Public higher education institutions rely on state funding for a significant percentage of operational costs. In recent years, state contributions to higher education have been substantially reduced due to budget deficits at the state and federal levels. Such budget deficits have resulted in decreased funding for higher education. Universities with limited traditional giving are mostly affected by these budget cuts. Many of the institutions with a limited tradition of giving are Hispanic Serving Institutions and several of the alumni from Hispanic Serving Institutions are Hispanic. According to Santiago (2007), "in 2003-04, almost half of Latino undergraduate students were concentrated in the 6% of institutions of higher education in the United States identified as Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI)" (p. 3). Thus, understanding the philanthropic giving priorities, motivations, and relational connectedness to the institution of Hispanic alumni is critical to HSIs that serve this population. The sample for this study involved alumni of Mexican and Spanish origin in New Mexico. This study analyzed the results of a survey distributed to 3,200 Hispanic university alumni from a Hispanic Serving Institution in New Mexico. The survey data collected through SurveyMonkey[TM] provided the basis for descriptive analysis. This study provided new and unique contributions to inform the knowledge of philanthropic motivations of Mexican American and Spanish American university alumni/alumnae. Specifically, this research explored the familial and friendship ties (relational connectedness) to the university as an indicator of Mexican American and Spanish American alumni financial support. The study also outlined specific giving priorities and philanthropic motivations of Mexican American and Spanish American alumni. Such knowledge provided the foundation to inform universities of the opportunities and challenges available in approaching Hispanic alumni for private gifts to their alma mater. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]