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I will not give to my alma mater. I was a student and they required me to pay out-of-state tuition at the same time they wanted to claim me as a resident for Census purposes. I voted there, got my driver's license there, paid taxes there, worked there, BOUGHT A HOUSE there, etc. When I graduated I "suddenly" because a resident. Either I'm a resident or I'm not. My tuition was $26,500/year compared to about $9,800 for in-state at the time. I give my required donation to get football season tickets but outside of that not a penny.
Give the amount that you are comfortable with!
Don't compare yourself to others.
^^^^That. Who cares what other people want to give or don't? Everybody has different experiences and different goals and different resources and different priorities!
I give some $ to one school I attended that I look on fondly. I don't give to another I attended because, well, just because. You're you, do what makes sense to you.
At my school when I left the professors had been without a contract for two years, student services was cut, but administration had hired more and all received their raises.
I feel no need to donate anything given over spending on administration (a leading factor in the large increases of tuition over the years).
If they trimmed administration, increased value for students... I'd have a different opinion.
so...we've reached a point in our lives that we can give back to our wonderful university. My company matches gifts and I want to give. So I've been giving...and every year they call.
How much is enough? I don't think my name will be on any of the buildings anytime soon....but...
I budget to give. I appreciate the opportunity to give. I feel good about giving....but sometimes I feel it's not enough...but I'm not sure what the basis is?
What do you give back to your school? (if any)
Donate to a place you paid a lot of money to attend - makes no sense to me, never will.
I give $50 to both my grad and undergrad schools. Since my company matches and I get a tax writeoff, I effectively pay $80 and the schools get $200. I think that's quite fair for a quality education I got at both schools.
Donate to a place you paid a lot of money to attend - makes no sense to me, never will.
You might have paid a lot of money to attend, but you didn't pay even close to the benefits you received. Universities cannot run on tuition dollars alone - even if every single person paid full tuition. In fact, only about a quarter of the operating budget comes from tuition and state support. See: University of Michigan Funding: A Snapshot In UMich's case, a ton of money comes from their athletics. At most schools, athletics programs actually cost the university more than they benefit (especially true of smaller schools). I don't have a handy graph for my alma mater, but I can tell you that gifts make up a much larger piece of the pie.
I went to a top tier private school on a full tuition scholarship (the only way I would have gone to any college - just happy I was able to swing it at one so reputable!) and feel obligated to pay that forward. I can't afford to give much, but I do give a little every month so I don't feel it and give back by volunteering (college career centers are always looking for mentors for students to talk about office culture, go over resumes, practice interviews, talk about career paths, etc), speaking at student events, and giving admissions interviews. One day, I hope to be able to contribute more financially.
In addition to having pride and being grateful for my school, giving impacts participation points. It's typically not the SIZE of the donation that rankings use, but the participation level from alumni giving. Say what you want about things like US News and World Report, but many prospective students DO use those numbers.
More importantly, many grant-offering organizations (foundations, companies, etc) look at alumni giving participation rates to determine if they will give a grant to the university for research or other programs. If the alumni base won't invest in their alma mater, why should an outside organization?
Of course it's all a personal choice. But be honest about not giving - and saying that you already paid (when in fact, you effectively got a "hidden scholarship" in the form of prior alumni and friends' donations) isn't the entire story. Just say you don't want to give and let that be the end of it.
Having worked for a Community College I wouldnt donate a single red cent. They (and Uni's) get plenty from the Feds and arent good stewards of it in the slightest. Admin's make 3x professor salary, when all they do is sit in meetings all day and travel to Hawaii for "training." No Im not making that up. Just look at FSCJ and Wallace. He got CAUGHT. They rest of the cronies just hide it well.
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Who cares what other people want to give or don't? Everybody has different experiences and different goals and different resources and different priorities!
