Central Michigan Life

Issue date: 2/25/08 Section: News

John Ehlke/ Senior PhotographerStudents cram in the basement of the Carlton Alumni house to make calls to alumni to try and raise donations Monday night. The students raised 46 thousand dollars last month and has a goal of 212 thousand for this upcoming month. [Click to enlarge]

John Ehlke/ Senior Photographer"We call alumni to ask them to give gifts to the university," says Otter Lake sophomore Elizabeth Conard as she makes a few phone calls in the basement of the Carlton Alumni house Monday night. Conard's, who has been working for close to a year, biggest donation was close to thousand dollars and has raised $23, 073 since July. [Click to enlarge]

Elizabeth Conard has the job that forces many people to hang up their phones and grumble.

She tries to convince complete strangers to hand some money over to the their alma mater.

The Otter Lake sophomore calls Central Michigan University alumni and tries to convince them it is worth their while to donate money back to the university.

"I know telemarketing doesn't sound like fun, but they make it fun," Conard said.

Student callers work from 5:45 to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday at the Carlin Alumni House.

Conard figures she probably talks to hundreds of people during a shift.

"It can get kind of boring when the phone just keeps ringing," she said.

She said games are played during breaks to keep the callers motivated. The callers and supervisors play games such as Bozo's Bucket Bonanza and Hangman, said Jaime Griffis, assistant director of annual giving.

"It's something lighthearted to keep them going," Griffis said.

About 714 calls are completed each day, she said, not including those who don't answer. Since July, 54,000 people have picked up their phones, and 9,245 of them have made a pledge.

The students raised $46,000 in January and have a goal of $212,000 this month.

Conard said the hardest part of the job is giving alumni a reason why they should donate. She said alumni have hung up the phone on her, and some don't answer at all.

Conard said some alumni are upset because a student is calling them. If they are important, they figure someone higher up should call them, she said.

Each caller goes through three days of training to prepare them for the crazy questions, Griffis said.

One instance Griffis cited was that alumni have asked callers to sing the fight song before they donate.

Becky Heckart, Almont graduate student and supervisor, said the weirdest thing is when alumni answer the phone when they are at the bar or on a date. One guy said he would call back later "after his woman left."

They need to know a lot about the campus, too, just in case alumni ask questions about CMU.

Heckart said the callers are required to talk with the alumni for four to six minutes before they ask them to donate. They should talk to them about CMU and what's going on around campus.

Conard tries to make alumni fell more comfortable on the phone, she said.

"I find out what they like about CMU instead of forcing things on them," Conard said.

There are bonuses at the end of each night. The more pledges you get, the more chances you have to win, Conard said.

Heckart said whoever gets the most credit cards gets $10. And there are monthly games as well - they currently are playing a game called "Climbing Mount Pleasant." Depending on how many pledges a person gets, they get to climb up the mountain.

The winner will receive a $50 gift card.

"I expected it to be a sterile environment," Conard said about her job. "But it was the complete opposite."


news@cm-life.com

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools