College Alumni-Giving Rates Manipulated

Controversy is growing over the reporting of alumni-giving rates at colleges and universities, with critics concerned that numbers are misleading and institutions are undermining alumni relations, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Colleges and universities use a host of methods to boost rates of alumni giving: counting seniors as alumni donors, urging alumni to donate as little as $1, and not tracking down contact information for non-donating alumni. Alumni who do not keep their alma maters apprised of their current addresses are less likely to give, and thus lower institutions’ alumni-giving rates.

According to the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, the percentage of alumni giving to their alma maters has decreased from 16.7 percent in 1996, to 12.4 percent in 2005, even though the average donation has increased.

The reason behind this scramble to boost rates mostly likely includes the high-profile U.S. News & World Report annual survey on college rankings. Giving rates make up 5 percent of an institution’s score on the survey, which can lead to corporate and foundation grants. College trustees have also been pressuring fund-raising officials to meet goals for alumni giving, rather than total dollars raised.

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