Dec. 22, 1998
Contact: Ida Lee Wootten
(804) 924-6857


A Virtual Appeal
U.VA. HOPES CATCHY ON-LINE PAGE WILL STIR MEMORIES 
AS WELL AS ANNUAL GIVING AMONG NEW WAVE OF YOUNG ALUMNI

	Click here to give.  The University of Virginia Alumni
Association has launched an on-line giving page in the hope of
encouraging recent graduates to support their alma mater. 
	"The catalyst for creating the on-line giving page came from
recent graduates who serve on the Young Alumni Council," said Wayne
Cozart, associate director in the U.Va. Alumni Association.  "They felt
the site would encourage young alumni to give in a way that's
comfortable for them since so many are connected to the Internet and use
e-mail."
        To make the site appealing to young alumni well-versed in the
use of computer technology, U.Va. decided to go with bright graphics, a
simple, well-organized format -- and a trip down memory lane. 
         Visitors to the site see a person, surrounded by buckets of
paint, who appears to have just created a bright orange "Make Your Mark"
slogan on a royal blue Beta Bridge.  Painting the Rugby Road bridge to
mark special occasions has long been a tradition at the University, and
the scene is designed to stir those old undergraduate memories.	
        Colleges and universities recognize the potential of staying in
contact with young alumni and have begun to look for innovative ways to
create opportunities for building long-term relationships with them.
Young alumni will help to create the future for many schools. As
undergraduate classes have grown, the number of potential young donors
has increased significantly. At U.Va., for example, only about 500
undergraduate degrees were conferred in the 1956-57 school year.  Last
year, more than 3,000 undergraduate degrees were conferred. Fifty
percent of U.Va.'s 150,000 alumni graduated in the 1980s or earlier.  
	On-line giving is part of a growing trend in higher education
philanthropy.  Wake Forest has launched an on-line giving site, and Duke
University has one under construction, Cozart said, adding that he
believes U.Va.'s may be the first in the Commonwealth. 
	To get out the word about U.Va.'s new site, the University
Development Office mailed 
						MORE
2
brightly colored, paint-blotched brochures that ask the question:
"Remember what you could do with a can of paint?" This is followed by
the suggestion: "Do now with a pen or computer what you could do then
with a paintbrush." The bulk mailing was sent Dec. 7, shortly after the
Web site became operational, and already some alumni have made quick use
of the new technology. Graduates accessing the Web site --
http://www.alumni.virginia.edu/YoungAlum/ -- are encouraged to support
the University's $1 billion capital campaign by making an annual gift or
pledge on the site's "cyberform."
          The creation of the site has encouraged development officers
at the University to think differently about a number of things,
including traditional mail solicitations.  In the past, most
fund-raising appeals were letters tucked inside standard envelopes.
This year's brightly colored brochure within an envelope featuring
buckets of orange and blue paint represents a radical departure. "We
designed the envelope to be eye catching so that even if a graduate has
moved, someone will take the time, we hope, to indicate a forwarding
address," said Christine Knight, director of annual giving at the
University.	
             Although it is too early to predict the success of the
site, creation of the unusual direct mail piece represents yet another
change.
	In past years, each school at the University mailed its own
annual solicitations. Knight, Cozart and graduates on the
University-wide Annual Giving Advisory Board joined forces to help
development officers recognize the benefits of reaching young alumni
through one targeted mailing. The schools' development officers pooled
their resources and agreed to give it a try.	
           The brochure addresses several perceptions young alumni may
have about annual giving, Knight said.  "One perception alumni may have
in light of our $1 billion capital campaign is that the University's
emphasis is on large donations.  We wanted young alumni to know that any
annual contribution of any size and for any school or program is counted
in the campaign total.	
	 To bolster the gift-giving potential of the on-line site,
currently enrolled students are calling young alumni during December and
January phonathons. "We know phone contact stimulates higher giving
response than direct mail," Knight said. "This will help us find out how
responsive an electronic solicitation is."
						###

	For more information, contact Wayne Cozart at (804) 984-9242,
office; (804) 979-7747, home; or wdc9q@virginia.edu.  Christine Knight
can be reached at (804) 924-7306, office; (804) 971 6857, home; or
cck5c@virginia.edu.