ORI GIN AL PA PER

Investigating Philanthropy Initiatives in ChineseHigher Education

Chiu-I Sung

� International Society for Third-Sector Research and The Johns Hopkins University 2014

Abstract Chinese public education have long been considered to be part of the

social safety net, but this safety net is no longer sufficient for today’s higher edu-

cation needs. The recent worldwide economic recession, the increasing cost of

operation of higher education, decreasing enrollments, and government budget cuts

have prompted administrators to act aggressively. This study selected a public

institution in Asia Pacific–Pacific region to assess its fundraising practice, strategy,

and accountability. This university is one of the few institutions in the region that

successfully initiated a fundraising practice. The study found that establishing an

appropriately staffed professional fundraising office is an important step. Preferably,

these officers should be hired from the business and non-academic sectors. Work-

shops and job training should be offered rigorously. The university must set a clear

fundraising goal, and the fundraisers must possess strong marketing and commu-

nication skills, understand their products, academic needs, and be able construct

social networks in Asia Pacific.

Resume L’enseignement public chinois a longtemps ete considere comme un filet

de securite sociale, mais ce systeme de protection n’est plus suffisant pour les

besoins de l’enseignement superieur actuel. La recente recession economique

mondiale, la hausse du cout de l’enseignement superieur, la diminution des

inscriptions et les compressions budgetaires du gouvernement ont incite les ad-

ministrateurs a agir energiquement. Cette etude a selectionne un etablissement

public dans la region Asie Pacifique pour evaluer sa pratique de collecte de fonds, sa

strategie et sa responsabilisation. Cette universite est l’une des rares institutions

dans la region a avoir instaure avec succes une pratique de collecte de fonds.

L’etude a revele que la creation d’un bureau de collecte de fonds compose de

C.-I Sung (&)

Graduate School of Educational Administration and Evaluation, University of Taipei, Taipei,

Taiwan

e-mail: dr.csung@gmail.com

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DOI 10.1007/s11266-014-9509-3

personnes competentes est une etape importante. Ces agents devraient venir, de

preference, du personnel du secteur des entreprises et du secteur non universitaire.

Des ateliers et des formations professionnelles devraient etre proposes rigoureuse-

ment. L’universite doit fixer un objectif clair pour la collecte de fonds et les col-

lecteurs de fonds posseder de solides competences en communication et marketing,

comprendre leurs produits, les besoins scolaires et pouvoir etablir des reseaux so-

ciaux en Asie Pacifique.

Zusammenfassung Das offentliche Bildungswesen in China wird seit langem als

Bestandteil des sozialen Sicherheitsnetzes betrachtet; doch genugt dieses Siche-

rheitsnetz den heutigen Anforderungen der Hochschulbildung nicht mehr. Die

kurzliche globale wirtschaftliche Rezession, die steigenden Betriebskosten der

Hochschulbildung, ein Ruckgang bei den Immatrikulationen und die Mittelkurz-

ungen seitens der Regierung haben die Verwaltungsstellen zu einer aggressiven

Vorgehensweise veranlasst. In dieser Studie betrachtete man eine offentliche Ein-

richtung in der Asien-Pazifik/Pazifik-Region und untersuchte deren Praktiken,

Strategie und Rechenschaftspflicht im Zusammenhang mit der Mittelbeschaffung.

Die betreffende Universitat ist eine der wenigen Einrichtungen in der Region, die

erfolgreich eine Methode der Mittelbeschaffung eingeleitet hat. In der Studie kam

man zu dem Ergebnis, dass die Grundung eines angemessen besetzten profession-

ellen Amtes zur Mittelbeschaffung einen wichtigen Schritt darstellt. Vorzugsweise

sollten Mitarbeiter aus wirtschaftlichen und nicht-akademischen Bereichen ein-

gestellt werden. Workshops und Ausbildung sollten konsequent angeboten werden.

Die Universitat muss ein klares Spendenziel setzen, und die Mittelbeschaffer

mussen uber sehr gute Marketing- und Kommunikationsfahigkeiten verfugen, ihre

Produkte und akademischen Bedurfnisse verstehen und in der Lage sein, soziale

Netzwerke im asiatisch-pazifischen Raum aufzubauen.

Resumen Se ha considerado desde hace mucho tiempo que la educacion publica

china forma parte de la red de seguridad social, pero esta red de seguridad ya no es

suficiente para las elevadas necesidades educativas de la actualidad. La recesion

economica mundial reciente, el creciente coste de funcionamiento de la educacion

superior, las decrecientes matrıculas y los recortes presupuestarios del gobierno han

obligado a los administradores a actuar agresivamente. El presente estudio selec-

ciono una institucion publica en la region Asia Pacıfico-Pacıfico para evaluar sus

practicas de recaudacion de fondos, su estrategia y su rendicion de cuentas. La

presente universidad es una de las pocas instituciones en la region que inicio sat-

isfactoriamente una practica de recaudacion de fondos. El estudio encontro que el

establecimiento de una oficina de recaudacion de fondos profesional con personal

apropiado es un paso importante. Preferiblemente, estos funcionarios deben ser

contratados en los sectores empresariales y no academicos. Deben ofrecerse talleres

y formacion laboral de manera rigurosa. La universidad debe establecer un objetivo

de recaudacion de fondos claro, y los recaudadores de fondos deben poseer fuertes

habilidades de marketing y comunicacion, comprender sus productos, las necesid-

ades academicas y deben poder construir redes sociales en Asia Pacıfico.

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Keywords Higher education � Fundraising � Development � Asia Pacific �Philanthropy

Introduction

For a long time, most Asians have not been as keen as Americans to make donations

to education, particularly higher education. The primary reason is a lack of a socio-

cultural practice of donating to schools (Tang 2001), and as a result, the fundraising

revenue of many universities is not sufficient to replenish institution resources. In

recent years, except for a few universities that have received donations from large

enterprises, the fund-raising effort of all other schools has been weak and ineffective

(Sung 2011), perhaps because the general public believes that the state should to be

responsible for education, which makes it difficult for domestic universities to

substantially scale up fundraising (Lin 2011).

Regional differences, institution size, and academic disciplines seem to have a

significant impact on the fundraising success of universities around the world. In

Taiwan, among the 163 substantial donations over approximately $35,000 USD

reported in the news, both donations and recipients are concentrated in the northern

region (Yang 2007). Lai et al. (2011) conducted a statistical analysis of 103

universities in 2004–2008, finding that the larger the institution was, the greater the

private donations were. Sung (2011) found that fundraising at schools that specialize

in arts and humanities and social sciences is the most difficult, and comparatively,

alumni in engineering and business are more likely to donate in Asia Pacific. An

overview of the relevant literature indicated that there are abundant cases of

successful fundraising in US universities. However, there are political, economic,

social, and cultural differences among countries. Regarding Asia Pacific, there have

been only a few studies using questionnaires to analyze the donor attitudes or

institution fundraising strategies and performance. In a small number of other

studies, in-depth interviews were conducted to understand fundraising efforts and

strategies. There is still no in-depth, empirical case study on an actual fundraising

mechanism, and operational situations. Perhaps as a legacy of Confucian thought,

many individuals do not wish their good deeds to be known, and the research on

fundraising at many schools seems limited. It is difficult for researchers to obtain

institution permission to conduct field studies on fundraising, which has hindered

the progress of empirical research on educational fundraising practices in Asia

Pacific and reduced opportunities for mutual learning.

Therefore, this study selected a national university located in a metropolitan area

and used case studies, observations, and interviews to understand the case

institution’s fundraising mechanisms and experience. The study’s purpose was to

investigate the fundraising performance of one institution in the context of the

overall higher education environment of financial hardship, to conduct a case study

to develop an in-depth understanding of higher education fundraising and its

circumstances, to collect first-hand data on fundraising strategies in Asia Pacific

higher education, and to gradually establish research data on regional educational

charity. The following research questions were studied: (1) What was the case study

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institution’s fundraising mechanism? What was the institution’s operational

situation with respect to fundraising? (2) What strategies can be improved to attain

the level of advanced American educational charity strategies?

Literature Review

In the context of the global economic malaise, world-renowned universities are

increasingly relying on fundraising performance, particularly in the United States.

The words ‘‘development’’ and ‘‘fundraising’’ are synonyms in the United States.

Successful fundraising heralds a successful university. The following sections

discuss the fundraising mechanisms and the roles and the training of fundraising

staff in higher education in Asia Pacific countries and the United States.

Higher Education Fundraising Mechanisms

An international trend was observed in which the higher education fundraising

mechanism stressed the division of labor and cooperation within the organization

and continuous development toward a professional and independent fundraising

organization. Fundraising organizations change their fundraising practice according

to an institution’s conditions and development as well as the external environment.

Three types of fundraising models are introduced here. I began the discussion with

fundraising model of top public universities in Asia Pacific, followed by fundraising

model of top public universities in the United States, then the volunteer-based

fundraising model for religious universities in the United States.

Model of Asia Pacific Public Universities with a Competitive Advantage

in Academics

In the mid-1990s, government agencies proposed that fundraising should be

function of the Research and Development Office at the selected Chinese region of

study, and divisions such as alumni liaison, public relations, social resources,

integrated planning, government resources, cooperative education, and the promo-

tion of education were established to improve efficiency through the division of

labor. Currently, university fundraising is not necessarily the responsibility of the

Research and Development Office. Instead, other institution administrative units are

responsible for the main fundraising effort, such as the Resource Development Unit

of the Financial Management Department, the Public Relations Resource Group of

the Office of the Secretary of the President, the alumni association, the Public

Affairs Office, and Alumni Services and Resources Development. This organiza-

tional mode has introduced a professional management prototype for fundraising.

However, this fundraising market is not yet mature compared to their US

counterparts. The division of fundraising activities in many Asia Pacific universities

is unclear, and there is a serious shortage of staff manpower (Sheu 2009). For

instance, in China, certain instructors must often assume responsibility for

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fundraising and admission. Thus, professional skills are frequently misplaced,

capacity is insufficient, and meeting demands are difficult.

Fundraising Model of America’s Top Public University

The researcher of this study conducted field interviews at the University of

Michigan, Ann Arbor (UM). UM have intensive fundraising networks and a

decentralized administration, including an Event Team, a Stewardship Team, a

Marketing and Communications Team, a Web Team, and a Student Recruitment

and Scholarship Office. The fundraising office is an organization of external or

internal supporting staff and is evaluated for its performance accountability. The

large US universities often have a central fundraising office and their academic

liaisons (Sung 2011). Compared with most Asia Pacific universities, the US

universities are more flexible in personnel recruitment and the use of funding with

sufficient manpower (Sheu 2009). Professional fundraising human resources

provide more flexibility in adapting to the changes of the overall economic

environment and can promote systematic fundraising that targets the clear goal of

the institution’s academic development. Entrepreneurial thinking contributes to

efficient fundraising efforts.

Volunteer-based Fundraising for a Religious University

Volunteer-based fundraising is one fundraising method. Southern Methodist

University (SMU) is a small, private Christian college. SMU institution has a large

fundraising group of over 500 volunteers, and its volunteer organizations are a

pyramid with 15 prestigious individuals at the top who form the Campaign

Leadership Council, which is responsible for donations of more than $1 million

USD. The second layer consists of the Campaign Steering Committee Co-chairs,

who are distributed across the United States, and more than 23 special committees

that seek to attract volunteers to participate and determine priority needs and the

fundraising strategy. The bottom layer is the Campaign Volunteers, who engage in

or assist in the actual fundraising (Southern Methodist University 2012a, b). The

Soochow University in Taiwan adapted this model for their development practice.

Soochow University also had sent a few staff to get onsite training at SMU during

the presidency of Winston Hsiao-Tzu Chang (Interview with former Soochow

University fundraiser 2014).

Role of a Fundraiser in the US

Worth and Asp (1994) divided the roles of the fundraising office members into

salesman, catalyst, manager, and leader. Kelly (1995) proposed four conceptual

interpretations of the roles: communication facilitator, expert prescriber, problem-

solving facilitator, and communication technician. The communication facilitator is

the intermediary and agent between schools and potential donors, and plays the role

of interpreter. The expert prescriber understands the organization’s needs and the

expectations of the donors, and has the ability and authority to control fundraising

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event and is responsible for fundraising performance. The problem-solving

facilitator provides internal and external consultation, and guides the university’s

fundraising program. Thus, he or she must have detailed knowledge of institution

products, policies, and activities to coordinate and integrate the management of the

institution and the decision-making bodies. The communication technician focuses

on the use of diverse technology in fundraising efforts, and is close to the

administrative core of the institution and has access to administrative resources. The

primary role of a professional fundraiser is to directly increase the amount of

donations, followed by problem solving (Tindall 2009). Effective fundraising

requires appropriate staffing and recruitment, and unlike many Asia Pacific

universities in which staff and instructors manage fundraising on a part-time basis.

On the other hand, in the US, fundraisers are full-time professionals.

Source of University Funding

This study observed that most Asia Pacific institutions only focused on a narrowly

defined objective, such as whether the target amount was reached or whether the

short-term needs of the institution were met. Other less quantifiable indicators were

often ignored, including whether the needs of the donors were met, whether a good

relationship with the donors was maintained, whether the increase in the institution’s

financial revenue was conducive to the teaching and academic development of the

institution, whether there was a clear fundraising plan, and whether there was good

market segmentation and community management. Additional underappreciated

indicators included whether the needs of the donors were understood, whether the

needs of institution were met, whether the fundraising plan was successfully

implemented, whether the fundraising was conducive to the institution’s finances and

academic development, and whether the funds were used appropriately.

In terms of international comparison, Huang and Chen (2010) noted that since the

implementation of institution funds in 1996 in Taiwan, the financial structure of

public universities has undergone a significant change. In 1997, government subsidy

accounted for 61 %, which was decreased to 47 % in 2008. The pressure on public

universities to assume a certain amount of funding is increasing year by year, and

schools must raise revenue through diversified channels, such as fundraising, tuition

increases, cooperative education, the promotion of education, and other operating

income. A unpublished study analysis of the 2011 financial structure of two public

universities found, that the fundraising revenue accounted for 1.8 and 1.5 % of the

total revenue of the two universities, respectively, which was lower than the 2.2 %

average of public universities in the United States and far lower than the 5 % of the

top public universities in the United States.

Methods

This study conducted a case study to examine the characteristics of fundraising of

the case study institution, Island University (pseudonyms). Case studies can help

understand complex social phenomena while retaining meaningful characteristics of

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real life and focusing on process (Yin 2009). To better understand the mechanisms

of Island University’s fundraising and successful fundraising, this study collected

information from the case study institution’s website and conducted interviews to

investigate and analyze the basic institution environment and various fundraising

activities. The data collected were cross-correlated to improve the reliability of the

research content.

Participants

The study’s original plan was to interview the vice president of fundraising

operations, the chief secretary, the alumni liaison team leader, the business

directors, the accounting officers, and the current Alumni Association head, among

others. However, by the time of interview, the main business director had resigned,

so the invitation for an interview was rejected. Other interview subjects also rejected

interviews on the ground that the main business director had departed. Respondents

who had promised to accept interviews subsequently rejected interviews on the

ground that they ‘‘did not obtain approval from supervisors.’’ In fact, this study

experienced difficulty in investigating the fundraising operation at institutions.

However, the investigator persisted and negotiated, and finally, three key figures

agreed to interviews. They were Alan, Brian, and Chris (pseudonyms). The three

respondents were highly representative and familiar with the operation of the

institution and the alumni association. From these interviews, the investigator

learned that the institution’s core fundraising operation was no longer the

responsibility of the administrative unit. Then I came to realize why the ‘‘official

administrative staff’’ rejected interviews.

This study contacted the core fundraising staff of Island University, and the

current Alumni Association head, Alan, was interviewed first. Based on the

expanded content of the interview, other related staff were also interviewed. The

three respondents were highly representative and familiar with the operation of the

institution and the alumni association. After the interviews, this study discovered

that Island University’s core fundraising staff member was Alan. The interviews

were completed in 2012. Three respondents accepted interviews, and the verbatim

transcript of the interview was verified by the respondents.

Alan was currently the chairman of the alumni association, a full-time professor,

an institution counselor, and the executive officer of the new campus. Thus, his roles

were highly diverse. Brian was the former chairman of the alumni association, the

head of a well-known technology company, and knowledgeable regarding

educational affairs. His talk was full of educational ideals. Chris had worked at

the institution for nearly 30 years, and the department he was in charge of was the

institution’s oldest and most prestigious academic institution. The institution was

undertaking its first fundraising effort, and Chris became the chief fundraiser. The

professional roles of the three respondents varied. However, in terms of their roles

in the institution’s fundraising, the respondents began to resemble professional US

fundraisers, which was an important finding of this study.

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The Site

Island University was established nearly 40 years ago. The institution’s campus

spanned over 40 hectares was located in a metropolitan area and numbered

approximately 10,000 students, The number of alumni totaled nearly 60,000, and

the institution had the ambition to become an international-level university in

applied research. In 2009, in World University Rankings published in the British

Times Higher Education Supplement, Island University was ranked 360th, and the

report characterized Island University for the first time as ‘‘a young world university

with potential for growth’’.

In 2007, Island University developed fundraising and donor incentives to

encourage donations from alumni and to encourage them to return to the institution

to use various institution resources. Based on the donation revenue of the institution

from 2007 to 2011, on average, the annual donations were approximately

USD$240,000, which accounted for 3.2 % of the total revenue. Island University

alumni liaisons and fundraising from enterprises were the responsibility of the Alumni

Services group, which was transferred from the Research and Development Office to

the Office of the Secretary in 2007. During the 2012 interview, the investigator found

that the group had only one team leader and one operation director.

Island University’s major fundraising activities in different calendar years were

as follows (all plan names are pseudonyms):

1. Small grant program

This program was launched in 2008 to help Island University students facing

economic difficulties at home as a result of the global financial turmoil. The amount

raised approximately USD$270,000, which benefited up to 224 students university-

wide.

2. Cooperative work-study program

Island University alumni and enterprises were called on to provide 100 work-

study opportunities so students under the Small Grant Program could take advantage

of the summer work-study opportunities to raise tuition and fees. A total of 58 work-

study opportunities were created in the summer of 2009.

3. Major disaster fundraising plan

In 2009, a typhoon ravaged the South Pacific; more than 600 Island University

students resided in the hardest hit area. To help these students resolve problems, the

institution initiated an emergency relief grant program. Moreover, to help the

general public rebuild their homes, the institution initiated a disaster rebuilding plan

and raised more than approximately $170,000 USD to assist disaster relief.

4. Academic research building donations

In 2009, an Island University alumnus donated approximately $7 million USD to

construct a new academic building. The donation was the largest in the university

history since Island University was established. This donation was also one of the

ten largest enterprise donations in education history that year.

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5. 2010–2011 fundraising plan for undergraduate scholarship

The plan was launched in 2010. Alumni, faculty, staff, and the community were

invited to donate 1 % of their annual income, which was included in the normal,

long-term small donations. This plan is to enhance undergraduate scholarship.

6. Fundraising plans for a new building

Island University constructed a new International Tower (a pseudonym) and the

Science and Technology Building (a pseudonym). Donors, including enterprises

and/or individuals, who donated up to $850,000 USD (the former building) or

$1.7 million USD (the latter building) were allowed to name the new building. Both

fundraising plans provided details of the new building project planning and the

latest construction progress news to facilitate the large donations.

7. Fundraising plan for renovation

An old building of a certain major fields required renovation, which would

require 3 years to complete. In addition to funds raised by the institution,

approximately, one-third of the funds were raised through small donations from

alumni. In 2012–2013, the accumulated amount of donations surpassed approxi-

mately $35,000 USD, and fundraising activities were still ongoing.

8. Thanksgiving scholarship fundraising plan

Any donor who donated more than $300 USD could prescribe specific

scholarships. To facilitate the influx of donations, the plan specifically named

scholarship programs with urgent needs.

9. Measures to develop public funds

The alumni association developed the ‘‘Public Fund Regulations’’, and the

primary funding sources included alumni, faculty and staff, community organiza-

tions, and community enthusiasts. At the beginning of 2012, the balance of public

service funds was more than $3,500 USD, and by the beginning of 2013, the balance

was more than $8,500 USD.

The above executed and ongoing fundraising plans demonstrated the great

importance that Island University attached to fundraising effort, as well as Island

University’s intentions. In addition to specific fundraising web pages that provided

detailed information, the institution developed a ‘‘donation flowchart’’ to explain

online and paper donation procedures.

Discussions and Results

Transformation of the Fundraising Mechanism

Island University’s fundraising organization had developed into a ‘‘quasi-profes-

sional fundraising office’’ except that its scale and professional level remained

insufficient. The alumni association was an independent legal entity and was liaised

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with institution personnel and offices to effectively conduct fundraising. Previously

collected data indicated that the Research and Development Office or the Alumni

Services group was the Island University unit responsible for fundraising. However,

after field observations and interviews, the investigator discovered that the actual

Island University unit responsible for fundraising was the alumni association. The

respondents noted as follows:

There used to be four people in the Alumni Services group. Because of the

personnel deployment, there was only one person left. So, in terms of the work

of the Alumni Services group, other than emails (because that involved

personal data regulations), all other affairs were handled by the alumni

association.

The Alumni Services group was one of the units at institution…. The alumni

association itself was an independent legal entity…. So, our communication

was through the alumni association.

Compared with academic institutions, it was difficult for schools to invest in

fundraising units. Many fundraising offices did not have enough staff, and a lack of

funds became the norm (Tindall 2009). Therefore, the Island University Alumni

Services group gradually became a fundraising administrative unit, and the actual

fundraising work was transferred to the alumni association. After Alan took charge,

Island University’s alumni association increased from one entry-level staff member

to three specialized professionals. Compared with a US fundraising office, the scale

of Island University’s alumni association was not ideal, given its lack of

professionals and staff. However, the operation of Island University’s alumni

association assumed the basic functions of a fundraising organization. One

respondent noted ‘‘I can say that the fundraising office is at the alumni association,

and receipts were also issued at the alumni association.’’ The major features of

Island University’s fundraising mechanism were as follows:

Many Organizations with Frequent Operations

Island University’s alumni association established several dozen branches, such as a

distinguished alumni association, a college, a department, or an institution alumni

association and regional alumni associations and, often, organized various activities

or meetings. One respondent stated as follows:

…[T]he East Alumni Association was established [in 2011] and visited the

United States Alumni Association.

Our interaction with the alma mater was very frequent. At least once a month,

we have the distinguished alumni association and the general alumni

association, and the two [associations] hold quarterly meetings.

Currently, the department alumni association holds meetings every three

months.

Compared with other schools that held alumni networking events once a year in

celebration of the founding of the school, Island University’s alumni association, the

regional alumni associations, the college (department, institution) alumni

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associations, and the distinguished alumni association held eight meetings on a

quarterly basis, and frequent meetings were conducive to bringing together the

power of alumni.

The role of Island University’s alumni association was similar to that of the

Southern Methodist University leadership and activity coordination committee.

Island University’s distinguished alumni association resembled the combination of

the co-chairs of the Steering Committee of Southern Methodist University activities,

whereas the Island University, college, department, or institution alumni associa-

tion, and the regional alumni associations resembled the nature and functions of the

Southern Methodist University activities volunteers. Therefore, this study believed

that Island University’s fundraising mechanisms had assumed the form of a

volunteer organization.

Flexibility in Accounting and Personnel

Island University’s alumni association was an independent legal entity, and its

personnel and accounting were operated independently from the institution. Alan

stated the following:

Originally, the quarterly magazine of the alumni association was paid by the

institution and later, as a result of funding, the alumni association paid for it

because the alumni association had greater flexibility than the institution….

When more staff is needed, I will use my own staff to help.

Most universities in Asia Pacific countries must deploy personnel in accordance

with governmental regulations and use funds in accordance with governmental

Comptroller Law. However, the alumni association was independent and had

autonomy and greater flexibility in deploying personnel and funds, which was

conducive to promoting fundraising.

Self-Sufficiency in Funding

The annual funding of Island University’s alumni association was approximately

$67,000 USD, which came primarily from alumni donations. All of the several

recent chairmen shared the idea that sufficient funding was acceptable, and the

alumni association had no reserve or accumulated funds. Rather, the alumni

association raised funds plan by plan.

The fundraising of the alumni association…has a certain annual budget and

budget funds…. [It] makes no sense to raise too much…. For the alumni

association, more is not necessarily better. Enough is good.

The alumni association conducts fundraising for the institution not for the

alumni association…. If there is too much money at the alumni association,

there will be trouble in the future. People may come to the alumni association

not out of an enthusiasm to provide services but for money.

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Two-Way Communication and Matching Donations

Primarily, Island University’s alumni association was the communication channel

between the institution and alumni. It aimed to understand the ideas and needs of the

institution and actively sought to hear and created opportunities to listen to the voice

of alumni. The association helped bring the institution and alumni together at the

appropriate time. Two respondents stated as follows:

Usually, if we have some ideas, we propose them to the institution…. Then, it

will come to help. Or the institution has some ideas…. We will also seek the

institution’s help to implement [the ideas].

Every month, I will arrange to visit the distinguished alumni association and

my past professors…. To maintain close contact with the distinguished alumni

association, every month I will visit one to two alumni.

In addition to strengthening the existing quarterly magazine, [the alumni

association] has also enhanced the content and information on the web sites

and created a monthly newsletter, so…alumni everywhere have a good

communication platform and channel.

From the interviews with fundraisers from University of Michigan’s fundraising

office, the investigator discovered that the primary role of the fundraiser was to

listen, and it was important to match the institution’s mission with the interests of

donors (Tsunoda 2010). This role was consistent with what Kelly (1995) referred to

as a ‘‘communication facilitator.’’ Alan at the Island University Alumni Association

developed an in-depth understanding of the institution’s fundraising plans and

needs, and used a variety of channels to remain in close contact with alumni, to

grasp their ability and intention to contribute and then matched the two whenever

opportunities occurred. Therefore, Island University’s alumni association had

become a major communication platform for the institution’s fundraising.

In-depth observation revealed that the Island University fundraising organiza-

tions were primarily Island University’s alumni association and the Alumni Services

group. Although the alumni association was an independent legal entity, it retained

the ‘‘umbilical cord’’ connection with the institution via personnel deployment and

the sharing of offices, forming a public–private governance mechanism. Alan stated

as follows:

Because I am a faculty member at Island University…. I am also involved in

industry-university services…. Of course, initially, I was attracted when first

taking over the alumni association because, after all, I am a faculty member,

getting involved in an alumni association, but now people think that this is

resource sharing.

The Alumni Services group and the alumni association share the same office,

and the evening MBA alumni association also uses the same office. So, all

resources are shared in our institution.

The real Island University fundraising organization was the alumni association,

and the institution administrative unit was only operational in form. The alumni

association was the primary link to the fundraising organization of the institution

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administrative unit, which was similar to a professional fundraising office (refer to

Fig. 1) and overturned the traditional thinking that the administrative unit was

responsible for fundraising.

Model of Fundraising Operation: From Passive Acceptance of Donations

to Active Fundraising

Island University had two donation channels and three fundraising models (see

Fig. 1). The alumni were the primary donor targets. Shifting from passive

acceptance of donations to active creation of opportunities and with the active

use of fundraising skills, Island University achieved an effective fundraising

performance.

There were two channels for donations to Island University. One was through the

institution administration system, which incurred a 15 % administrative cost. The

other was through the alumni association, which incurred a 10 % administrative

cost. Alan said, ‘‘The institution fundraising and alumni association fundraising

were separate…. The entire amount of donation to the institution was tax-

deductible, but the donation to the alumni association was not tax-deductible …the

upper limit of donations to educational, cultural, public, or charitable institutions or

organizations shall not exceed 20 % of the total income of taxpayer, spouse, and

dependents, and there is no limit for donations to defense, troops, and the

Fig. 1 The development of Island University fundraising mechanisms

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government.’’ Therefore, there is no limit on the amount donated to the school, and

the entire amount is tax-deductible. However, for the amount donated to the alumni

association, the amount eligible for tax deduction cannot exceed 20 % of total

personal income. From the tax perspective, a large donation to the institution helped

more in tax savings.

Based on different donation channels and donation recipients, Island University

had three models of fundraising operation: (a) fundraising for an administrative unit:

the use of donations was coordinated by the institution or earmarked by the donor;

(b) fundraising for academic departments: the institution or the alumni association

took the initiative to raise outside funds and invited donors to earmark the funds for

academic departments; and (c) fundraising for the alumni association; in the form of

funds for the basic operation of the alumni association and external charitable

activities, the alumni association may also help the institution raise funds. The

respondents stated as follows:

Fundraising for an administrative unit

Alumni can also donate to the institution and earmark the money for a

designated department…. If today the money is given to and used by the

institution, then the institution co-ordinates its use…. For example…, there is

a fundraising activity…by the institution…. [It] is school-wide.

Fundraising for academic departments

Basically for our fundraising, the receipt is issued through the alumni

association. The alumni association collects the funds on our behalf…and will

charge the necessary management fee.

We…decided that the building needed remodeling…[and] expected that a

third of the funds will come from alumni donations.

So now, whenever we have a meeting of all department alumni, I will use

PowerPoint to explain to them…how much money we will need.

Fundraising for the alumni association

We set up…a public fund…to help…[renovate] their entire internet and the

institution’s cable, and we raised about $10,000 USD.

When the institution needs funds, in general they will ask the alumni

association to raise funds…, and the alumni association will help raise the

funds.

Island University’s fundraising plan always listed diversified fundraising targets.

However, it seemed that the actual donors were primarily alumni. Alumni have

always been the largest donor group, and the chief target for fundraisers

(McDearmon and Shirley 2009; Tindall 2009). Tsunoda (2010) observed that

pluralistic fundraising has become an important task for university development,

and certain universities have designated personnel responsible for services for

diverse donor groups. Therefore, Island University should also strive to raise funds

from all potential donors in society, including the business community and private

donations from charitable individuals, to improve its fundraising performance.

Island University did not define or classify fundraising categories in detail,

largely categorizing the funds simply into large or small amounts. Based on the

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views of the respondents, it seemed that $35,000 USD was the threshold. The

review of Island University’s fundraising activities revealed that most donations

were small, such as the Small Grant Program, the cooperative work-study program,

the major disaster fundraising, the 2010-11 fundraising plan, renovation, the

Thanksgiving scholarship, and the alumni public funds. The two new building

fundraising plans involved large donations. In addition, four fundraising plans,

including the Small Grant plan, the 2010-11 fundraising plan, the Thanksgiving

scholarships, and the alumni public funds, used a long-term fundraising strategy for

steady and ongoing fundraising.

Since 2005, Island University’s fundraising strategy had significantly changed

from passive acceptance of funds to active fundraising, which has resulted in an

improved fundraising performance. All three respondents stated as follows:

I think fundraising was not very active until the incumbent president took

office [in February 2005]…. In the past, alumni donated very, very little to the

institution, usually less than $35,000 USD, such as tens of thousands,

hundreds of thousands, etc.

In the past, if there was any donation, it was usually alumni coming to donate

rather than active fundraising activities from us…. [I]t was spontaneous

alumni donation, not fundraising, but this time, mainly because we had the

needs, so for the first time, we were fundraising.

We know that this particular alumnus wished to [donate]; we would ask the

president to come together with us to talk directly with the alumnus. That was

the fastest way.

An active fundraising attitude could also be discerned from the variety of

fundraising methods used by Island University, such as the class contact system, the

distinguished alumni association, industry-university cooperation, and on-site visits,

which effectively integrated Island University internal and external resources,

satisfying the needs of both the institution and the alumni in a fundraising plan. As

Tindall (2009) noted, fundraising integrates many internal functions into a large

organization, and at any time, the development of a new campus or a new entity

would be implemented in the plan and the fundraising. One respondent specifically

described these methods:

We are now trying to promote the class contact system…to establish class

scholarships…. Take the institution of Management as an example. We now

have graduated more than 130 classes from the institution of Management, and

there are only over 100 students currently enrolled at the school. So, if one

[graduated class] takes care of one student…, every student has a scholarship

upon enrollment in our school, every student has a job upon enrollment in our

school.

The so-called ‘‘Distinguished Alumni Association Meeting’’ is to include

distinguished alumni from previous classes…. Some people…are low

key…but are happy to give back to the institution…. So, when we need

work-study internship opportunities or fundraising, we start from here.

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In fact, we are now promoting…[a new campus]…. There is one cultural and

creative industry, one cloud-sharing industry, one green energy industry, and

one biological science and technology industry. All four have been planning

alumni enterprises…. We have a so-called ‘‘Association for Opening

Business’’ within the distinguished alumni association and hope that good

ideas from alumni can materialize in these four industries with the assistance

from the association for opening business. If there are not enough funds,

alumni will see how to raise money so that the idea can be realized…. We [the

new campus] will become an industry-university center in the future.

In order for alumni to be willing to donate…I…visit distinguished alumni and

past professors because…professors have a much greater impact on alumni

than the alumni association…. [F]aculty make alumni feel moved…; then,

alumni feel the [donation] is meaningful.

Tindall (2009) noted that when alumni return to a school, fundraising is not

simply a matter of asking for their money. The visit should present the benefits and

the creation of better career opportunities. The several specific methods used by

Island University echoed this view. Tindall also observed that fundraising methods

had changed from the previous random, non-scientific method into a scientific

method. Tsunoda (2010) also noted that the fundraising office must strive to develop

a strategically unique, broader approach to track donor characteristics to establish a

quantitative database for use as a basis of analysis. Building on a basic operation,

Island University’s fundraising effectively adopted long-term thinking. Social

scientific methods were used to narrow the distance between the institution and the

donors and to match one another’s needs. These practical operational methods and

techniques were worth learning. However, Island University has not yet established

a donor database or used quantitative scientific methods for fundraising and has not

conducted background research on donors.

Island University Fundraiser Traits

Island University personnel responsible for external fundraising were the university

president or the vice president and the department chairs. However, there were no

dedicated personnel. The active core staff outside the Island University responsible

for fundraising were members of the alumni association, and the members were the

fundraisers. Alan stated as follows:

We have a vice president who is dedicated to be in charge of [fundraising]…,

and he will attend meetings of various regional alumni associations because he

is the face of fundraising…. The president is there to finalize the donation.

Fundraisers know that there will be donations, and then the president comes

forward.

In general, the administrative staff in state-owned universities in Asia Pacific are

civil servants, which limits the hiring flexibility of the universities. Civil servants

lack corporate training and are not suitable as first-line fundraisers. Moreover, their

position is guaranteed by the state. Thus, even if their performance is poor, they will

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not be fired. In Island University’s fundraising organization, except one civil servant

who was responsible for the administration of the Alumni Services group, all of the

other members were external full-time staff. The chief fundraiser in charge of Island

University’s external fundraising and the fundraising office manager was Alumni

Association Alan. He managed in an environment of insufficient fundraising

professionals and fundraising staff and with a lack scientific data. Nevertheless, he

accomplished the fundraising goals. The investigator collected and analyzed Alan’s

personality traits and each discussed as follows:

Winning Trust

An analysis of the relationship between the two alumni association chairmen and the

president revealed that they could become close to the president and win complete

trust and authorization from him.

I was born on the same date as the president…, and we had similar

experience…. I was part of the first [Island University] graduating class….

[T]he president is my [junior schoolmate] from the Department of Construc-

tion, three years after me.

The vice president is my [junior schoolmate] from Business Administration….

So, communication is not a problem.

Later, the president felt that I should not only serve the Research and

Development Office; I should serve the entire school. So, I was transferred to

become a consultant for external affairs for the entire school, including the

alumni.

Tindall (2009) observed that the Office of Alumni Donations must win the

president’s trust and confidence. The relationship between Alan and the president

was a senior-junior schoolmate relationship, a friendly relationship. Therefore, Alan

could obtain the president’s full confidence and authorization. Tsunoda (2010)

believed that the donation pattern of Asia Pacific reflected the traditional Confucian

idea of not letting good deeds be known, and with this habit and belief, the ability of

the fundraising staff to become close to and win the trust of the president is a highly

important trait. During the interviews, the Island University respondents revealed

the mutual trust between them and the president. Thus, for the role of chief

fundraiser, the president sought someone familiar and trustworthy. Thus, the system

of hiring a professional fundraising manager was not adopted.

Plural Identity

Alan had a plural role. Although this status raised questions, his colleagues

eventually discovered the benefits of his plural role, such as his in-depth

understanding of the product. He stated as follows:

I am a faculty member at Island University… and also work at industry-

university service…. I was attacked when taking over [the alumni association]

because, after all, I am a faculty member and chairman of the alumni

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association. But now people have discovered that this is resource sharing.

Moreover, I am the chief executive of [the new campus]. [The new campus]

project requires hundreds of millions in donations and is the biggest [project].

Tindall (2009) observed that a university’s chief fundraisers, regardless of the job

titles, are burdened with the needs of the president. The incumbent chairman of

Island University’s alumni association, regardless of whether he or she is a

professor, consultant, or executive officer, is the president’s trusted chief fundraiser.

The plural identity enables him to have a better understanding of the needs of the

institution, to be more familiar with the operation of the institution and to

understand better the administrative propriety of alumni donations.

Good Communication

The individuals with whom Island University fundraisers must communicate

included institution leaders, institution administrators, and major donors. The

respondents noted as follows:

We will communicate regularly with the institution… and hold a board

meeting on a regular basis…. [In addition to] the distinguished alumni

association…we have…the department alumni association and the college

alumni association. Every month, I will arrange to visit distinguished alumni

and my past professors.

University fundraisers should communicate frankly with the president in

advance. Otherwise, they are not open and reliable alumni donations administrators

(Tindall 2009). The concepts of salesman (Worth and Asp 1994), communication

facilitator, and communication technician (Kelly 1995) all emphasize the impor-

tance of the role of communicator for fundraisers. The Island University

respondents also exhibited the ability to communicate.

Good Observation

Island University fundraisers were observant regarding the institution’s various

fundraising needs and potential alumni donors. The respondents remarked as

follows:

Most donations are from the electronics industry because they are the boss of

the listed companies. It is easier to raise funds from those who graduated from

the electrical engineering, electronics and computer science departments as

well as the department of construction…and…[the] EMBA [Executive Master

of Business Administration program]. [We seek] small donations to coordinate

institution activities or student club activities. I’ll allocate ratios because the

electronics department has been around for a long time. So, I will raise more

funds from those who graduated from the electronics department, less from the

electrical engineering department and even less from the computer science

department, based on the number of graduates, the number of alumni members

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and alumni accomplishments…. I have an idea…in the end how much funds I

need to raise.

The alumni association…prioritizes…what we need to do…and [how] to

coordinate with the school, to set common priorities.

A fundraiser must consider both needs and supply. Regarding the needs,

fundraiser must understand whether the institution’s needs and the conditions for

donors to contribute are specific, reasonable, and practicable. Regarding the supply,

a fundraiser must grasp the relevant information on potential donors. Island

University fundraisers had an in-depth understanding of the needs of the major

donors (alumni), and they had to constantly observe the changes in the intentions of

the institution and the donors.

In summary, Island University’s main fundraisers played nearly all four of the

fundraiser roles mentioned in Tindall (2009), in addition to exhibiting the traits of

winning trust and adopting plural roles adapted to the circumstances. Because Island

University’s chief fundraiser was not a fundraising professional, through an

‘‘umbilical cord connection’’ he maintained a close relationship with the president

and gained his trust and authorization. Because Alan played a plural role, he was

familiar with the needs of the institution. He excelled at communication, with full

interaction with the faculty and staff. Thus, he did not experience adverse reactions

even if he used the carrot-and-stick approach. Moreover, he excelled at observation

and coordination, which enabled him to create external partnerships.

However, for the long term, this study suggests that Island University should

consider hiring professional fundraisers. Tsunoda (2010) noted the importance of

fundraising expertise, which can be achieved by recruiting more professionals and

providing fundraising workshops and cultural sensitivity training with a view to

making Island University fundraising a sustainable undertaking.

Tsunoda (2010) believed that compared with the open, professional, large, and

autonomous donation tendencies in the West, donations by Asia Pacific culture are

private, individual, and small. The analysis presented above revealed that Island

University had initiated a wide range of fundraising activities. Of these activities,

other than the new construction plan that required large donations, most other

fundraising plans were designed for long-term small donations, which was

consistent with Chinese donations habits. Moreover, Island University took

advantage of the importance that the Chinese attach to private friendship or in

Chinese words, guan xı. It established a class contact system and a distinguished

alumni association and paid visits to alumni and faculty, all of which were practical

skills worth learning by fundraisers in Asia Pacific. However, many professional

fundraisers believe that a fundraising strategy must go beyond personal relation-

ships (Tsunoda 2010). I believe that the method adopted by Island University that

conforms to Chinese cultural conditions may be effective for long-term small

donations. However, this approach may be too conservative to obtain large

donations. Therefore, it is recommended that Island University use diverse

fundraising strategies as a means to obtain large donations in the future and to

enable the institution to become one of the top 100 ‘‘world class’’ academic

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institutions. After the interviews, the investigator discovered that the case study

institution’s leading fundraising staff member was Alan.

Conclusions

Island University fundraising mechanism has developed into a semi-professional

fundraising organization and through the link between the fundraisers and the

Alumni Services office, forming a public–private synergistic organization. In terms

of deployment, the fundraising unit seemed to be the Alumni Services group.

However, in fact, the alumni association is the real fundraising core unit. Island

University has two official donation channels (an administrative system and the

alumni association) and three models of fundraising (academic units, administrative

units and the alumni association). Fundraising targets remain primarily the alumni,

and the fundraising attitude has shifted from passive acceptance of donations to

active fundraising. Alan is in charge of the fundraising office and the key figure for

fundraising success. Island University has adopted diversified fundraising strategies

and strives to conduct diversified fundraising activities, such as long-term and short-

term approaches and large and small donations, for most fundraising plans. Island

University has adopted the long-term, small-sum fundraising method coupled with

fundraising skills such as the use of private friendships, which is consistent with

Chinese donation habits and has achieved a good fundraising performance.

Island University has not yet established a quantitative database of potential

donors and thus cannot track donors in a scientific way, which is a lesson worth

learning from other universities. The university fundraising office should effectively

use a scientific method to grasp donor traits to narrow the distance between the

institution and the donors and match one another’s needs. In addition, Island

University links the needs of the fundraiser and the donors with a win–win concept.

For example, Island University encourages active alumni donations while encour-

aging alumni to return to institution to take advantage of various resources. Island

University has also fully applied the concept of industry-university cooperation in

fundraising, which is an important factor for the fundraising success of this case

study school. These valuable experiences deserve the attention of other Asia Pacific

universities.

The proposed implications of this study are as follows: (a) Allow the institution

fundraising organization to officially transform itself into a professional fundraising

office and employ enough professional fundraisers with appropriate skills.

(b) Institution fundraisers should be professionals or trained to be professionals

and should analyze and understand donor traits to enable them to propose specific

and feasible fundraising strategies. (c) Fundraising efforts should be directed toward

a broad alumni base and other potential donors in society as well as diverse ethnic

groups. (d) To achieve an optimal fundraising performance, leaders should have the

courage to propose large-sum fundraising plans, hold fundraisers accountable and

require the use of quantitative scientific methods.

Most universities in Asia Pacific regions persist in an attitude of passive

acceptance of donations with a lack of active development of donors. Therefore, this

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study suggests that universities with poor fundraising performance should first

develop specific, feasible fundraising objectives and then strive to achieve these

goals with continuous efforts. Moreover, the institution fundraising organization

should appropriately reform it fundraising strategies. Universities can start with

alumni and use the industry-university cooperation model to strategically collect

and establish basic donor data to construct an effective fundraising channel and an

electronic donation channel, which are active fundraising activities.

Despite the sluggish global economy, charitable giving is unabated. There are

considerable opportunities to help charitable funds flow to higher education. I came

to realize that we must not blindly follow the model of higher education in the United

States. However, the current financial environment has forced Chinese higher

education to actively promote fundraising, and the nation’s universities must learn to

communicate their specific development needs. We have observed how Island

University exploits the Asia Pacific preference for electronic donations, and regularly

publishes all of its fundraising plans and needs on its websites; thus gradually

establishing an educational charity atmosphere. A basic foundation for the supply–

demand chain for university fundraising exists in Asia Pacific. Further studies in this

area are required to better understand the status of educational fundraising in Asia

Pacific and to counter the limitations on college finances global-wide.

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