Reaching Your Parents Fund Potential

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Reaching Your Parents Fund Potential

• Mount Holyoke College
• South Hadley, MA

• Kenyon College
• Gambier, OH

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Kenyon History and Background

• Funds raised by and from current parents and
  parents of alumni
• Four (4) written appeals,
• Follow up calling effort by Parents Advisory
  Council (PAC) volunteers
• Student phonathon
• Founded in 1972, the Parents Fund includes three
  major initiatives
• Senior Parent Challenge
• Freshman, sophomore, and junior class fundraising
• Parents of Alumni initiative
• Accounts for nearly one-quarter (1/4) of Kenyons
  Annual Funds, bringing in over 1,000,000 in
  recent years
• Raises unrestricted funds to help with everyday
  function and maintenance of the College,
  supporting various areas of campus life
• Kenyons fiscal year, July 1 through June 30,
  every year!

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Mount Holyoke History and Background

• Current parents and parents of alumnae
• 2 mail appeals annuallyFall/Winter and Spring
• Student PhonathonFall and Spring (10 days each
  season)
• Working to increase parent-to-parent cultivation
  and solicitation
• Senior parents are sometimes approached for
  Senior Gift initiative as an additional appeal
• Parents Fund is one part of the MHC Annual Fund,
  along with our Friends Fund.
• Parents Fund raises unrestricted funds fiscal
  year runs July 1-June 30
• Parent giving to all funds has increased by
  nearly 30 in new gifts and pledges since FY07
• In FY08, parents gave 878,672 in new gifts and
  pledges vs. 687,048 in FY 07

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Kenyon Goals and Achievements

• 2004-2005
• Goals 700,000 and 50 participation
• Year End 769,068 and 54 participation (14.2
  monetary increase over 03-04)
• 2005-2006
• Goals 850,000 and 55 participation
• Year End 885,436 and 53 participation (15.1)
• 2006-2007
• Goals 1,000,000 and 60 participation
• Year End 1,065,255 and 52 participation
  (20.3)
• 2007-2008
• Goals 1,125,000 and 55 participation
• Year End 1,197,681 and 53 participation
  (12.4)

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MHC Goals and Achievements

• 2004-2005
• 184,941 raised, goal has been set at 250,000
  for the past several years as we reach to achieve
  it.
• 2005-2006
• 235,075 raised
• 2006-2007
• 224,605 raised
• 2007-2008
• 250,000 raised

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KC Parents Advisory Council (PAC)The Executive
Branch of the Parents Association

• Group of 58 couples or parents
• ranges from freshman parents to parents of
  alumni (within five years of son or daughters
  graduation)
• Two year terms
• invited in freshman and junior years, majority of
  parents are invited back in junior year and serve
  a four year term
• Meet twice a year on campus
• October over Family Weekend and early April
• Fundraising responsibilities
• Assist with Parents Fund efforts through follow
  up calls, e-mails or letters throughout the year
• Lead donors to the Parents Fund
• act as role models during follow up
  communications

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MHC Parents Annual Fund Committee

• Group of 7 sets of parents, including our Annual
  Fund Chair who is a parent and an alumna
• Committee is made up of current parents and
  parents of alumnae
• Each committee serves on a two-year term, which
  can be extended
• Committee Chairs serve for two years and then
  become part of the committee if they wish most
  Committee Chairs start as daughter enters her
  second or third year
• Meet once a year on campus during Family
  Friends Weekend each Fall
• Committee leads donors to the Parents Fund by
  encouraging participation
• Committee members will send thank you notes as
  needed and author appeal letters when asked
• Committee members are available to parents who
  have questions about the Parents Fund throughout
  the year

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Kenyon PAC Challenge!

• Implemented 5 years ago, the PAC Challenge is a
  collection of pledges made by PAC members to
  raise current parent participation rates. It is
  completely voluntary and usually an additional
  gift to the Parents Fund.
• Through the student phonathon, current parents
  hear that the Parents Advisory Council has
  pledged an additional X amount of money, if the
  Parents Fund reaches X percentage current
  parent participation.
• Whether the parent contributes 5, 500, or
  5,000, PAC will kick in the additional challenge
  total if and/or when the participation percentage
  is reached
• SUCCESS!
• Parent participation went from 26 in the 01-02
  year to 41 in the 02-03 year, the first year
  PAC Challenge was implemented
• In 03-04, current parent participation
  increased from 41 to 46
• 46 to 54 in 2004-2005, where it has stayed for
  the past three years.

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Engaging Parents as Volunteers Kenyon

• How it helps motivate to raise funds

• Sub Committees

• Academic Advising
• Advising and Career Development
• Parents Fund and Resource
• Public Affairs and Admissions
• Student Affairs

• Engages parents in other aspects of the college
  besides just fundraising
• Place to express opinion or concern about an area
  of the college and have it heard and taken into
  account
• They are used as a resource in all areas of
  college life
• Useful during fundraising calls to other parents
  as ambassadors of the college

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Kenyon On and Off Campus Events for Parents and
Donors

• Leadership Giving Appreciation Breakfast over
  Family Weekend
• Donors of 1,000 and up
• Leadership Giving Appreciation events
• Once a year in different cities each year
• Admissions Winter Receptions for prospective
  students and parents
• Held in 13 cities across the US
• Learning in the Company of Friends events
• September through May, different cities each
  month
• Alumni and Parent Program events
• APP events are open to all parents, current and
  past
• Regional Parent Association events
• Parents are invited to any regional event
• Burton D. Morgan Lecture Series

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MHC Parent Events

• Family Friends Weekend in the Fall
• Reception at the Presidents House
• Regional events at venues and parent homes
• San Francisco, Boston, Brooklyn over the past
  couple of years
• All Community events related to the campaign
• Campaign Gala in NYC as a regional kickoff
• Our hope is to expand regional events and bring
  faculty/college leadership on the road

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Potential of the Past Parent at Kenyon

• Initiative started in 2004 by graduating PAC
  members and Annual Giving staff
• At the end of 04-05 889 past parents donated
  over 200,000
• In 05-06, 910 donors for 232,000
• 06-07 974 past parents gave over 320,000
• 07-08 over 1,000 past parents gave
  approximately 347,000

• Kenyon continues to work with a group of parents
  of alumni through the PAC to engage and motivate
  past parents to give to Kenyon
• One P of A is chair of the initiative,
  attending bi-annual PAC meetings, setting goals,
  and guiding other past parent PAC members
• Goal for longevity of program enlist one
  parent/couple on PAC to stay on for five years

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Kenyons Student Phonathon

• Student phonathon workers call past parents and
  current parents throughout the year
• PAC members spend a portion of April meeting
  making follow up calls from campus
• Current parents are usually called after PAC
  meetings, if the PAC Challenge is in effect
• Past Parents called in January and February

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MHC Phonathon

• Current parents and parents of alumnae are
  included
• Two sessions typically held in October/November
  and March/April for approximately 10 days each
  session
• Parents with targets up to 2500 are called by
  students during the Phonathon
• Leadership donors are handled by me or the major
  gifts officer assigned to the parent

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Other Volunteer Options for Parents at Kenyon

• Parents who dont want to sit on PAC are also
  welcome to volunteer as Regional Association
  Parent Chairs
• Regional Association chairs are asked to assist
  in any regional events for current students,
  prospective students and parents, and/or alumni
• Kenyon parents open up their homes for
  prospective student winter receptions through the
  Office of Admissions
• The Career Development Center offers an extern
  program for students frequently parents
  volunteer to have a student shadow him/her at the
  work place

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MHC Annual Fund Scholars Program

• Any donor of 10,000 can become part of our AFSP
• Donor is connected to a student who he is
  essentially sponsoring for that academic year
• Student writes a letter to donor thanking him as
  a stewardship piece
• AFSP luncheon each Spring that brings the student
  and donor together to meet
• Often these relationships continue beyond the
  single year
• Works to keep major donors connected with campus
  and student life
• Especially works for parents of alumnae who no
  longer have a student on campus

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MHC Parents Fund Future

• Increase committee involvement in fund and campus
  activities/departments
• Increase size of committee and activities
  throughout the year
• Increase Parents Fund participation and dollars
  (of course!)
• Hold additional events on-campus and regionally
• Customize cultivation/solicitation by parent
  group (first year, second year, parents of
  alumnae, etc.)

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Thank you and safe travels Jessica Kansas Annie
Higby Ellsworth