Black MBA - Winter 2007/2008 - (Page 33) greater chance that they will give back,” Carson said. Eloise Alexis, vice president for Institutional Advance at Atlanta’s Spelman College, said that the liberal arts women’s college began several years ago recharging its development efforts to include more recent graduates among its donors. “We tell them they can make small contributions,” she said. “First we are concerned with the consistency. We want them to get into the habit of giving. Later we will work on the capacity. As their careers progress, it is our hope that their support for their alma mater will increase.” Spelman pays current students to phone alumni across the country, something that Alexis said gives an added personal touch to the college’s efforts. “Our graduates enjoy hearing from current students. They want to know what’s going on on campus and they respond well to them,” Alexis said. And while raising money for the university, the students also have an opportunity to earn money. “I say all the time, ‘Spelman is healthy; we are not wealthy.’ We need everyone to give,” Alexis noted. “Until we reach a point where we can tell each young lady that because of her merit, she can enter Spelman and remain through graduation, we must continue our emphasis on development. Right now, we still have students who must go home.” The growth of Spelman’s development program exemplifies a trend at several HBCUs, as they join many colleges and universities in professionalizing the work of solidifying alumni support. When you walk into the development office at Xavier, “You would think you are in an upscale business office,” Francis said. “We are about the business of development, and that’s exactly the impression we want to make for our alumni, corporate donors and all supporters.” HBCUs get additional assistance from the Atlanta-based Southern Education Foundation, which for 140 years has helped these schools focus on equity and excellence in education. A big part of this job is raising money and doing it with consistency, said Lynn WalkerHuntley, head of the Southern Education Foundation. She realizes, however, that some of the same challenges that have existed historically for HBCUs still persist today. “HBCUs cater to [a] disproportionately large number of low-income and firstgeneration college students,” WalkerHuntley said. “Many are in need of financial aid, and federal funds they receive are inadequate. The schools tend to have very small endowments, so we have historically Black colleges serving the poorest group of all and having the least amount of cushion to rely on to support education and keep it afloat.” Worse, HBCUs face the greatest risk of losing their accreditation if they cannot demonstrate financial stability – a status that even the smallest alumni contributions can help to support. In many instances, alumni funding speaks clearly to other potential donors, said Spelman’s Alexis. “When we approach corporate donors, they often will ask, ‘What are your alumni contributing or what is your board contributing?’” she said. Strong alumni support shows corporate donors that those who have benefited from an institution continue to believe in and support its mission. Several companies offer matching gifts to colleges and universities, allowing alumni to double the impact of a contribution, she said. The keys to building successful alumni support are in identifying and targeting the community of support for a given institution, communicating the need for donations and maintaining contact over time, said Ernest B. Gutierrez, the program director of the Kresge Foundation, located in Troy, Mich., an organization devoted to strengthening communities by supporting nonprofit organizations. In 1999, Kresge launched a grant program that provided funds for five HBCUs to bolster their development offices and programs. Each of the five institutions – Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona, Fla.; Dillard University in New Orleans, La.; Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, N.C.; Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn.; and Xavier University in New Orleans, La. – received an average of $2 million. Seven other institutions that were fi nalists in the selection each received $100,000 grants. The grants were designed to help each university establish databases, purchase hardware and put in place the staff needed to raise money. All of these institutions were given goals for their programs to be achieved over five years, and they met these goals, Gutierrez said. “There is a great deal of wealth among HBCU alums,” Guitierrez said. “Historically, the thinking was that HBCU grads went primarily into fields like ministry, social work and other professions that do not pay high salaries. That’s not the case. HBCU grads are going into all professions. The myth that the wealth is not there has been put to rest.” Ultimately, of course, attracting support for HBCUs comes down to asking. When friends of Spelman alumna Darnita R. Killian see her name flashing on their caller IDs, they know that she’s just as likely to ask for money for Spelman as she is to say hello. For Killian, a member of the class of 1979, Spelman is a tradition. Her greatgreat-aunt graduated from Spelman in 1897 and since this time, 15 other family members have attended Spelman. Killian’s cousin currently enrolled in Spelman and is the 16th family member to attend the college. Killian majored in economics at Spelman and went on to earn an MBA from Clark Atlanta University and a doctorate from the University of San Francisco. She currently serves as vice president of student affairs at Pace University in New York. Killian started regularly giving to Spelman shortly after completing her MBA. “Spelman was such a life-changing and life-affirming experience for me,” she said. “I want to make sure that other young women have the same experience.” mba BlackMBA • Winter 2007/2008 33
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