Volunteer Resources

It is important for a club to plan a variety of events that appeal to a diverse group of alumni in your area. This includes programming for recent grads, families, and more mature alumni through well-rounded activities that promote UI students and scholarship, your local community, networking, and a feeling of being connected to the University of Iowa.

Event Ideas

  • Social
    • Wine tasting
    • IOWA Club night at a local minor league athletic game
    • Bowling night
    • Intramural sports team
    • Pre- and post- concert receptions
    • Outing to a local museum or gallery
    • Family day/night at a local zoo, children’s museum, or pumpkin patch
    • Monthly book club (you might feature reading of Iowa Writers’ Workshop authors)
  • Student Recruitment & Scholarship
    • Summer picnic and student send-off for incoming UI freshmen from your area
    • Golf tournament
    • Trivia night
    • Become an ASIST volunteer
    • 50/50 raffle at a pizza night to raise money for a textbook scholarship for a student from your area
    • Host an ice cream party at a local home or park for UI scholarship recipients from your area
  • Community Service
    • Dress up in black and gold to hand out water at a local marathon or race
    • Create a UI team for Race for the Cure, Relay for Life, bike-a-thon, or St. Jude’s walks
    • Participate as a group to ring the Salvation Army bell and serve food at a local shelter
    • Incorporate a toy, coat, or canned food drive into a happy hour event
    • “Adopt” a local park or stretch of highway
  • Happy Hours/Networking
    • Texas Hold ‘em Tournaments,
    • Invite/feature a prominent UI alum in your area to a Hawkeye Happy Hour
    • Partner with another local university on a joint happy hour and incorporate a service component (canned food drive competition)
    • Invite a UI alum with financial planning expertise to speak at a Hawkeye Happy Hour
    • Host a “lunch and learn” event

How to promote your events

  • E-mail
    The UIAA can send your event notice to alumni in your area. Just send us the details and give us 3 weeks notice.
  • Online event registration
    The UIAA can host your club’s event registration on our website, including credit card payment processing. Please provide at least a 2 week notice for this service request.
  • Web
    The UIAA can post your event information on your club’s website.
  • Postcard
    Twice per year, your club mails a “save the date” postcard to UIAA members in your area. Work with your club leader to have the event included on the postcard. We require a 6-week notice, so working closely with your club leader to plan a calendar of events is especially important.
  • Social networking
    Post the event to your Facebook status or a discussion thread to the UI alumni network group on LinkedIn.
  • Local media outlets
    Submit your events to local radio stations (public service announcement), newspaper, or free weekly entertainment newspaper.

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