Date of Award
5-1-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ed.D. in Education
First Advisor
Kerry B. Melear
Second Advisor
Whitney T. Webb
Third Advisor
Amy E. Wells Dolan
School
University of Mississippi
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
Declining government funding for higher education has led universities to progressively rely on private donations from alumni and donors. Mississippi’s budget for higher education has decreased by $6.6 billion from FY08 to FY18 (Mitchell et al., 2019). As financial pressure increases, the role of alumni association offices has become crucial in securing financial support for scholarships, infrastructure, research, and campus life (McDonough, 2017). With alumni contributing over $59.9 billion in private funds to higher education in 2022, their support is vital for colleges and universities to meet financial and academic goals (CASE, 2023). Early engagement of young alumni is critical to establishing a long-term commitment towards their alma mater and increases the chances of future contributions (Weerts & Ronca, 2009). Research on what motivates young alumni to engage with and give back to their university is limited. The Ole Miss Alumni Association (OMAA) has implemented strategies to better engage with upcoming and recent graduates by creating the Young Alumni Council (YAC) and Student Alumni Council (SAC). With the rising costs to maintain scholarships, facilities, and other major projects, the Ole Miss Alumni Association will continue to increasingly rely on graduates from the University of Mississippi to give back to their alma mater. Understanding what motivates alumni, specifically recent graduates, to engage with the Ole Miss Alumni Association will help guide the alumni association staff toward implementing more effective engagement, membership, and philanthropic strategies. This paper serves as an introduction to the problem of practice, reflects the author’s positionality, reviews the conceptual framework and literature review, and gives an overview of Manuscript II.
Recommended Citation
Skelton, Mary Kate, "Young Alumni Engagement at The University of Mississippi: A Qualitative Study on Recent Graduate Perceptions of The Ole Miss Alumni Association" (2026). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 8875.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/8875