towards.
I think most people, seeing the huge increase in tuition without similar increases in financial aid, have decided to quit subsidizing the school. Plot the tuition increase from 1999 to 2007, and see if it correlates with the decrease in giving.