My name is Jessyka Brown, and I am starting my first year at the IU Alumni Association as the Stewardship Fellow. I am thoroughly excited to start my new position, as it goes hand in hand with my area of studies at IU Bloomington! I have officially started my junior year at IU and studying Nonprofit Management & Leadership with a minor in Psychology. I eventually want to move into the fundraising and annual giving side of the nonprofit world, while getting my degree at the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Therefore, my position as the Stewardship Fellow is the perfect way to gain necessary experience in the Nonprofit Sector.

With only being a part of the IUAA team for about a week, I still have much to learn. Although, from other learning experiences, I have an idea of what “stewardship” means to me. With my current knowledge, stewardship means interacting with others who support you and taking the initiative to address them for their work. I have developed my own definition in my two years of IU Dance Marathon. I serve as the Fundraising Chair for the Special Events Committee, where I encourage a group of people to raise as much money as possible to benefit research and patient care at Riley Hospital for Children. Along with motivating fundraising efforts, I guide my committee in stewardship for their donors to improve donor retention. I also steward my committee members by encouraging them and incentivizing them to want to continue in Dance Marathon after the year is over. My work in IUDM has given me a base level experience of the idea of stewardship, allowing me to feel comfortable and empowered to apply for and accept this position.

I am excited to jump right into all things stewardship at IUAA. In my position, I will connect with donors, interact with governance, reflect on stewardship strategies, and attend and assist in organizing events for our donors. I am working under Rebecca Keith, who is an amazing supervisor I am lucky to collaborate with. I am lucky enough to have learned so much in such a short time and thank Rebecca for that. In my work with the IU Student Alumni Association, I will participate in Homecoming planning – specifically in directing Homecoming Court 2024! Being a part of IUSAA whilst being the Stewardship Fellow is very enjoyable. Working on IUSAA has taught me how to collaborate on real-world projects with my peers, as we all work on different tasks to complete our goal. I enjoy working with every student fellow and using their feedback to better my work. I am pleased to do work in IUSAA for Eryn Wisler, who allowed my transition in IUAA to happen seamlessly. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for all the staff at IUAA; each who have welcomed me so kindly to the association. I cannot wait to learn more in my role at IUAA and to work on many projects to come!