The University of the Virgin Islands’ 2010 Alumni Phone-athon has been scheduled for June 1-4. Each evening of the Phone-athon, UVI administrators, staff, alumni and student volunteers will gather from 5:30-9 p.m. in the Administration and Conference Center on the St. Thomas campus to place calls to many of the more than 7,000 UVI alumni in the territory and abroad. They will be updating alumni contact information and asking them to pledge their financial support to their alma mater.
Alumni gifts make it possible to improve campus life and enhance the overall experience for students. One of the Alumni Phonathon’s goals is to increase funding for scholarships to assist academically gifted students as well as students who have financial hardships. “More than $150,000 in academic scholarships was given to deserving students in our 2008-2009 campaign year,” said Linda I. Smith, UVI’s director of Annual Giving and Alumni Affairs.
Smith said the university’s alumni giving goal this year is to raise $25,000, while increasing the rate at which alumni give to 7 percent. The university’s current alumni giving rate is 5.1 percent. “UVI alumni are key supporters of the university,” Smith said. “This year, we are again focusing on getting alumni to partner with our community to help students achieve their academic dreams.” The average Alumni Phonathon gift is $75. As Specializing in Futures remains our credo, 100 percent of your financial contributions are directed to student needs and are tax deductible,” Smith said.
Pledges can be restricted or unrestricted. Restricted gifts are earmarked to be spent for specific programs or areas, such as academic or athletic scholarships, the Reichhold Center for the Arts, VI-EPSCoR research, summer enrichment programs, academic divisions or the Foundation for the University of the Virgin Islands. Unrestricted gifts are used to support areas of greatest need within the university.
The UVI Office of Institutional Advancement’s Development Team, headed by Interim Vice President Dr. Henry H. Smith, is responsible for the receipt and acknowledgement of contributions to the university. To make a contribution to UVI, please contact Linda I. Smith at 692-4023 or send e-mail to lsmith@uvi.edu.
