YaleSOAR (Student Orgs Annual Raise) is a student-led giving week hosted by the Yale College Office of Development. Registered undergraduate student organizations may apply to create custom campaign pages in GiveCampus, an online crowdfunding platform. For one week in December, these campaigns will be promoted to Yale alumni through the Yale Alumni Fund. Groups will also be encouraged to solicit group alumni and personal networks. The Yale College Office of Development will guide student groups through the application, campaign-building, and promotion process. 

Undergraduate student organizations who have re-registered with the Yale College Dean’s Office for 2024-25 and have identified a need for funds to meet specific goals are eligible to participate in YaleSOAR pending application review and approval. Funding proposals must directly support the work of your student organization and cannot support a third party, external charity, or another 501(c)(3).) 

After confirming your eligibility, your group should compile a short list of 1-3 fundraising goals, determine the dollar amount needed to cover these goals by considering your annual budget and other funding sources, and begin brainstorming a compelling message that will help you share these goals with potential donors.  

You should also draft a brief promotional plan to share your campaign page with a targeted list or lists of recipients. These can be former group members, other Yale alumni, personal networks (friends, family, mentors, etc.), peer groups, or other recipients who are invested in your cause or have a connection to your members. You will share an initial version of this plan in your application and flesh it out further with advisor support if you are approved. 

Student org leaders/members may complete the YaleSOAR application starting on August 23, 2024, and no later than the deadline of September 22 at 11:59pm. Please submit one application per group. You may want to recruit multiple members of your group to help you brainstorm your fundraising goals, donor-facing message, and promotional plan. The application should take 20-30 minutes to fill out. Please review key requirements here before you begin.  

There will be a virtual information session on Tuesday, September 10 from 3-4pm. This session will provide a brief overview of YaleSOAR, review participation requirements, go over the 2024 application, and leave time for Q&A. Click here to register.  

For more personalized help with your application, YaleSOAR student ambassadors will host in-person office hours on September 16, from 6-8pm in HQ 121 or on September 19, 6-8pm in the Silliman Common Room. No registration is required for these office hours and students should feel free to drop by at any time during this window.

Your SOC (Student Orgs Consultant) is another great resource for help with your YaleSOAR application. Finally, you can always email yalesoar@yale.edu to reach a member of the YaleSOAR team for support of any kind. 

Participating student org leaders and members of your fundraising team should expect to commit 1-3 hours per week during the campaign building period and giving week, including a training session to be scheduled in October. YaleSOAR is a student-driven program: the more time you put in, the more successful your campaign can be.

Office of Development staff will be available to support YaleSOAR participants throughout the application, onboarding, campaign-building, and giving week phases. Each group will be assigned a “YaleSOAR Advisor,” who will provide strategic advice, answer questions, and help ensure groups are building strong campaigns and promotional plans. Advising will take place over Zoom, at in-person meetings, one-off strategy sessions, and/or email.  

In addition, groups will receive robust training materials, including education on the GiveCampus crowdfunding platform, guidelines for campaign promotion, and resources on best practice for campaign building. Support for technical issues will also be available 24/7 through the GiveCampus team. 

A general solicitation from the Yale Alumni Fund will draw traffic to the main YaleSOAR homepage, where alumni will be invited to browse through all participating campaigns. Most donations, however, will come through targeted promotion to specific audiences from your individual group, as you direct potential donors towards a custom link to your campaign page.  

Participating groups will develop a promotional plan throughout the application process and in collaboration with their assigned YaleSOAR advisor. First, you will identify who to ask (group alumni, other Yale alumni, personal networks, mentors, peer groups, etc.). Then, you will develop a plan to reach that group or groups. Promotional methods can be as creative as you want, and may include targeted emails, texting campaigns, postcards, social media outreach, events, drawing on campus affiliates for support, and more.  

The Yale Alumni Fund will promote all YaleSOAR campaigns to its alumni base, but this general solicitation may not bring as much traffic to your individual campaign as a targeted outreach to audiences who are particularly interested in your cause or have a connection to your members. You may not have a list of past group alumni – that is OK! We encourage you and your team members to brainstorm potential connections (family, friends, mentors, colleagues, peer groups) in addition to the alumni community. Crowdfunding works best when you ask personal networks to share on your behalf. You will also have the opportunity to brainstorm with your assigned YaleSOAR advisor.  

Groups may not send “cold solicitations” to any recipients with whom they do not already have a prior established connection. Examples of “cold solicitation” include searching the web for Yale alumni in your group’s field or using LinkedIin to identify wealthy alumni to contact without a prior connection.  

Funds will be available through the Yale College Business Office approximately one month after campaigns close on December 10 and after your group sends thank-you notes to all donors.  

Funds must directly support the work of your student organization and cannot support a third party, external charity, or another 501(c)(3). Funds must be used in the manner described in your fundraising message and on your campaign page. Groups who raise their goal and/or more than $500 will be required to send a stewardship report to donors at the end of the academic year demonstrating that funds were used as intended.  

Recurring gifts and pledges are not permissible. All donations to YaleSOAR must be tax-deductible, so groups may not offer incentives or sponsorship packages in return for donations. 

No. The Yale College Office of Development will guide your team through the campaign-building process and provide suggestions to help make campaigns successful, but we cannot guarantee any monies raised through participation. If you do not meet your goal this year, don't give up! Groups are encouraged to participate in YaleSOAR every year and strengthen campaigns and networks over time. 

A full summary of student org fundraising options both on and off-campus is available here. 

• Strong campaigns will come up with succinct, achievable fundraising priorities and a compelling message to narrate those priorities to donors. When developing a strong funding goal, think about how you will make a persuasive case– highlight a special project, service opportunity, conference, or other activity that is essential to the enrichment of your members, rather than asking for general budget support. A strong campaign will choose a dollar goal that they know is within their reach but also demonstrates a spirit of ambition.  

• Team members on a strong campaign will lean heavily on their assigned advisor for support, scheduling additional strategy sessions, thoughtfully asking for and incorporating feedback, and brainstorming new engagement strategies. They will utilize exciting video, photos of group activities, and multiple social media platforms to promote their campaign both leading up to and during the giving week.  

• Strong campaigns will brainstorm targeted lists of contacts in multiple categories, such as parents/families, personal networks, and group alumni, using different messaging and platforms that will resonate with each category. They will spend time planning and scheduling methods of outreach, scanning their networks for possible promotion (i.e. a recurring newsletter, popular social media account, or partner organization). During the giving week, a strong campaign will utilize the GiveCampus platform to keep donors engaged, posting regular updates, engaging advocates, and proposing matches and challenges. Finally, a strong campaign will use their first YaleSOAR experience to inform the next one, building a contact list from their donor pool, stewarding donors effectively, and staying in touch throughout the year.