A strong showing by annual donors
In 2014–2015, annual giving reached a record-breaking $38,375,829, reflecting once again the significant generosity of alumni, parents, and friends across Yale College and all of Yale’s graduate and professional schools. Gifts came from 43,700 individual donors, providing current use, unrestricted support to meet the needs of faculty and students.
Giving to the Yale College Alumni Fund attained a new high of $21.3 million—more than $1 million over its previous record. These annual contributions help to moderate tuition, supply student scholarships, and sustain a host of teaching and research activities.
Other constituencies within the Alumni Fund also celebrated a record-breaking year:
- The Parents Annual Fund raised $3.3 million, a new all-time high.
- The School of Management Alumni Fund surpassed its previous record, raising over $3 million as well as obtaining an unprecedented 51.5 percent participation rate.
- For the second year in a row, donors set new annual fund revenue records in the Yale School of Architecture, Yale School of Drama, and Yale School of Public Health.
Reunions also played a key part in boosting support for the Alumni Fund in Yale College. Three Yale College classes raised over $1 million in annual gifts—1965, 1980, and 1985—marking the first time more than one reunion class exceeded this mark in the same fiscal year.
125 years of supporting Yale
This outpouring of annual gifts was motivated in part by a special milestone: the 125th anniversary of the Yale Alumni Fund. To mark this occasion, volunteers and staff rolled out an extended celebration spanning February 2015 to June 2016, with an official kickoff on February 23 and a special reception for Alumni Fund volunteers. The executive committee and former chairs, board members, class chairs, and volunteers—more than 160 guests in all—gathered at the Yale Club of New York City to take part in the festivities. President Salovey spoke at the reception, acknowledging the remarkable community of donors and volunteers who have contributed to the Alumni Fund’s success throughout its history.
Donors were also inspired by a dedication to students. During fiscal years 2015 and 2016, all gifts to the Alumni Fund for unrestricted use or financial aid will also count toward the Access Yale initiative. The fund is on track to raise over $70 million over these two years, and more than $65 million will support scholarships. This total represents over a quarter of the $250 million goal for Access Yale and underscores the fund’s critical role in the overall success of the initiative.
Engaging all alumni
Chairman Robert K. (Bo) Hopkins III ’86 MBA is steering the Alumni Fund through its anniversary, serving a two-year term that began in June 2014. His continuing efforts, along with the work of dedicated volunteers, helped lead the Alumni Fund to enthusiastic participation and record revenue.
In 2014–2015, more than 2,000 class chairs and class agents volunteered for Yale College, the Graduate School, and the professional schools, engaging Yale alumni in special events and challenges:
- In November 2014, alumni from all Yale College classes participated in the fourth annual Yale-Harvard Alumni Fund Participation Challenge to determine which school could secure the highest number of gifts leading up to The Game. Yale alumni were edged out by Harvard, 4,064 to 3,870.
- This past March, volunteers rallied for the annual Bulldog Blitz, a focused outreach effort to boost participation in annual giving. Hundreds of Yale alumni took part in the drive, bringing in 2,498 new annual gifts and pledge payments.
- The Yale Alumni Fund and the Association of Yale Alumni joined forces to create a dedicated website for the 13,000 Bulldogs of the Last Decade (BOLD), Yale College alumni who have graduated within the last ten years. The website makes it easy for recent alumni to remain informed and connected with Yale, while serving as a portal to the various ways they can engage with their alma mater.
- Eager to salute this alumni community, students recognized the generosity of donors at the fourth-annual Elihu Day, held on October 15, 2014. At stations across the campus, students completed 1,086 thank-you cards, which were mailed to a cross-section of Yale alumni and parents who contributed to Yale.
- Students in Yale College, Yale Divinity School, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Science, Yale School of Management, and Yale School of Medicine participated in successful graduating class gift campaigns. In addition to providing generous resources to the university, these campaigns foster an appreciation for the impact of philanthropy and inspire a continuing tradition of giving to Yale.