At SimpsonScarborough, we are often hired to conduct alumni engagement studies. These are projects designed to help a college or university understand how to get their alumni to reconnect with the institution. We've tested all kinds of engagement opportunities from online chats to trips around the world to meet-ups at local bars. Our research for multiple institutions has shown us that alumni don’t need as much help connecting socially. They seem to be able to keep up with their college friends without support from their alma mater. But they do tend to be interested in sponsored activities that allow them to relive the academic side of their college days.
The Stanford+Connects program offered by Stanford University is a perfect example. Alums from the Washington, DC area will have an opportunity to hear from Stanford’s president, John Hennessy, who is retiring next year and has been noted recently for his comments on the future of higher ed. They’ll also have the opportunity to listen to micro-lectures on topics such as gender and leadership, international relations with Russia, infectious disease, and marriage equality. The site that supports these events (which happen all over the country and the world) allows you to immediately check out who is registered; 91 people registered in DC within one day of receiving the invite via email. That’s alumni engagement at its finest.