This session will focus on strategies for building and sustaining affinity networks that foster community, amplify alumni voices, and increase engagement across diverse demographics. Participants will explore how to align affinity networks with the institution's goals while ensuring they foster a culture of inclusion and belonging.

In this session, you'll hear Board members, alumni volunteers, and professional staff share how they've participated in focused, solutions-based workgroups to take a deep dive into specific opportunities or challenges in alumni engagement. From how alumni can support business strategy development to deepening connections with former Board members — you'll learn how to harness the collective energy and experience of volunteers to advance strategic priorities and initiatives. You'll also gain a better understanding of how alumni/volunteers feel about the sort of "roll-up-your-sleeves" work.

How can you elevate cherished alumni traditions and allow room for fresh experiences? Learn how Denison University reimagined its reunion experience with enhanced technology, fresh programming, and record-breaking participation. Explore how Macalester College brought its 150th anniversary to life, connecting a global alumni base with fresh twists on existing programming, new ways of storytelling, and ample opportunities to celebrate. Join us to learn about the process from concept creation through execution including planning, communication, events, and more. You’ll walk away with actionable insights and ideas to help you transform your own campus events into unforgettable celebrations.

Get ready to learn from giving day experts! Join Emily Berry and Lola Mauer, the masterminds behind Miami University’s #MoveInMiami and Ball State University’s One Ball State Day, whose campaigns have collectively earned nearly 100 CASE awards. Discover the tips, tricks, and strategies that have made these institutions leaders in the giving day space. You’ll learn how to rally your campus community, maximize donations, and gain inspiration to elevate or launch your own giving day. Whether you're looking to boost your current campaign or exploring why a giving day is a smart investment, this session will provide you with actionable insights and proven strategies for success. Come prepared for a fun, informative, and motivating session that will empower you to make a real impact on your next giving day!

What are the building blocks of engaging content creation? They're not what you might expect. This session explores how to create environments that set the stage for bold ideas and big results. We’ll focus on actionable strategies within your control, whether you’re leading a team or creating content yourself. Leave energized and ready to transform your content strategy with practical techniques that maximize your existing resources.

How can volunteerism fuel lifelong connections and lead to transformational giving? In this interactive session, we’ll explore data-driven strategies to enhance volunteer engagement and recognition, connecting these efforts to philanthropy. Whether you're running a small program or managing a large alumni network, you’ll discover adaptable tools and tactics to build meaningful volunteer experiences that inspire deeper relationships and drive financial support. You will learn how to leverage data to identify engagement gaps and opportunities, create personalized recognition strategies that resonate with volunteers, and connect volunteerism to the donor pipeline, transforming alumni involvement into impactful giving. Through case studies, discussions, and actionable exercises, you’ll leave equipped to build a volunteer program that not only engages but also fosters a culture of giving. Ready to transform volunteerism into philanthropy? This session is for you.

Affinity Groups. This tried-and-true engagement strategy has yielded big results at many institutions. But they can run the spectrum in both investment and results. Do you create a mini alumni association, or do you simply try to harness the momentum formed by organic groups? We will look at pro's and con's for each method, when each would be appropriate, the opportunity for a blended approach, and best practices for these powerful programs.

Discover how to transform unassigned prospects into engaged donors through strategic relationship management. This session will showcase how to keep potential donors "warm" by ensuring ongoing communication, even without immediate assignment to a relationship manager. Additionally, we'll explore the rapid growth of Illinois Tech’s regional events program, driven by targeted outreach using geographic mapping tools, which has significantly increased alumni participation nationwide.
We'll also touch on how integrating key engagement forms into their platform has streamlined volunteer management and improved data capture, enabling more effective alumni engagement.

Are you looking to build relationships between seemingly disconnected teams? Join the Northwestern Alumni Association to learn how to bridge the gap between gift officers and engagement professionals through event programming that draws both donors and alumni who have not yet given. We will share information on the development and creation of events that span a variety of topics and formats and how our shared priorities have led to success for both engagement goals and giving targets. Additionally, attendees will learn how to cultivate meaningful and long-lasting relationships with gift officers.

As the national trend of declining donor counts continues, many institutions are ramping up engagement and acquisition efforts to attract new prospective donors. But increased data collection like this can often lead to differing schools of thought between the engagement professionals who seek to grow the donor pipeline and IT/data partners who aim to protect data integrity. What are the right pieces of data to collect? How can data quality be protected? At what point does data collection hinder a positive customer experience? Is there such a thing as too much data? This session will show how Ohio State Advancement has taken a collaborative approach to working through these questions and more by bringing the two business areas together to develop solutions.
Key topics will include:
• How to align teams, practices, and goals.
• How to determine the right data points to ensure quality data while collecting engagement data to build and strengthen the fundraising pipeline.
• How to select the right data collection tools for varying types of engagement opportunities.
• How to tell the story of how engagement and acquisition data impacts the long-term health of an organization.