Strengthening Alumni Connection to Grow Engagement and Philanthropy

For Palmer College, alumni connection isn’t a sentiment—it’s the strongest predictor of advocacy, engagement, and giving.

Overview

Palmer College is the first and largest chiropractic college in the world. For more than 125 years, Palmer has set the standard for chiropractic education.

TWB Fundraising partnered with Palmer College to achieve their goal of understanding how alumni feel about their experience today, what drives advocacy (or dissatisfaction), and where engagement and giving efforts could be most effective. Using a college-wide alumni perception and engagement survey, TWB gathered data to reframe how Palmer thinks about alumni—and provided a strategy across campuses and alumni cohorts.

The Challenge

Palmer alumni care deeply about their College and take pride in its legacy, but aren’t always clear on how to get involved. Validated data that supports investment in alumni programming and engagement was crucial for leadership to make strategic decisions. The challenge was moving from instinct to insight—and TWB’s charge was clear: listen to graduates as a third party to understand their relationship with Palmer today.

Palmer faced several critical questions:

• What truly drives alumni loyalty—and do those drivers differ by campus, graduation decade, or career stage?
• Where is alumni alignment strongest—and where are the greatest opportunities to deepen engagement?
• What motivates alumni to refer students, volunteer their time, participate in events, or give financially—and what barriers limit that engagement?

Our Approach

TWB designed and executed a comprehensive alumni engagement and perception study. The study collected qualitative and quantitative data through one-on-one interviews with alumni and a survey delivered by email.

The work included:

• Conducting early interviews to align the study with Palmer’s culture, campuses, and strategic goals
• Testing themes and language with a small group of involved alumni to ensure authenticity and data clarity
  
• Administering a comprehensive alumni survey measuring satisfaction, connection, reputation, Net Promoter Score (NPS), and engagement patterns
• Completing 28 in-depth alumni interviews to explore drivers of connection, detachment, and engagement motivation
  
• Analyzing data to identify alignment, advocacy, and giving—and segmenting alumni by shared attitudes and behaviors
  
• Assessing connection levels to highlight where targeted engagement could have the greatest impact
• Developing a practical activation roadmap that Palmer could implement over 6–12 months

Three Strategic Insights

1. Connection is the biggest lever

Across interviews and survey findings, one relationship was consistent: alumni who feel meaningfully connected are more likely to advocate, participate, and give. 

Why this matters: Connection is not abstract—it is measurable and actionable. Strengthening connection strengthens outcomes.

2. Alumni experiences vary meaningfully across segments

Alumni are not uniform. Different campuses, cohorts, and life stages demonstrate distinct patterns of pride, priorities, and preferred ways of staying involved.

Why this matters: A one-size-fits-all engagement strategy will underperform. Palmer benefits from tailored approaches by segment, life stage, and geography.

3. Engagement precedes giving

Engagement behaviors and philanthropic support reinforce one another. Alumni who feel seen and valued are more likely to deepen their relationship over time—including financially.

Why this matters: This is actionable. When engagement is strengthened thoughtfully, it can expand the pipeline for giving—not only through solicitations, but by building trust, relevance, and relationships.

From Data to Action

Through this alumni perception study, TWB delivered three key recommendations.

1. A tiered engagement roadmap strategy based on connection
2. Guidance on segment-specific messaging and engagement pathways
3. A 6-12 month activation roadmap with measurable KPIs measured initiatives

The Impact

This project gave Palmer more than a snapshot—it created a shared understanding of alumni reality today and a practical framework for action. Connection is no longer a concept; it is a measurable growth lever, and Palmer can more intentionally strengthen alumni advocacy, expand participation, and build a stronger foundation for philanthropic growth over time.

Because this work includes institution-specific data, detailed metrics and segmentation analysis are shared privately.

If you’d like to explore more about how TWB has helped organizations like Palmer turn alumni sentiments into a measurable growth strategy, let’s talk.

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