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Fellowships can be transformative experiences, equipping leaders with the skills, networks, and confidence to drive change. But what happens after the fellowship ends?

Alumni Catalyst focuses on what comes next. It is a new IREX initiative designed to strengthen alumni engagement, collaboration, and learning across fellowship communities. By bringing together alumni, fellowship providers, funders, and practitioners, Alumni Catalyst develops practical tools, shared resources, and collaborative opportunities that help fellowship networks thrive long after formal programming concludes.

Building on IREX's leadership in the fellowship sector, Alumni Catalyst draws from years of research, convenings, and community-building efforts, including the Impact Fellowships Network (IFN), Impact Fellowships Summit (IFS), Fellowship Alumni Network Survey (FANS), and the IFN 2026 Impact Study. These efforts have generated valuable knowledge about how fellowship experiences create lasting impact and how alumni communities can be strengthened over time. Alumni Catalyst transforms those insights into practical tools, resources, and approaches that help organizations maximize the long-term value of their alumni networks.

Supported by a two-year investment from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Alumni Catalyst brings fellowship providers, alumni, and partners together to strengthen connections, share what works, and pioneer new approaches to engagement. By building on existing alumni efforts and fostering collaboration across networks, the initiative is helping unlock the full potential of fellowship communities to drive lasting impact.

What We Do

Generate Insights

Through research, asset mapping, and community engagement, Alumni Catalyst identifies alumni needs, emerging opportunities, and effective engagement practices. These insights inform practical resources that support alumni communities across the fellowship sector.

Strengthen Connections

We create opportunities for alumni, fellowship providers, and partners to connect across organizations, sectors, and regions. Through peer learning, networking, and collaborative programming, we help foster relationships that lead to new ideas, partnerships, and solutions.

Support Alumni Engagement

Alumni Catalyst develops toolkits, frameworks, and resources that help organizations engage alumni more effectively. By sharing proven approaches and lessons learned, we reduce duplication of effort and strengthen long-term alumni participation.

Advance Field-Wide Learning

Convening fellowship providers, alumni, funders, and practitioners, Alumni Catalyst contributes to a growing evidence base on what drives sustained engagement, leadership development, and long-term impact.

Key Activities

During its pilot phase, Alumni Catalyst will focus on:

• Asset and Engagement Mapping to identify alumni strengths, needs, and opportunities for collaboration.
• Practical Toolkits and Resources that support effective alumni engagement and network-building.
• Learning Exchanges and Networking Opportunities that connect alumni and fellowship practitioners across programs.
• Convenings and Collaborative Events that strengthen relationships, share knowledge, and spark new partnerships.
• An Alumni Advisory Council that helps shape priorities and guides the initiative's direction

Collaborate with Us

Alumni Catalyst is a collaborative effort. We welcome engagement from fellowship providers, alumni, funders, researchers, and partners who are committed to strengthening leadership ecosystems.

Together, we can build stronger alumni networks, share what works, and create new pathways for collaboration that help leaders continue driving meaningful change long after their fellowship experience ends.

Please email contact.impactfellowships@irex.org to collaborate with us.