Organizations I’ve worked with:

Here’s what they say:

  • Jennifer delivered an outstanding report that exceeded our goals. She brought deep expertise in alumni and volunteer engagement, asked smart questions, and delivered recommendations that were practical, actionable, and immediately usable. The project felt like a true partnership, and we experienced a clear return on our investment. I would enthusiastically recommend her to any institution seeking meaningful, measurable improvements in any aspect of its constituent engagement efforts.

    Kathy Kale, Assistant Vice President, Alumni Relations, Santa Clara University


  • After 20+ years as a Development Operations professional I thought I'd seen it all. Jennifer introduced me to a new part of our industry that I hadn't fully appreciated. Her insights into alumni engagement revealed its true potential beyond the usual events and outreach. She showed how a strategic, intentional alumni relations program isn't just a nice-to-have - it's a powerful engine that drives development and cultivates a ready, engaged pipeline for philanthropy.

    Leslie T. Gonnella, Associate Vice President, Georgia Tech

  • Jennifer came in and mobilized the team at Lehigh for the next generation of data-driven alumni relations work. She made smart process improvements, advocated for alumni needs, and yet always found a way to foreground industry best practices and the priorities of the institution. She positioned career and affinity programs to reach new heights and evolved time-honored Lehigh traditions to have renewed staying power. If you're looking for someone to stand alongside you and help bring your alumni relations dreams into reality, look no further!

    Megan K. Stevens, Assistant Vice President, Annual Giving and Alumni Engagement, Stevens Institute of Technology

  • Jennifer really changed how our department thought about alumni engagement and using data to measure what we were doing. I learned a lot from her and really appreciated the work she did for Cornell.

    Laura Toy, former VP of Alumni Affairs & Development and Principal Gift Officer at Cornell University

  • Jennifer and I rebuilt the nominations process for our Board of Directors together. It seemed like a daunting task at first, but thanks to Jennifer's expertise and experience, we now have an efficient and democratic process that ensures transparency and inclusiveness. She also navigated our existing Board's feedback with the right balance of leadership and diplomacy. As a result, the Board had a very good pool of candidates to select from! If you're looking for help reimagining nominations for your Board of Directors I highly recommend her!

    Tim Phillips, Co-Chair, Nominations Committee and Board Member, CAT-Coalition for Appropriate Transportation

  • I had the good fortune to work with Jennifer during her tenure as head of the Alumni Relations function at Lehigh University. As an Alumni Trustee and a co-founder of the largest Lehigh professional alliance, I worked in close partnership with Jennifer. She is a true professional; someone who cares passionately about the quality of her work and that of her team, and who is always looking for ways to take things to a higher level. I have always been impressed by Jennifer’s entrepreneurial spirit, which you don’t find very often in a large educational institution. She and the team that she built brought the Alumni Relations function to a whole new level, providing us with support and data to help us achieve our goals. I would recommend Jennifer to any organization looking for someone to help drive meaningful engagement with its key constituencies.

    Michael Connor, former Trustee, Lehigh University; Co-founder of the Lehigh Wall Street Council; former CEO, Market News International; former CEO, Gimme Credit LLC

  • Jennifer delivered an outstanding webinar for our members on converting alumni into committed volunteers. Her expertise and practical strategies gave our members actionable tools they could implement immediately. Jennifer has a rare talent for making complex engagement work feel clear, achievable and energizing. Our participants left inspired and better equipped thanks to her insights.

    Nicki Meneley, CAE, Chief Executive Officer of the Fraternity Executives Association

  • As the head of a minority alumni affinity organization for four years with a notoriously low participation rate in university sponsored alumni activities I found Jennifer to be an extraordinary ally in both crafting programs that proved to be more appealing to my constituency as well as both selling these programs to the University and arranging for supports that ensured their success. Over the course of our collaboration, I came to view her as a dear friend, rue her loss to my university, am grateful for the legacy that she leaves behind and, am confident that she will leave a wake of success among those who she serves in this her new incarnation!

    Reginald Jennings, Former President of the Black and Latino Alumni Network for Community and Excellence (BALANCE)

  • Well organized with key points of action presented. * Opportunities for attendees to ask questions after each section of the presentation with excellent group engagement. *Transactional vs. tranformational volunteers is a GREAT concept. * Excellent speaker with LOADS of knowledge!! Loved it. *I've already spoken to my Director about bringing you in to help our team!

    Survey responses from 100% 5-star reviews at the Lehigh Valley Nonprofit Impact Conference

About Jennifer Cunningham, Alumni Relations and Nonprofit Consultant

I’m an alumni engagement and nonprofit consultant who helps organizations build communities that give back. I work with colleges, universities, schools, and nonprofits to design practical engagement strategies that turn interest into involvement and investment.

I bring nearly 20 years of experience in alumni relations and advancement, including senior roles at Cornell University and Lehigh University. I partner with advancement leaders who know the outcome they want but do not have the time or internal capacity to build it themselves.

What I’m Known For

Clients come to me saying things like:

  • I know this matters, but it feels messy and I don’t have time, expertise, energy, or people to focus on it

  • We have amazing volunteers but we’re not sure what to do with them

  • We do a ton of events and people love them, but they’re not moving the needle; they’re not turning attendees into donors, volunteers, or advocates

  • Board members and senior leaders are asking for more concrete metrics, but we’re not sure how to collect or present the data that matters

  • I know I need to invest in professional development for my team, but I don’t have budget to send everyone, and I’m not sure which training provider will provide staff with what I really want them to learn

My work focuses on:

  • Alumni engagement strategy

  • Volunteer recruitment and management

  • Alumni engagement and volunteer participation metrics and reporting

  • Board and committee structures

  • Event strategies that lead to advocacy, service and volunteerism, and giving

Engagements often include:

  • Strategic planning and program design

  • Onsite or virtual training

  • Interim or project-based leadership support

  • Facilitation of retreats and working sessions

How I Work

I’m not a drop-in consultant who hands over a slide deck and offers good luck! Rather, I work alongside my clients to:

  • Design new programs from scratch

  • Fix programs that are stuck or underperforming

  • Create tools, timelines, and frameworks staff can use beyond my time with you

  • Train teams and volunteers on your specific strategies and tactics, taking into account your resources, technical tools, politics, traditions, and goals.

    Engagements often include:

  • Strategic planning and program design

  • Onsite or virtual training

  • Interim or project-based leadership support

  • Facilitation of retreats and working sessions

Who I Work With:

  • Colleges and universities

  • Alumni associations and foundations

  • Nonprofits of all sizes - it’s especially interesting when a nonprofit has alumni, which most do!

  • Corporate and professional alumni networks

My primary clients are:

  • Advancement Vice Presidents, Assistant Vice Presidents, and Associate Vice Presidents; Vice Chancellors; Heads of Schools; Board Chairs; Directors of Development

  • Executive Directors and Board Chairs at nonprofits

  • Directors of Alumni Relations or Volunteer Programs

  • Small or one-person shops with big expectations and goals

I’m especially effective with:

  • One- to three-person shops

  • Newly reorganized or reorganizing teams

  • Leaders inheriting programs that need new structure fast and/or a leader to keep the trains on the track until a new leader can be hired

    My Philosophies:

    I believe:

  • The best and most enduring engagement strategies and volunteer programs are mutually beneficial to the attendees, donors, and volunteers and to the organization.

  • Volunteers need clear roles and clear exits, otherwise their gifts of time and talent will be wasted

  • Events must have a goal beyond “get a lot of people to attend”

  • Strategic plans only matter if staff can implement the recommended tactics; if the political, funding, and talent elements aren’t aligned, it won’t work

  • Comparing one institution to another or a “copy/save as” approach miiiiight work, but a quick, well-designed and well-analyzed survey to constituents and third-party discussions with connectors and influencers is a much, much better foundation for programs that succeed in the long run

Writing and Thought Leadership

I regularly write and speak about:

  • Alumni engagement strategies and programs

  • Volunteer management and volunteer best practices

  • Engagement metrics that matter

  • Event strategy as a conversion tool

    My writing is read by alumni relations professionals and nonprofit leaders across higher education and the nonprofit sector. I speak at nonprofit and alumni relations industry conferences as well as to teams and board of directors. I also provide board retreat facilitation and nomination and volunteer onboarding process support. Finally, I’m the author of practical minibooks and guides designed for the people doing the day-to-day work, like associate and assistant directors.

My goal is always the same: Build programs that make getting informed, involved, and invested easier to manage and easier for your ideal audience to engage.

Work With Me

If you are:

  • Rebuilding or launching an alumni, donor, or volunteer engagement program

  • Rethinking volunteer roles

  • Preparing for a board retreat or board overhaul

  • Looking for personalized training that is relevant to your institution, organization, and team

I can help!