"Investing in UVI just got easier..." That is the message visitors to the University of the Virgin Islands web site are now receiving with the newly implemented online giving feature found at www.uvi.edu. A prominent button on the UVI homepage - "Support UVI, Donate Now" - offers all members of the community and potential supporters a quick, easy and secure way to make online donations using credit cards.
The online giving form provides UVI supporters with a variety of ways to tailor their gifts. According to Ardrina Scott-Elliott, UVI's director of Advancement Services, donors can select from seven levels of giving, make recurring gifts to the university and have the ability to designate a specific UVI area that should receive the funds. There is even an option to take advantage of matching gift programs offered by some companies and organizations.
Scott-Elliott pointed out that a federal Title III grant was secured to pay for the development of the online giving system, associated hardware and ongoing support. She also said that increasing the level of support generated for the University is a key goal of UVI President Dr. David Hall.
"There is no greater investment we can make in the present and the future, than to invest in the mental, emotional and spiritual development of our students," Dr. Hall said. "An engaging, demanding and sensitive educational institution has enormous transformative power. Your support of this University will make a difference in whether we can transform the Virgin Islands, the region and the world."
Scott-Elliott said that the new online giving function is tied in with the existing record-keeping services used by UVI's Office of Institutional Advancement. Donors are immediately provided with online confirmation of gifts and will also receive an acknowledgement at their email addresses.
The University is now actively promoting the new online giving service. At the end of June, an "email blast" calling attention to the effort was sent to more than 7,000 UVI alumni. "Alumni had been asking for this type of tool, and now it's available," said Linda I. Smith, UVI's director of Annual Giving and Alumni Affairs. "It's a very flexible, secure and user-friendly way to support UVI and I'm encouraging everyone to make use of this new tool," Smith said.
The University has also prepared a mailing campaign to support the introduction of online giving. It will go to alumni for whom email contact information is not available and to local businesses and other supporters. More information is available from Linda I. Smith, UVI's director of Annual Giving and Alumni Affairs, at (340) 692-4023 (lsmith@uvi.edu) and from the "Giving" section of the UVI web site - www.uvi.edu.
The online giving link is also available from the University's UVI Today... photo blog at: http://uvitoday.blogspot.com.
UVI Internet