Alternative Breaks Guide to Fundraising at the University of Utah

Alternative Breaks Guide to Fundraising at the University of Utah Welcome to Alternative Breaks! Once you have been accepted into the program and have reserved your trip seat, it can be challenging to come up with funding. While the AB program has a small scholarship process, we encourage students to advocate for themselves and take initiative in finding funding. This is meant to be a guide to raising funds from University of Utah organizations, departments, colleges, and family and friends outside of the limited scholarship funding the Alternative Breaks program offers. There are 3 Sources of Alternative Breaks Scholarship Funding 1 U of U Colleges & Academic Departments 2 U of U Student Associations & Organizations 3 Family & Friends We will walk you through the 3 sources of funding and give you guidelines on who and how to ask for scholarship funding to support your Alternative Break experience. A Quick Note about Businesses and Corporations: Businesses and corporations are not listed here due to development guidelines at the University of Utah. We encourage students to refrain from asking corporations or businesses for scholarship/financial support for these trips. Should questions regarding this arise, please contact Kris Fenn 1

Fundraising on Campus (Funding Sources 1 & 2) 1. U of U Colleges & Academic Departments 2. U of U Student Associations & Organizations All fundraising within the University of Utah must be done in consultation with Kris Fenn, the Alternative Breaks Coordinator (kfenn@sa.utah.edu; 801-587-9027). Who can I Ask? The Alternative Breaks Program has a scholarship process that many departments already contribute to. If a department, college, or organization is on the DO NOT ASK LIST, you may not approach them because they already give to the program. (See Page 3) Many entities on campus do not already give to the Alternative Breaks program, and we welcome you to contact those colleges, departments, student organizations, etc. to ask for scholarship funds. See page 5 for help brainstorming a list of possible people/departments/colleges to ask for funding from on the University of Utah Campus. How to Ask: At the end of this packet are some sample emails letters, and tips for making an ask of support. Simply change/adapt these letters and email/present them to the department chair, advisor, supervisor, etc. with your request for scholarship funding and cc Kris Fenn. Standard requests for scholarships hover around $100-$250 per student. Other options may be to ask the department for 25%-50% of your total trip cost instead of a set amount. *Important resources and tips for asking can be found on pages 5-8. How to Transfer Payment: Kris Fenn will be the key contact to facilitate the transfer of funds and confirm any student scholarship support. If a U of U entity agrees to support you with scholarship funds, the following next steps must be taken. 1. Department must communicate to Kris Fenn (kfenn@sa.utah.edu; 801-587-9027) the amount of the scholarship, the student name and UNID the scholarship will be applied to. 2. Department must fill out a campus order to be received from Kris Fenn. 3. As soon as the Campus Order is received, the scholarship will be applied to student s trip costs. 2

University of Utah DO NOT Ask List Many departments, colleges, and majors already give scholarship funds to the AB program for us to distribute. University of Utah DO Ask List Colleges, academic departments, and University Employers and student organizations not listed to the left may be willing to support their students for this experience. It is worth asking! The following are not entities you may not ask for funding/sponsorship/scholarship: The University of Utah Alumni Association Center for Student Wellness Bennion Center Office of Orientation The Counseling Center The College of Nursing University of Utah Union Places you may find funding for your trip: Student Associations and/or Activities You are Involved In (Ex: Ambassador's programs, Volunteer Programs, Honors Programs, Programs you hold a leadership position with, Work Study position advisors, etc.) Departments/Colleges Where You are a Declared Major (Ex: If you are a biology major, ask your department if they would support you with scholarship funds to go on this Alternative break) How: Please see How to Ask on Page 2. Any University of Utah entities that will be donating to your funding must be in communication with Kris Fenn (kfenn@sa.utah.edu) 3

Fundraising off Campus (Funding Source 3) 3 Family & Friends We understand this may not be an option for all students, but family and friends can be a great resource for helping you afford your Alternative Break trip. We encourage students to adapt and change the attached letter (see page 9) to send a written request to families and friends. Funding received from family or friends outside the University of Utah will be the responsibility of the student to keep track of, and put towards their trip costs. Step by Step Fundraising Step 1: Make a list of family, friends, departments, advisors, professors, staff, supervisors, etc. that you would like to ask for financial support from. Step 2: Tailor a letter/email for each individual. If it is to a University of Utah entity, make sure you CC Kris Fenn, or list her contact information. Step 3: Set up a meeting, email, or approach all of the individuals on your list one-on-one. If they need time to think about your request, set up a date and time to follow up with them. Step 4: Follow up with the individuals you asked with emails and phone calls 2 weeks later. Step 5: Pick up checks/funds from family and friends or check to make sure any University of Utah entities have sent a campus order to Kris Fenn in Union 101. Step 6: Deliver Thank You notes to everyone who donates! 4

APPENDIX OF RESOURCE Fundraising Tips, Guidelines, and Resources General Tips: Be personal, and energetic Approach people with enthusiasm and make sure they know this experience is important to you. Additionally, when you are requesting donations, put a personal spin on each request. Tell someone why you are asking them (maybe it s because the club has an interest in your Alternative Break topic, or maybe your professor got you interested in your trip topic initially). Personalizing it will get you better responses than with a generic request of dear friends. Set a goal and have a deadline!! o Set a goal for the amount of money you need to raise so that you are motivated to keep going. Also have a deadline that you hope to raise the money by. Your deadline should be about 2 or 3 weeks BEFORE the final payment is due for your trip. Don t be afraid o Asking for money can be hard, but don t be afraid. You are asking for a great reason. If people know how beneficial this is and that it is important to you, they will want to help. How to Generate a List of People/Departments/Organizations to Ask at the University of Utah Here are a few suggestions. Please make sure that no one on your list is also on our DO NOT ASK LIST (Pg. 3): o Organizations/Clubs Ask up some of the clubs you are actively involved in. They may have enough money in their budget to help fund your journey. Help them see why your participation in Alternative Breaks would be a good investment for them make the case that it will help you be a more successful club/organization member. o Professors Professors that you are close to and know well may be a good option, especially if the professor knows that you care about the particular trip issue you are going for. o Departments Departments are wonderful places to ask. They are invested in you graduating, and Alternative Breaks have been shown to lead to better student experiences and higher retention rates. We recommend asking for a starting donation of $100 from departments. IMPORTANT: When soliciting your college department, or any University of Utah entity, be sure to tell them to contact Alternative Breaks for directions on sending in donations. They may contact Kris Fenn at kfenn@sa.utah.edu. 5

How to ask In person o Letters o Emails o o A lot of U of U officials can have very hectic schedules. However, see if your potential donor has time in their schedule to sit down for 15 minutes for a meeting. Come to that meeting prepared to discuss your trip, why it is important to you, your trip cost, what your goal is and a specific amount of money you are requesting from that particular donor. Follow-up after your meeting with an email or phone call. Sending professional letters, especially to school officials such as your college departments, can be an effective way to solicit donations. A sample letter is included below. We recommend following up with a phone call, or email to make sure your letter was received and reinforce your request for a donation. Emails can be quick, formatted, and easy to send. When requesting emails from U of U personnel we recommend using emails to follow-up AFTER you ve already spoken to officials in person or sent a letter. Personalize your follow-up emails (Dear Professor Martinez, or Hello Ms. Stiel) and you ll get better responses. A sample email is included below. Timeline Right Now o Start creating a list of people you want to ask and strategize how you are going to ask them. Then make a plan to begin requesting your first donations as soon as possible. One 2-3 weeks from now o By now, hopefully you have already started meeting with people and sending letters to request donations. About a month after those initial requests is a perfect time to remind people that you still need donations. Send another follow-up letter, or email, or call your donors. 3 weeks before final payments are due o Send out final requests telling people you only have a short amount of time to meet your deadline. Ensure that they have all the information they need to get you your funds, or to transfer them to the Alternative Breaks Program on Campus. One week after your trip o Be sure to send formal thank you letters to everyone that donated to you!!! Personalize the letters and tell them about your trip, and that you appreciate their donation. Add photos, and make them feel appreciated for their help in getting you on your trip! 6

Department/Professor/Organization Sample Letter Templates These sample letters are yours to tweak and use as you approach departments, family and friends for funding. Please adapt all items in red for your letter. University of Utah Entity Letter 1 Date Dear Dean X, Professor X, etc., The Alternative Breaks Program has thrived for 17 years at the University of Utah, serving as a catalyst for student engagement, growth, and leadership development. These week-long trips immerse students, staff and faculty in a complex social issue through volunteerism, experiential learning, and dialogue. Many of the students, for whom the trip is an intensive introduction to volunteerism, return home with new perspectives on social issues and a commitment to further civic engagement in our local community. I am in my (1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd, etc.) year at the University of Utah, studying Major X, and I too hope to have such a life changing experience. Alternative Breaks provides me a chance to develop personally and learn about an issue that greatly impacts our society. I will be attending the (Trip Location ex: Portland, OR) trip focusing on the issue of (Trip Issue ex: Urban Environmentalism ) during (Fall/Spring) break (2013/2014). Personalize this paragraph: Take 2 or 3 sentences to talk about your trip and why the issue has importance to you and what you hope to gain from this trip. Depending on who you re addressing this letter to, in 1 or 2 sentences describe how this trip will help make you a better student in your club, in your major, in that professors class, etc. The cost of my Alternative Break trip is $xx. This is more than I can afford as a college student and as such it is my goal to raise $xx. I know my engagement with this program will be incredibly influential to my college experience and I need your help to participate. As such, I am asking for a contribution of $100 by deadline xx to help me fund this unique journey. If you are able and willing to donate, a campus order for $100 can be sent to the Alternative Breaks Program directly in the Bennion Center (Union 101) with my name and UNID. Please contact Kris Fenn at Kfenn@sa.utah.edu or 801-587-9027 for specific directions and the chart field. Thank you for taking the time to consider my request and helping me have a truly rewarding experience where, as a student, I can learn and give back! I look forward to hearing back from you, and thank you for your consideration of support. Sincerely, 7

Name (Phone Number) (Email) University of Utah Entity Follow-up Email Template Hello Dean X, Professor X, etc., I am reaching out to you regarding my initial letter requesting support for funding towards my Alternative Break experience. There are only xx more weeks until my deadline to raise funds for my Alternative Break to xx location and I have not quite reached my goal of raising $xx to help fund my trip. Personalize this paragraph: Take 2 or 3 sentences to talk about your trip and why the issue has importance to you and what you hope to gain from this trip. Depending on who you re addressing this letter to, in 1 or 2 sentences describe how this trip will help make you a better student in your club, in your major, in that professors class, etc. This experience will be incredibly influential to my college experience and I need your help to participate. As such, I am asking for contributions of $100 by deadline xx to help me fund this unique journey. If you are able and willing to donate, a campus order for $100 with my name and UNID can be sent to the Alternative Breaks Program directly in the Bennion Center (Union 101). Please contact Kris Fenn at Kfenn@sa.utah.edu or 801-587-9027 for specific directions and the chart field. Thank you for taking the time to consider my request and helping me have a truly rewarding experience where, as a student, I can learn and give back! I look forward to hearing back from you, and thank you for your consideration of support. Thank You! Name (Phone Number) (Email) 8

Friends & Family Letter/Email Template Date Dear (Ms. Baker; Mr. Jones, etc) I will be involved in an exciting opportunity to volunteer in (Trip Location ex: Portland, OR) this (Fall/Spring) around the issue of (Trip Issue ex: Urban Environmentalism) with the Alternative Breaks Program at the University of Utah. The Alternative Breaks Program has thrived for 17 years at the University of Utah, serving as a catalyst for student engagement, growth, and leadership development. These week-long trips immerse students, staff and faculty in a complex social issue through volunteerism, experiential learning, and dialogue. Many of the students, for whom the trip is an intensive introduction to volunteerism, return home with new perspectives on social issues and a commitment to further civic engagement in our local community. Assessment of this program shows that 80% of Alternative Break participants report they felt their overall knowledge regarding their trip issue increased, and another 92% indicate that as a result of their trip, they are more likely to volunteer or engage in community service once home. Personalize this paragraph: Take 2 or 3 sentences to talk about your trip and why the issue has importance to you and what you hope to gain from this trip. Depending on who you re addressing this letter to, in 1 or 2 sentences describe how this trip will help make you a better student in your club, in your major, in that professors class, etc. The cost of my Alternative Break trip is $xx. This is more than I can afford as a college student and as such it is my goal to raise $xx by deadline xx. I know my engagement with this program will be incredibly influential to my college experience and I need your help to participate. As such, I am asking for a contribution of any amount to help me fund this unique journey. Funds can be given to me in the form of cash/check, and I would be happy to share photos of my exciting journey with you once home! Again, thank you for taking the time to consider my request. I look forward this hands-on learning experience and giving back! If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at. Thank You! Name (Phone Number) (Email) 9