Hello … Maryland’s Future Calling

At 6 p.m., when many offices around the university are dark, there’s one place on campus where the work day has just started: the Maryland Fund for Excellence. Here, a shift of 28 students is on the phones, calling alumni, asking them to support their alma mater.

While some universities hire private companies to call alumni, Maryland has a different philosophy. “Students are the university’s best ambassadors. These guys could be working at the library or dining services,” says telefund manager James Logbo ’04, “but they have chosen to serve as a link to the Maryland family instead.”

Students on call for the Maryland Fund: (back to front) Boh Suh, Bisola Daramola, Helga Spencer and Jamone West.

That point isn’t lost on the students who man the phone banks. “You get to have some amazing conversations,” says student supervisor Maura Kennedy. “The best is when you call someone from your own major—then it’s even easier to establish a connection, to talk about the school and our needs.”

Each of the 80 students working for the Maryland Fund for Excellence attends a week-long training course where they learn how to talk to former students about what is going on at the university. “You’re going to be nervous,” warns Kennedy, “but it’s okay—you’ll be talking with some great people.”

“And every gift, no matter where the donor designates it—to a scholarship, a dean’s fund or some other initiative—has an immediate impact on your Maryland experience,” adds Logbo.

Since state funding covers 27 percent of the university’s budget, alumni support is essential to enhance the academic, artistic and athletic programs that have propelled Maryland’s momentum.

So when alumni answer their phones and hear a friendly voice say, “This is the Maryland Fund for Excellence,” they can rest assured—it’s not another telemarketer. It’s Maryland’s future on the line. —MW

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