Office for University Advancement
On March 17, 2020, Chancellor Sciame-Giesecke informed the campus to pack up and go work from home. At that time, we didn’t know for how long, and we were advised to take our essential files and laptops home. It was all so new, we thought it was temporary, not knowing we wouldn’t be back in the office till at least August of 2020, and then only intermittently.
The edict came down from the IU Foundation, the separate fund-raising arm of IU, that we were not to fundraise. Given how quickly hundreds of people lost their jobs, businesses were shut down, and more and more people were getting sick, it was a question of sensitivity. We complied, and it was hard to have a big chunk of the development teams’ work taken off the plate.
For development, it did present an opportunity to reach out to our donors, ask after their well-being, and let them know what steps IUK had taken. People were happy to talk and share in a way they might not have in the past, given that we were all in this crisis together.
Media and Marketing had to be very nimble, because directions from IU about what to post and promote and release and share changed on a daily basis. Videos were required, news stories, student communication, and creative ways to connect with our students. Our Chancellor, who is very media-savvy, helped to direct the communications coming from our campus, and was a calming voice through daily communications to fac/staff and students.
Alumni was initially stymied, and then rallied to reach out to alumni through virtual events, leading the IU system with that, doing podcasts with alums talking about their IUK experience, encouraging students to hang in there, and empathizing with them when commencement was cancelled. Virtual board meetings continued.
We had numerous additional events that were cancelled, disappointing the guests, and the planners of the events. Two alumni by school “Distinction” events were cancelled, rescheduled and then cancelled again. Three donor recognition events in late March, mid-summer and the fall were also cancelled. For each one, we sent an explanatory letter, and the hope that we would all meet safely again in the near future.
We were in the midst of fundraising for the new Student Activities and Events Center. We were also completing the IU Bicentennial Campaign, which was extended from June 2020 to September 2020. We more than achieved our Bicentennial goal, thanks to our generous donors, who all had IU in their hearts., The new building fundraising was delayed, even as the building was completed. It served as a very large, socially distanced classroom, allowing students to be in person, which they really wanted.
The entire staff in University Advancement kept track daily of their activities and submitted a weekly report to the VC, which was forwarded to the Chancellor. People continued to produce excellent work, and with some of the additional time available it allowed them (we didn’t miss all the meetings that were cancelled) to take advantage of the abundance of online training that was available through IU’s membership in Linked In, and also our professional associations that pivoted to online conferences and trainings. People pitched in to help other team members with their work, when they didn’t have enough of their own. It was job sharing in its truest sense.
We went to campus once a week to pick up our mail. It was joyous to see others, as that was one of the greatest things we were all missing, the human contact and connection with our colleagues and friends.
The IU Foundation eventually directed fundraising to focus on two areas: Students in Crisis and Food Insufficient (Cougar Cupboard.) Generous donors and first-time donors all responded with unexpected gifts and raised a significant amount to help our students. One of the unanticipated benefits of focusing on these two accounts was we were able to change an outdated disbursement system for the Students in Crisis Fund; and the Cougar Cupboard fed not just the students, but members of their family too. The campus truly pulled together.
People were wary about coming back to campus, and as shots first became available in February, most took advantage of them.
We spent a lot of time talking about staff members feelings, and reaching out collectively and individually. Some of the team or their family became ill with Covid, and we provided meals, and gift cards. The University responded to interns who could no longer work and be paid by paying their hourly wages through the end of the school year, which was a magnificent gesture on their part. People focused on being kind.
We tried to instill boundaries between work and home, and even when working from home encouraged people to block out time for lunch, and take breaks to go for a walk. We were flexible with scheduling for people who had young children or needed to supervise their children’s online learning. No question, this has been a hard time for everyone.
We look forward to the day we can all be in the office together (we are limited to maximum of 5 people on any day). It feels like the light is coming at the end of the tunnel, and people are more optimistic.