CASE Launches Global Resource for Educational Advancement-Related Metrics; Announces Acquisition of the Voluntary Support of Education Survey
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Council for Advancement and Support of Education today announced the launch of "AMAtlas," a global resource for educational advancement-related metrics, benchmarks and analytics. As a stepping stone in developing this new resource, CASE has acquired the Voluntary Support of Education annual survey, its associated historical U.S. and Canadian data and an interactive online database from the Council for Aid to Education.
AMAtlas will, over time, serve as a comprehensive, data-rich resource for schools, universities and colleges that are eager to use data to inform the work they do in alumni relations, communications, fundraising, marketing and allied areas of advancement.
Sue Cunningham, president and CEO of CASE, says AMAtlas will fulfill an unmet need for reliable data, relevant in the U.S. and around the world, which will allow educational institutions to benchmark their data and develop comprehensive metrics for their fundraising, alumni relations and marketing programs.
"Education transforms lives and society. Institutional advancement is a vital component of this work in all the parts of the world in which CASE operates. CASE's AMAtlas will serve as a locus for global advancement leaders to support data-driven decision-making and benchmarking for their institutions," says Cunningham. "With the launch of AMAtlas, CASE is creating a resource that will support our 3,700 members in 77 countries, providing access to data that is invaluable worldwide for strategic decision making."
CASE currently conducts more than 20 surveys globally, including the Ross-CASE Survey and the CASE Compensation Survey. These surveys, along with the VSE survey, which is recognized as the definitive resource of charitable giving to education institutions in the United States, will be key parts of the new resource.
CAE has conducted the VSE survey since 1957. In 1999, it developed an online data collection and data mining platform for VSE. The platform was completely redesigned in 2018 to take advantage of advances in technology. It is now a state-of-the-art benchmarking tool that will reside in CASE's new global resource.
Roger Benjamin, president of Council for Aid to Education, says CAE decided to spin off the VSE survey and its online database so it could focus its resources on its core education assessment and learning initiatives.
"We are pleased to have found just the right home for our VSE survey with CASE," says Benjamin. "As a long-time sponsor of the survey and leader in the advancement community, CASE is perfectly positioned to expand on the excellent work of our staff led by VSE Director Ann Kaplan." Kaplan joins CASE as part of the VSE acquisition.
Cunningham notes that launching AMAtlas, with the VSE as an important catalyst, adds a highly valued and substantive benefit for CASE's members, which include schools, colleges and universities worldwide.
"CASE members will have access to the data collected via the annual VSE survey, including more than 30 years of fundraising data in North America, as well as data collected through more than 20 surveys that CASE conducts globally," Cunningham says. "In addition to collecting and analyzing this wealth of information, CASE will use the information to further best practices, inform advocacy efforts, and share trends and insights throughout CASE's programs, publications and services, equipping members and others with the vital insights needed to garner critical philanthropic support and engagement for their institutions.."
Fred Weiss, chief research and data officer, says the acquisition of the VSE survey along with CASE's current research initiatives are important first steps toward offering a comprehensive global data resource for its members.
"Our future plan is to pull together essential data from many different sources, including the VSE, Ross-CASE survey, the CASE Campaign Report, the CASE/CCAE Survey of Charitable Giving to Canadian Higher Education, the CASE Member Magazine Readership Survey and other data-rich resources, to build a reliable global database of advancement metrics," says Weiss.
CASE will launch data collection for the 2018 VSE survey in late July while other AMAtlas projects are ongoing.
About CASE
CASE—the Council for Advancement and Support of Education—is a global, not-for-profit membership association with a vision to advance education to transform lives and society.
CASE is the home for advancement professionals, inspiring, challenging, and equipping them to act effectively and with integrity to champion the success of their institutions. CASE defines the competencies and standards for the profession of advancement, leading, and championing their dissemination and application with more than 97,000 advancement professionals at 3,100 member institutions in 80 countries.
Broad and growing communities of professionals gather under the global CASE umbrella. Currently these include alumni relations, development services, communications, fundraising, government relations, and marketing. These professionals are at all stages of their careers and may be working in universities, schools, colleges, cultural institutions, or other not-for-profits. CASE uses the intellectual capital and professional talents of a community of international volunteers to advance its work, and its membership includes many educational partners who work closely with the educational sector.
Headquartered in Washington, D.C., CASE works across all continents from its regional offices in London, Singapore, and Mexico City to achieve a seamless experience for all its stakeholders, particularly its members, volunteers, and staff.
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