Electronic Alumni Communities

Time was when you could create your own online community through services like Yahoo.com or Geocities.com. Remember those? That was in the “dark ages” of the Internet…way back…about 15 years ago.

SchoolAdvancement had an eCommunity at that time. The software that created the forum was free. Some of the popular forum software had names like Simple Machines and vBulletin. Some are still around today.

Online forums were becoming an influential information resource on the Internet. Blogs were just starting to become popular, where thoughts and opinions of experts were shared. Wikipedia was just starting as a reference resource that could be updated by others with pertinent information to add about topics. Forums were ways to build communities with others who had like interests, linking experts with “newbies” to create a worldwide learning community.

It was a way for schools to reconnect with their alumni, and begin to develop their relationship with them.

And then the spammers came.

Individuals who offered courses on “How to make money on the Internet” began targeting forums, joining so they could sell anything and everything, and the practice continues today. Even Facebook is infested by them. Facebook has its own Marketplace, and, I tried it once, and never received what I had paid for. It was a Christmas present for someone, too. In addition to the SchoolAdvancement forum, I moderated a forum that I used for students in my technology classes to share information regarding software programs we were working on in class, and had another that could connect high school band parents across the country so we could share ideas on how to raise funds for music programs, since schools across the country were slashing budgets at the time.

Guess what happened? Both the technology and the band parent forums were hacked, and turned into sites that were used for purposes not intended for which they were created. Luckily I could log in and disable them, deleting the databases that were the repository of conversations and shared information.

As for your school’s online alumni community, it’s best to leave it to the professionals! While you can simply create a Private Group on Facebook today, these are usually groups started by the alumni themselves. For the school that’s serious about connecting with their alumni, The Alumni Channel at http://alumnichannel.com/ is an excellent resource. Check it out if you haven’t started an alumni community for your school yet. And, with today’s elementary schools charging four and sometimes five figures of tuition for just one student, it would behoove elementary schools to examine this avenue as a means of potential support in the 3 Ts every school needs and everyone has been gifted with – time, talent and treasure.

Remember, when you’re working with alumni from faith-based and private schools, many professionals believe that the only people they should be contacting are those that “graduated” from the institution. While these individuals certainly have the greatest potential to be engaged and committed to your school, you should include those students that attended your school for just a few years. They may have left not because of financial hardships experienced by their parents, but because they moved. Your school may have had a significant impact on their life, and they may want others to be impacted in the same way.

Share this: