Brandeis Alumni, Family and Friends
Hello, who’s calling? It’s a Brandeis student!
June 2, 2026
Brandeis students have been interrupting alumni dinners for decades.
It's a rainy Tuesday evening and a dozen students trickle into a room in the basement of the Bernstein-Marcus building. The room is festively decorated with streamers overhead. After a short icebreaker, the students don headsets and the shift begins.
The room is mission control for the Brandeis phonathon program, where about 30 current students work as callers throughout the academic year, asking alumni to support a variety of Brandeis priorities and initiatives.
When Sadie Lieberman ’26 started calling alumni during her first shift three years ago, she was so nervous a small part of her hoped no one would pick up. But call by call, she grew more confident. Soon, she could make calls without a script. Now a junior with a double major in economics and environmental studies, she is excited to become the lead student supervisor for the phonathon in September.
The phonathon helps raise funds for financial aid, student clubs and sports, faculty research, and much more. But its impact goes even further. Phonathon students also use the calls to confirm and update alumni information, connect alumni with Brandeis, and give them a chance to share their feedback with the university.
The phonathon has grown significantly in recent years, notes Patrick McAvoy, MBA’24, who oversees the program. Giving nearly doubled over the past three years, and thousands of alumni have made gifts after conversations with Brandeis students.
McAvoy attributes much of this success to the students. “They’re not just showing up and putting on a headset to get a paycheck,” he said. “They are passionate about their work and about Brandeis and want to be there.”
Calls with alumni can range from just a few minutes to longer conversations. Some alumni reminisce about their own experiences at Brandeis. Others ask what student life is like today or whether certain buildings have changed.
Those are the kind of conversations that keep phonathon callers passionate about what they do. For many, the program has created a strong sense of camaraderie. The callers become friends with each other and play games in their downtime. When donations come in, they ring a bell to celebrate.
The students also gain valuable professional skills that will benefit them for a lifetime while helping sustain the university — one conversation at a time. Lieberman says she has learned a lot about communicating and building rapport with a wide variety of people, especially under pressure.
“It’s such a privilege to be able to speak to alumni and help the university in this way. Making connections across generations is really amazing,” she explains. “The phonathon is a special little corner of the Brandeis community.”
There’s no need to wait for a student to call! You can make your gift online anytime. Please give before our fiscal year ends on June 30.
