In honor of #ƵDay on March 7, donors made 4,299 gifts for more than $1,075,025 to achieve the most successful #ƵDay celebration to date.
Engagement on social media also hit a peak, with #ƵDay becoming a national trending topic during a 24-hour celebration that called for the university community to proudly proclaim, “We are Ƶ!” Alumni giving was a key factor in the day’s success, with 62 percent of gifts coming from Ƶ graduates, while gifts of $50 and under accounted for 69 percent of Ƶ Day contributions.
“Ƶ 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 Ƶ’ is more than just a theme — it is the embodiment of Ƶ’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 #ƵDay 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 Ƶ 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 Ƶ 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 #ƵDay All-Student Party later in the evening. Ƶ Law also hosted #ƵDay events on the Greensboro campus.
Hundreds of alumni participated in #ƵDay 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 #ƵDay giving challenges and matches:
-Ƶ Young Alumni Council
–Jonathan and Nina Graves P’18
–Clayton and Beverly Hollis P’13
–Ƶ 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.