By fostering relationships with College alumni, we build an engaged community while also advancing the philanthropic priorities of academic units. Our team is here to help you navigate alumni engagement efforts for your unit, and we have various resources to help.
Below, read about the ways our office can support your department or program with its alumni data, event planning, alumni volunteerism, and awards and recognition programs.
Accurate alumni data is the starting point for successful alumni engagement, and you can play an important role in ensuring our alumni data is precise and up-to-date.
College alumni identify with their home departments and programs, and often the best engagement we experience is when alumni connect at the departmental level.
All IU alumni data is managed in a system called Crimson, which is administered by the IU Foundation. The College organizes alumni lists for marketing efforts, and departments and programs can request access to their unit’s alumni data at any point.
Please note, however, that policies must be followed when this information is accessed. For instance, data cannot be shared with external partners or saved on a desktop computer or unencrypted drive. It is critical that all information be managed in Crimson, so “shadow databases” are strictly prohibited If you’d like to send a mailer to your alumni—for instance, to promote an event—read more about that process here.
To request a list of alumni for purposes other than direct marketing, please complete the form linked below.
Since many alumni reconnect through academic units, you can help us improve our alumni data. The lists provided by Crimson are only as good as the data that comprises them, so please help us maintain accurate information whenever possible.
Have you recently corresponded with one of your alumni and learned about something new in their life? A new e-mail address, for instance? A new job? A general update you think the university should know about?
Please share those updates via the form below.
Event attendance records go a long way in improving our communications efforts.
For instance, the College is currently collaborating with the IU Foundation and the IU Alumni Association on a new alumni dashboard, which will allow our office to provide granular, in-depth reports about alumni communications efforts. With accurate data, this dashboard will allow us to communicate more effectively with our alumni.
If you recently held an event and recorded attendance, please share that information via the form below.
We can help with the logistics of your event in several ways. If you’re planning a livestream, for instance—or planning to include a livestream option of an in-person event—we can help you organize this video feed and assist with technical questions. We frequently host online events (most notably, our Food for Thought series), so if you have any questions about technology for your own event, simply reach out to Director of Alumni Engagement Vanessa Cloe.
Is this your first time hosting this event and would you like you learn best practices? We can help with that, too. Our “Advancement Event Toolkit” includes an event planning tip sheet, a budget template, survey tips, and other advice.
If you’re planning an event and would like help identifying an alumni speaker, reach out to Director of Alumni Engagement Vanessa Cloe. Inviting alumni back to campus is one of the best ways that you can engage them.
Finally, if you’re planning an event outside of Bloomington and would like a list of local alumni, read about list requests above.
Similar to fulfilling alumni list requests, our office provides departments and programs with marketing support for their events, as well.
Read more about that in our Alumni Communications section.
Our office may be able to help you fund your alumni event. Thanks in large part to a donor’s generous gift, we recently launched an Alumni Engagement Grant Program, which supports alumni engagement activities in the College and its departments/programs.
Funding is also available for alumni events through units outside the College. For instance, the Women’s Philanthropy Circle, the Black Philanthropy Circle, and the Queer Philanthropy Circle all provide funds for various efforts that support their missions.
Alumni volunteerism plays a vital role in maintaining strong connections between graduates and the College, benefiting both students and our academic units.
From serving on unit-level alumni boards to mentoring current students through our Luminaries Program or the Walter Center, alumni can actively contribute to student success and reconnect with your unit in meaningful ways.
The College Luminaries Program connects accomplished alumni with ambitious undergraduates, offering mentorship and professional development opportunities that help students prepare for life after graduation.
Alumni can get involved by sharing their expertise, offering career guidance, and serving as role models for the next generation of leaders. This program provides alumni with a meaningful way to give back to the College and shape the future of their field. In return, students benefit from direct access to successful professionals, gaining valuable insights and building a network that can guide them on their path to success.
If you’re interested in learning more about this program—and encouraging your alumni to get involved—read more through the link below.
Creating an alumni advisory board offers academic units an incredible opportunity to engage alumni and strengthen connection to their department or program.
These boards require significant planning and organization, however, and academic units should carefully consider the purpose and function of a board before moving forward. Clear goals and expectations are essential for success.
If you are interested in learning more, or would like to explore the possibility of establishing an alumni board, contact Senior Director of Advancement Josh Lodolo or Director of Alumni Engagement Vanessa Cloe for guidance about best practices and next steps. Their expertise can help ensure the process is well-structured and aligned with your objectives.
The Walter Center for Career Achievement offers many ways for departments and programs to connect their alumni with students, facilitating professional development and mentoring opportunities.
Alumni can engage by joining the Walter Center Success Network, an exclusive platform for professional networking, or by serving as guest speakers at events like the annual Connect Conference and the Liberal Arts Impact series.
Additionally, alumni can participate in local networking events or recruit talented College students for internships and job opportunities. Academic units interested in strengthening these connections can work with the Walter Center to enhance their alumni engagement strategies.
Recognizing alumni achievements can deepen relationships and showcase your impact. Whether at the unit, College, or university level, we can help you navigate the nomination process and celebrate alumni success.
Consider thinking about alumni recognition in tiers. First, there’s unit-level recognition, which is purely at the discretion of your department/program. Several units offer distinguished alumni awards—the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences has a robust alumni awards program, for instance—and these can be especially functional as a kind of introductory award for alumni. To assist units in this effort, our office can also run a due diligence report on alumni.
Next, there’s College-level recognition. Departments can nominate their alumni for the College’s Distinguished Alumni Award, Outstanding Young Alumni Award, the Luminaries Program, or our annual "20 Under 40" list.
The College also recently introduced a Distinguished Alumni Scholar Award, which honors graduates of the College who, as faculty members at other colleges and universities, have advanced their fields through exceptional research, scholarship, creative activity, and/or teaching.
You can nominate alumni for any or all of these honors via the link below.
Finally, there’s university-level recognition. One of IU’s highest alumni honors is its Distinguished Alumni Service Award, which necessitates working closely with our office and submitting a variety of nomination materials to the IU Foundation and IU Alumni Association.
If you’re interested in nominating an alum for something even more significant than this—such as an honorary doctorate—that process requires even greater collaboration and coordination with our office, the College’s upper administration, and the university’s administration.
If you have any questions about alumni engagement, contact Director of Alumni Engagement Vanessa Cloe or Assistant Director of Alumni Engagement Haley Russ.
