CASE Connects: Building a Sustainable Advancement Model in a Publicly Funded Context-Recording

Video Transcription

Video Summary

The webinar features Anita from Riga Technical University sharing insights on advancing publicly funded universities, focusing on alumni relations and fundraising for long-term sustainability. She highlights challenges such as stagnant government funding, regulatory constraints, limited salary flexibility, and public misconceptions about donations. Anita emphasizes moving from transactional to relational engagement, fostering lifelong alumni and industry partnerships rooted in shared mission and impact. She advocates diversified revenue streams beyond government funds, including corporate partnerships, foundations, scholarships, in-kind donations, and innovative collaborations like industrial professorships and student innovation grants. <br /><br />Anita stresses alignment between advancement efforts and university mission to avoid mission drift, utilizing data-informed strategies and performance metrics. She underscores the importance of equity, inclusion, and accessible communication to engage diverse alumni. Governance and ethical considerations are critical, especially around gift acceptance and transparency in turbulent political and economic contexts. Internal buy-in from leadership and faculty is fostered through continuous communication, training, and demonstrating impact over time.<br /><br />To future-proof advancement, Anita advises embracing generational shifts towards earned trust, leveraging digital tools, and continuous lean improvements. She illustrates how alumni contributions extend beyond finances to volunteering, advocacy, and knowledge sharing, which are often undervalued but vital. Concluding, she urges balancing adaptability in methods with preserving core university values amid change. The session closes with promotion of upcoming CASE events and invitations to continue knowledge sharing in the community.

Keywords

publicly funded universities

alumni relations

fundraising

long-term sustainability

diversified revenue streams

university mission alignment

equity and inclusion

governance and ethics

digital engagement

generational shifts