UWC Mahindra (MUWCI) claimed over a quarter of their Davis IMPACT funds this year by building on fundraising growth from year one of the match funding campaign. In year two, funds raised increased by 150% and the number of donors increased by 80%. This is the largest increase that was seen among all schools in year two of the challenge.

A leanly staffed Advancement Office (1.5 employees covering Fundraising, Alumni Relations & Communications functions) chose strategic initiatives to help grow both numbers and sizes of gifts, in efforts that were predominantly focused on digital platforms. 

Giving Subsite
The school launched a dedicated Giving site (https://giving.uwcmahindracollege.org/) which helped outline the broad case for support and key funding priorities. Customized sub-sites for separate campaigns also helped personalize campaign messages for specific fundraising initiatives. (e.g. the 10 Year Reunion campaign to fund two scholarships)

Topical Campaigns & Variety of Appeals 
Fundraising messages closely matched current topical issues such as the refugee crisis in Syria, the “Muslim Ban” in the United States, post-earthquake relief in Nepal and so on. Appeals came from various members of the community (students, faculty, alumni/classmates, parents, NC members) instead of only the Head of College and fundraising staff. Scholarship stories - especially videos - were well received on social media, with over 60,0000 impressions for some posts. 

Faculty & Staff Giving
Faculty - both from MUWCI and the supporters of the UWCSEA Staff Scholarship - continued to be the cornerstone of reliable repeat donors. This year they were joined by 100% participation from the college’s contracted driving & transport staff (9 drivers). Faculty raised scholarships are designated to a student scholarship (profile/nationality) of their choice. 

Student “Crowdfunding”
While Class Gifts from current students don’t qualify towards the Davis Match, students were still involved in fundraising efforts towards student projects and community impact initiatives for Akshara. Using crowdfunding platforms like Indiegogo’s “Generosity”, students raised funds from their friends and family for an Outdoor Education expedition to Ladakh, as well as for crucial items like sewing machines and bicycles for Akshara’s women’s self-help group initiative. For next year, the Advancement Office will debut the college’s own in-house crowdfunding platform to better manage donor stewardship.  

Major Gifts & Alumni Endowment Fund 
An alumni endowment fund was established with two major gifts in the $50,000 range. Some major gifts secured through the CSR programmes of alumni companies were not eligible for the Davis Match, but resulted from people’s increased awareness of the matching incentive and ongoing campaigns. 

Donor Stewardship Events
For the first time, concerted stewardship events & get-togethers were conducted in Mumbai, New York, London, Paris and at UWC Congress to connect with over 300 alumni to share Vision 2022 objectives in person. New donors emerged from all these events.