From the Nominator

"UMass Amherst’s Student Alumni Association pioneered a brand new event called TAG Days—a week-long extravaganza to Talk About Giving (thus, TAG) and celebrate the impact of philanthropy on campus. TAG Days kicked off with a campus-wide scavenger hunt, where students were encouraged to find over 100 tag-shaped signs that highlighted donated locations and items across campus. In addition to the week-long scavenger hunt, daily programming aimed to further educate students about the impact of philanthropy on their UMass experience. 

Monday’s event, I Love UMass Day, included a philanthropy-themed trivia game, scholarship fact cards, and giveaways. On Tuesday, we partnered with annual giving to lead a fundraising workshop for student groups on campus, specifically highlighting the MinuteFund, UMass’s crowdfunding platform. Wednesday’s event was called Gift Lyft; SAA members “gifted” students a golf cart ride to class while pointing out scavenger hunt tags and sharing fun philanthropy facts. The week wrapped up with Thankful Thursday, an event where students recorded thank-you videos for donors. After a week of spreading philanthropy awareness, these videos were an especially meaningful way to conclude the initiative and recognize the impact that donations have on the UMass community. 

Overall, TAG Days was a huge success! We partnered with all 10 UMass schools and colleges, filmed 130+ thank you videos, and engaged with over 500 students. We hope to continue TAG Days as a campus tradition to increase student engagement with SAA, spread philanthropy awareness, and cultivate a lasting culture of giving among students and alumni."

From the Judges

A creative way to allow the student body to become engaged with the alumni and connect with opportunities to partner for mentoring and stewardship.