The fourth annual Lawrence University Giving Day is right around the corner. On Oct. 15, 2017, Lawrentians around the globe will get the opportunity to give back to the university in a big way. Students, parents of current and former students, alumni and friends of Lawrence will come together to participate in this one-day fundraising event organized by the Annual Giving and Development Offices. Here is a breakdown of the event and how everyone can get involved.
Giving Day is focused on getting the vast community of Lawrentians working together to raise funding for the university’s donation repository, The Lawrence Fund. This fund has played a critical role in contributing to the Lawrence legacy over many years. Fully funded by contributions by alumni, parents and friends of Lawrence, the repository is responsible for important funding many areas around campus, including the Seeley G. Mudd Library, Björklunden, the Conservatory of Music, the Athletic Department and, most importantly, Student Scholarships. While most contributions will go directly into the Lawrence Fund to be distributed between these many areas, donors will also be given the option to donate specifically to certain designations.
While gift giving occurs year-round, Giving Day is critical for raising a huge sum of money for the Lawrence Fund. This is thanks to a group of alumni, friends and families called ‘Game Changers.’ These Game Changers are a network of donors that have pledged to match gifts that are contributed by the bulk of the Lawrence community. For every gift from the Classes of ’01-’21 will be matched with $500 from these Game Changers. That means that if a current student or alumni from the past 20 years gives just five dollars to the Lawrence Fund on Giving Day, their total gift will amount to $505. All other gifts will be matched dollar-for-dollar, meaning if an alumni that graduated in ’00 or earlier were to give $50, their total gift would amount to $100. The generosity of these Game Changers provides an enormous amount of support to the university.
One challenge offered to alumni and current students is to contribute to the Class Color Legacy Scholarships. Based on the tradition of class colors, carried over from Milwaukee-Downer College when it was consolidated with Lawrence, this scholarship initiative helps current and former students participate with the motivation of class unity. It started with the class of 2016, when the students of the most recent Yellow Class raised funds to support the then-incoming Yellow Class, the class of 2020. As this tradition continues, current and former red, green, yellow and purple classes can work towards building a large sum of money that will go towards helping students that will bear their corresponding class color in the future.
The fourth annual Giving Day will have a live show, featuring Dean of Admissions Ken Anselment and Director of Social Media Kasey Corrado as the returning co-hosts. This live show will run from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. CST on Oct. 15. The goal of the live show is to share what makes Lawrence special. The line-up includes many life performances, including acts by Horacio Contreras, Faculty Brass, Cantala Choir, Sol Studios and so many others. The live show will also have appearances from the Sustainable Lawrence University Gardens (SLUG), the Appleton Pollinator Project led by Assistant Professor of Biology Israel Del Toro, the Lawrence University Archivist and alumna Erin Dix ’08 and so many other faculty, staff, administrative members and, of course, students.
Most of what makes any college campus great is the support the school receives from its community. Without the help of so many alumni, family and friends, Lawrence would not be a functional institution. In fact, part of what makes Lawrence so great for so many is how generous Lawrentians truly are. According to Forbes, in 2016 Lawrence ranked in the top 50 colleges with the most generous alumni. The Lawrence community truly cares about helping former, current and future students get ahead, especially in a world where the validity of liberal arts degrees are questioned.
To get involved with this one-day fundraising event, more information about how to give can be found on the Lawrence University website on the Giving Day Page.
