Campus Connection

Students working for the UWL Foundation phonathon build relationships with thousands of alumni annually

Jacob Akin has always been interested in sales. The Communication Studies senior has found a way to practice making cold call connections with hundreds of UWL alumni each year by working for the UWL Foundation phonathon. “You only have a minute and a half to establish relationships with people,” explains Akin. “It’s a lot of fun.” Akin, who made more than 2,500 phone calls last semester, is part of a team of students working to keep alumni connected to the university and, yes, ask for donations to support student scholarships. “It’s nice when I can say I’ve received a scholarship and here’s what it did for me,” Akin says. https://youtu.be/1YNgeVPZYgg The phonathon is one of dozens of on-campus jobs available to students. But for Akin, it’s not just a job. “It’s an opportunity to make connections,” he says. “I was able to grow a lot and learn about myself. This will help me with my future career as well was what I learned at UWL.” UWL is one of the top schools in the nation in providing part-time university employment to its students. UWL ranked 23^rd on a list of 250 schools nationwide.