Institutional Characteristics as the Key Predictor of Alumni Donations

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue V, May 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186

Institutional Characteristics as the Key Predictor of Alumni Donations

Emma Darkoaa Aikins, Akua Ahyia Adu-Oppong and Goddana Mensima Darko

College of Technology Education, Kumasi, University of Education, Winneba, Ghana

Abstract: – Alumni support for institutions of learning has gained much attention. A lot of views exist about the relationship between donation by alumni and the factors that induce donation. This article provides insight into the various determinants of donation and the key factors that prompt willingness to donate, readiness to donate and the actual act of donation. The views of several authors were examined, based on which the internal characteristics of institutions were found out as the most predominant determinant of donation. This article therefore recommends the solicitation of alumni donation through improvement of institutional characteristics that have a lasting and strong inducement on alumni’s propensity to donate to their alma mater.

I. INTRODUCTION

The rising cost of higher education has prompted the need for tertiary institutions to scout for alternative sources of funding. One of those sources of funding that has received greater attention is alumni donation. Alumni donation is philanthropic giving to an institution where the giver was educated. It is motivated by several factors that border on the characteristics of the giver, ability to give, readiness to give, willingness to give and perceptions of how well an institution deserves donations (Cunningham & Cochi-Ficano, 2002). According to Shim (2001), the propensity to donate also depends on the characteristics of the beneficiary institution, and is often indicated by their fund raising practices, degree of students involvement in institutional advancement, quality of relationship with former students and how well the institution prepares scholars for the world of work. Conflicting opinions exist about the impact of each variable on alumni giving. Perhaps, the background to alumni donations will shed further light on the most significant predictors of alumni giving and how institutions can strategise fund raising activities around those variables.

II. BACKGROUND OF ALUMNI DONATIONS

Philanthropic giving in support of higher education started as early as 1641 when the Massachusetts Bay Colony helped to raised 500 pounds to support Harvard College (Hawk, 2012). In 1792, the alumni of Yale University created a formal structure to link its former students to their alma mater for the purpose of alumni communications (Webb, 1989) as cited in Twum-Ampomah and Danso (2013).

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