California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) is a young institution, only 34 years old. The majority of our alumni have graduated in the last decade, which makes fundraising unique and challenging. Even so, our giving day has grown in dollars and participation year-over-year. In 2023, we added a new facet to our giving day by including fundraising for student-led organizations. We believe that engaging students in giving day and fundraising will provide a long-term benefit when they become alumni. And young alumni likely feel a strong affinity for the activities they participated in as students. For the first time, we introduced project pages on the giving day site for each participating student group; these pages highlight their unique causes and needs. Leading up to the campaign, we actively promoted this new opportunity by presenting at numerous student organization. Students became ambassadors for their organizations by creating their cases for support and sharing their unique URLs, all while keeping up with their academics and extracurricular activities. The initiative was met with overwhelming enthusiasm, and 21 diverse student organizations participated, ranging from Minecraft Club to the Men's Lacrosse Club. Together, they remarkably achieved $33,118 raised via 472 gifts received in just 24 hours. This initiative not only provided a platform for these organizations to showcase their passion and needs but also brought our community together in support of their incredible efforts.
From the Judges
We were impressed by the involvement of student clubs and organizations and the ability to engage what can be a more challenging audience. We thought the overall concept and strategy were effective.
