In honor of #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay on March 7, donors made 4,299 gifts for more than $1,075,025 to achieve the most successful #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay celebration to date.
Engagement on social media also hit a peak, with #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay becoming a national trending topic during a 24-hour celebration that called for the university community to proudly proclaim, “We are ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ!” Alumni giving was a key factor in the day’s success, with 62 percent of gifts coming from ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ graduates, while gifts of $50 and under accounted for 69 percent of ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Day contributions.
“ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Day is a time for our entire university community to come together as one,” said John H. Barnhill ’92, assistant vice president for university advancement. “’We are ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ’ is more than just a theme — it is the embodiment of ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ’s spirit that lives inside each of our partners, advocates and investors. Our continued success is the perfect example of what can happen when we come together to make a difference.”
The day started with a $50,000 scholarship challenge sponsored by Jon and Nina Graves, parents of Megan Graves ’18, that called for #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay donors to reach 1,000 gifts before the university’s College Coffee at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday. At College Coffee, the university announced that the family of an ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ junior, which chose to remain anonymous, would create a $250,000 student scholarship if the number of gifts hit 2,000 by 2:50 p.m. The response to the midday challenge prompted the family to launch an additional challenge in which they would create a second $250,000 scholarship if the ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ community made 4,250 gifts by midnight. Donors successfully completed every challenge of the day, securing each of the three student scholarships.
In addition to the morning College Coffee, on-campus events also included a Senior Toast for the Class of 2017 and an #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay All-Student Party later in the evening. ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Law also hosted #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay events on the Greensboro campus.
Hundreds of alumni participated in #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay events hosted by the university’s regional alumni chapters. The events took place in 38 cities spanning the globe from London to Los Angeles.
The following donors generously sponsored #ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵDay giving challenges and matches:
-ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Young Alumni Council
–Jonathan and Nina Graves P’18
–Clayton and Beverly Hollis P’13
–ÂÒÂ×ÊÓƵ Trustee Christopher Martin ’78 P’13 and Nicholas Martin ’13
–Stephen and Susan Paneyko P’20
Learn more about this year’s historic day of giving at elon.edu/elonday.