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Opening Slide

ENGAGING LOW-INCOME AND FIRST GENERATION ALUMNI ACROSS THE UC SYSTEMDeanna Berg, Director of Constituent PartnershipsUniversity of California Office of the Presidentdeanna.berg@ucop.edu

AGENDA

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1 OBJECTIVES

2 BACKGROUND

3 CHALLENGES

4 ENGAGING UC ALUMNI

5 WRAP-UP

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Opening Slide

OBJECTIVES

OBJECTIVES

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Create space for dialogue and networking on the role of alumni in closing the degree gap for low-income and first

generation communities

Highlight alumni engagement strategies

from the 10 campus UC system

Inspire alumni engagement in your own programs

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Opening Slide

BACKGROUND

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Why is alumni engagement important to you?

DISCUSSION QUESTION

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The University of California has over

2 million living degree holders.

To enrich the lives of alumni and engage them as volunteers, advocates, and contributors who strengthen the University of California.

OUR MISSION

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TOTAL UC ALUMNI OVER TIME

6Campuses have doubled

the number of alumni since 2000

34%Increase 2001-2017

48%Increase 2001-2025

20171,998,881

20252.6M projected

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CAMPUS TRENDS

0 20 40 60 80

Berkeley

Davis

Irvine

UCLA

Merced

Riverside

San Diego

Santa Barbara

Santa Cruz

% of Pell Recipients

2006 2015

0 20 40 60 80 100

Berkeley

Davis

Irvine

UCLA

Merced

Riverside

San Diego

Santa Barbara

Santa Cruz

% of First Gen Students

2006 2015

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Across all UC’s

37%qualify for pell

grants

Across all UC’s

41%are first gen

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How are we realizing the alumni mission for low-income and first generation UC graduates?

What work is still needed?

What can Constituent Engagement do to support campus efforts?

BIG QUESTIONS

Alumni DirectorsFirstGen Leaders

Diversity Program Leaders

32 total interviewsacross

10 campuses

• Staffing• Current efforts• Data collection• Collaborative efforts• 3 Wishes• UCOP support needs

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• Majority of campuses have alumni staff positions with specific duties related to diverse alumni engagement.

• Most UC campuses are focused on the broad umbrella of “diverse” alumniengagement due to staff capacity, the complexity of intersectional identities, and a lack of demographic data.

• Securing accurate data to identify low-income and FirstGen alumni is one of the biggest challenges to this work, but there are many others.

• There is a significant amount of collaboration occurring between alumni and student programs to increase impact.

• Across the UC, there are many emerging initiatives to engage diverse and FirstGen alumni with each other and with students from similar backgrounds.

HIGH LEVEL

Opening Slide

CHALLENGES

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MOST IDENTIFIED CHALLENGES

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Limited capacity

Siloed departments

Inaccurate or missing

data

Socializing students to alumni role

Unfavorable student

experiences

Affinity to specific

programs

Alumni needs vs. student needs

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How are these challenges similar to your own?

What challenges would you add to the list?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

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Opening Slide

ENGAGING UC ALUMNI

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COMMON ALUMNI ASSOCIATION ACTIVITIES

Partnering with student programs to bring

diverse and FirstGen alumni to campus

Expanding chapters and offering networking

opportunities for culturally and ethnically

diverse alumni

Launching online platforms for

alumni-to-alumni and alumni-to-student

networking / mentoring

Ensuring alumni office presence at events

that draw diverse and FirstGen

students/alumni

Making intentional invitations to diverse and

FirstGen alumni for events and leadership

roles

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FirstGen/Diversity leaders work with the Alumni Office to:

• Request alumni speakers• Invite alumni to events• Develop mentor programs

COLLABORATING TO SUPPORT CURRENT STUDENTS

ALUMNI OFFICES COLLABORATEWITH A LARGE CROSS SECTION OF STUDENT PROGRAMS:

• Student Groups • Ethnic and Multicultural

Centers/Departments/Programs• Transfer Student Center • Campus First Gen leaders• Career Center • LGBTQ centers and programs• Dean of Undergraduate Education• Undergraduate Admissions • EOP • Women’s Center • Diversity and Outreach • Veterans

Future collaboration will focus on:

• Data sharing

• Socializing FirstGen students to the alumni role before graduation

• Expanding mentoring and networking opportunities specific to low-income and FirstGen alumni and students

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LEVERAGING ALUMNI IDENTITIES

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DEVELOPING FOCUSED ALUMNI NETWORKS

• Social and professional engagement• Community outreach• Mentorship opportunities• Awareness and education• Scholarships for students• Advocate on behalf of first generation students 

and graduates• Foster connections 

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ENGAGING ALUMNI AS ADVOCATES

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LAUNCHING ONLINE MENTORING PLATFORMS

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BRINGING ALUMNI TO CAMPUS

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SUPPORTING FIRST GEN PARENTS

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SUPPORTING PROMISE COMMUNITIES

$940,750Alumni contributions for UC-Oakland Promise

scholarships

300+UC alumni and employees

registered as Oakland Promise mentors

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If you currently engage alumni:

• What are some of your current strategies?

• What else would you like to do?

If you are not yet engaging alumni:

• What strategies are you thinking about for the future?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Opening Slide

WRAP UP

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What is one action step you’ll take towards alumni engagement?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Opening Slide

THANK YOU!

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