Alumni Association from Scratch: How Bennington Is Building Its 'Alumni Cooperative'

For years, Bennington College operated without a structured alumni association.

Now they have an ambitious and innovative plan to create a new one with the participation and input of their alumni community. They call the association the Bennington Alumni Cooperative, in an homage to the school's foundational ethos. The Cooperative sets an example for all schools working to adapt the structure of their alumni associations to their own culture.

We asked Bennington's Director of Alumni Programs Marie Leahy and Vice President for Institutional Advancement Paige Bartel to tell us more about their ongoing efforts to build the Cooperative. They presented on the subject at the CASE D1 Conference in February.

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Why Elon University Created a Dedicated Position for Alumni Engagement Officers

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Bridging the gap between advancement and alumni relations can be hard—even when one office is asking something of the other.

To solve this problem, Elon University created a unique hybrid position: the Alumni Engagement Officer. Elon has used its AEOs to increase rates of attendance, volunteering, giving, and retention.

We spoke with Tricia Teter, senior alumni engagement officer, and Jill Hollis, coordinator of alumni engagement and special events, to tell us more about the Alumni Engagement Officer position and the strategy behind it. They recently presented on the topic at the CASE Divison III Conference in Nashville.

Building a Senior Transition Event Series at Vanderbilt

Every year, 1,200 seniors graduate from Vanderbilt. The Life After Vanderbilt event series helps them make that transition.

Put on by the Vanderbilt Alumni Association, the event series connects students with alumni, supplies them with advice, and raises awareness about how they can stay connected with their alma mater in the years to come. The event series has dramatically increased awareness of the alumni association among seniors and young alumni, and CASE District 3 recognized Life After Vanderbilt last year with an award.

We asked Sarah Quinn, associate director of student alumni & young alumni programming, to give us a recap of her February CASE D3 panel and explain how other schools can replicate Vanderbilt's success.

How Spelman College More Than Doubled Its Rate of Student Giving

We know it's best to encourage our constituents to give early and often, but that's easier said than done. How early do we start encouraging them to give? How do we convince them to make a gift before they've even graduated?

Spelman College has the answers to these questions. By developing a culture of transparency and philanthropy on campus, Spelman has more than doubled its rate of student giving. That increase has already begun to pay off after graduation as well.

We asked Spelman's Assistant Director of Annual Giving, Melissa Campbell, a few questions about reaching young prospects after her CASE D3 presentation on the subject.

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How Gill St. Bernard's School Re-Engaged Alumni After Decades of a Changing Identity

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Keeping alumni invested in their alma mater is hard work.

Gill St. Bernard's School, an independent school in Gladstone, New Jersey, had to work even harder to re-engage alumni after a merger and decades of change.

It fell to the school's development and alumni relations teams to make their older alumni feel welcome again. We talked to Chanelle Walker, director of alumni relations, and James Diverio, director of development, about their efforts to honor their alumni's history without losing sight of the future. They recently presented on their work at the CASE NAIS Conference in New York.

"It is not from ourselves that we learn to be better than we are." —Wendell Berry