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Alumni give quarter of a million
After five months of preparation, four weeks of calling and 1750 conversations, our annual telephone campaign ended on Monday 17 May with a fantastic result – alumni pledged £250,000 over five years towards the Alumni Fund, making the 2010 campaign the most successful ever. And it's all thanks to the enthusiasm of Birkbeck's student callers and the generosity of you, our graduates!
"This is fantastic news and shows how caring and committed our alumni are" said Evana Topolovec, Development Manager. "Birkbeck has a strong history of philanthropic support and it is wonderful that so many of our graduates recognise the importance of giving back to education, as even small donations can make a substantial difference."
All donations to the Alumni Fund are directed towards supporting current students. Since its inception, nearly £500,000 was disbursed through the Fund to help those who are facing financial difficulties and to provide additional learning resources and enhanced facilities for all current students, such as the recently opened My Birkbeck Centre. Alumni donations directly contribute to enabling Birkbeck to continue to realise its mission of providing accessible education to people from all walks of life.
And it's this sentiment that really hit home for many of our alumni that were contacted during the campaign.
Sarah Williams |
"I spoke to so many lovely people who said that several students on their course were able to study as a result of financial support from the Alumni Fund which made them recognise the value of this type of support" said student caller, Sarah Williams. "One alumna told me that she had completed her first degree at the age of 55 – a lifelong dream. I love the idea that Birkbeck has helped someone, both financially and academically, to achieve their goals and to change their own viewpoint about themselves." |
Aside from fundraising, the telephone campaign was also a great way of keeping in touch with alumni, hearing their point of view and allowing them to reminisce about their time at the College. "Alumni really enjoy re-living their student days with the callers, and many have told us they continually extol the virtues of Birkbeck to their friends, even though they studied years ago" said Evana Topolovec.
No matter how long ago they graduated, Birkbeck alumni have once again showed that they still play an important part in the life of the College – as advocates, ambassadors, volunteers and donors.
Thank you to all of those who have taken part in the campaign!
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