University of Alaska Anchorage - Accolades and Heroes

The University of Alaska Anchorage's Alumni Association is successfully using one of my 101 strategies by making heroes of their alumni.  Giving attention to alumni is important, and UAA recognizes this. Twice per year, in their online Alumni and Friends magazine, Accolades, UAA offers in-depth stories of current university projects, successful alumni, and inspired philanthropy.

Alumni are doing great things, and when a university displays their pride by recognizing their alumni's successes and achievements, it is a powerful statement that resonates with all alumni. Each spring and fall, a new issue of Accolades appears, and in every issue successful alumni are spotlighted.  And, the University of Alaska Anchorage's Alumni Association recognizes that each of these successes is individual, and they focus on the individual.  With bright photos and informative articles, not only are they supporting their alumni, but they are doing so in an attractive and exciting manner.

By doing this, the University of Alaska Anchorage's Alumni Association is accomplishing several goals.  They are honoring their alumni by focusing on them and their successes, they are helping their alumni to stay interested and involved, which increases participation, annual giving, pride, and is an effective method to bring alumni back to the online community - again and again.  Therefore, with this one concept they have fulfilled a myriad of needs every college university faces; involvement, connection, and communication. 

Colleges and universities use their websites to cover everything from student concerns to parent involvement to the alumni community.  Incorporating personal success stories in the University of Alaska Anchorage's Alumni Association Accolades magazine makes heroes out of all the students, both past and present, and encourages repeat visits to the site to see which alumni will be featured next.

An added feature that may make sense would be a comment section that would allow alumni to congratulate the featured alumni in each issue of Accolades.