How not to raise money

Around these parts, universities are always raising money. We write about the big campaigns. And the really big campaigns. And the not-as-big-but-still-important campaigns.

Which gives us just enough confidence to say that if we were ever going to try to raise money for a university, we wouldn't do what Framingham State College did recently.

To summarize: In an attempt to make light of the poor economy, this small, Massachusetts college fired off letters to 6,000 alums that read in part:

"With the recent economic downturn and loan crisis, it has become even more important for Framingham State College to receive your support. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah."

 

As the local paper noted,  the word "blah" was used 137 times.

As one alum noted: "It just doesn't seem like something from a legitimate university."