A Timeline of Success

Ernie Trimble \u2748, who has served as an Air Force captain, legislator, magistrate, chief judge and attorney, received the School of Law\u27s Star Award for longtime service to his alma mater

Evaluating Alumni Perceptions of Reciprocity with Their Alma Mater

A reciprocal relationship is based on a mutual exchange of goods, services, and support. Within the work of an alumni relations office, building and facilitating reciprocity between alumni and their alma mater summarizes the work. However, stereotypically, the relationship an alumnus/alumna has with their alma mater would not be described as reciprocal. Rather, it may be seen as single-sided, the university constantly asking alumni for their time, talent, and treasure. Thus, this qualitative, exploratory study utilized alumni interviews to determine the perception alumni have of their relationship with their alma mater. The study results suggest alumni do perceive their relationship with their alma mater as reciprocal and view the alumni relations office as the connector between the respective parties. Additionally, the findings allude to the interpretation of reciprocal offerings, the social impact alumni desire to provide, and the influence of brand communities on the relationship

Alma Mater

Scan of the text of a college alma materhttps://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/mcchesney_documents/1005/thumbnail.jp

An Examination of the Impact of Student Loan Debt on Alumni Giving

This study examined the effect of student loan debt on alumni’s willingness and ability to donate to their alma mater, including other identity-based motivating factors associated with an alumnus’ decision whether or not to donate. Participants of this study were recent (2015-2020) graduates of a doctoral program in the healthcare field in the Midwest, and were purposefully selected to answer questions regarding their income, loan debt, decision to give in monetary or non-monetary ways, and financial literacy education/financial preparedness. Data were gathered from virtual interviews that were transcribed and coded for emergent themes. The findings revealed that the majority of the participants did not donate to their alma mater and the most frequently cited reasons for not donating were high student loan debt, low disposable income, poor experience at their alma mater, and no longer feeling connected to their alma mater. The authors of this study also explored whether lack of financial literacy education at the study institution correlated to alumni’s lack of financial knowledge, financial preparedness, and high amounts of student loan debt