Tenth Annual Giving Day Raises More Than $3.8 Million
Terriers across the globe gave to support hundreds of causes across the University
Students taking a ride on the Terrier Trivia Tolley during BU’s 10th annual Giving Day, April 3, 2024. Photos by Dana J. Quigley, DJQ Media LLC
Tenth Annual Giving Day Raises More Than $3.8 Million
Terriers across the globe gave to support hundreds of causes across the University
More than 11,500 donors, supporting over 800 causes, made gifts in excess of $3.88 million on Boston University’s 10th Giving Day, April 3. Gifts came from all 50 states and 52 countries on the annual one-day fundraising event.
“Terriers came out in force for this milestone Giving Day,” says Erika N. Jordan, BU vice president for alumni engagement. “The theme, Unstoppable BU, took hold and you could feel the energy leading up to April 3. A record number of challenges came in, ambassador sign-ups more than doubled, and the communication exchanges across campus were electric.”
Friendly competition through challenge matches and bonus funds increase participation every Giving Day. This year, 110 donors offered more than 75 challenges and matches, with eligible groups gaining more than $1.29 million in additional funds. Among the highlights:
- The women’s rugby team rallied late into the night to win the Overnight Challenge.
- The Goldman School of Dental Medicine blew past its 250-donor goal to secure more than 300 donors.
- BU Academy raised $103,539 from 545 donors, earning second place on the schools and colleges leaderboard, and secured an additional $4,000 in bonus funds by winning the Early Bird Challenge and placing second in the Ambassador Challenge.
- For the Student Clubs & Organizations Challenge, a cappella group the Dear Abbeys came in first, the Mars Rover Club placed second, and the Terrier Motorsport took third.
Giving Day ambassadors also proved crucial to this year’s fundraising drive. Nearly 700 supporters signed up to reach out to classmates, friends, and family to bring in gifts for a chosen cause. Each ambassador received a unique link to share and could track their success on the Ambassador Leaderboard. Kevyn Garcia (CGS’14, Questrom’16), a member of the BU Young Alumni Council, led the pack by bringing in 212 gifts from her network.
“Our alumni are the best ambassadors,” says Kellie Sullivan, BU senior director of annual giving. “They cast a wide net to bring together alumni and friends in support of scholarships, varsity teams, student clubs and orgs, club sports, schools and colleges. Not only that, but they took the opportunity on Giving Day to build awareness for newer initiatives such as the Newbury Center and the BU Food Pantry, among others.”
Strong wind and rain didn’t prevent BU students from enjoying Giving Day activities, such as the Terrier Trivia Trolley, a photo booth featuring Rhett, and a Comm Ave paint-by-numbers mural. Clubs and organizations won bonus points to support their causes, social media lit up with Giving Day posts, and everyone went home with BU swag.
“Even though the forecast called for raucous Boston weather, we had a great Giving Day on campus,” says Scott Graham, BU executive director of annual and leadership giving. “We saw solid student participation, and the funds raised will have a ripple effect across the University.”
All gifts made from midnight EDT to midnight PDT on Wednesday, April 3, counted toward the Giving Day total. However, you can still support Boston University by making a gift here.
Maureen Murray is BU’s director of development communications. She can be reached at mtmurray@bu.edu.
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