You did it!

In just 24 hours, more than 1,500 alumni, parents, students, and friends of Skidmore contributed $250,000 for the May 1 challenge. 

Aiming initially to secure gifts from 1,000 donors in a single day, Skidmore fundraising volunteers and staff brought in more than 1,500 gifts from alumni, parents, students, and friends of the College during the second annual 5/01 Donor Challenge. The joint efforts earned Skidmore a $50,000 bonus from two alumni: Tom Wilmot ’99, who offered $25,000 if an additional 250 other gifts could be secured, and Barbara Underhill Collyer ’52, who also offered $25,000 for reaching the 1,500-donor mark. The initial gift of $100,000 for 1,000 donors was submitted by an anonymous alum. 

When the last gift was counted, the total stood at 1,500, smashing last year’s single-day gift record of 1,038 during the first 5/01 Donor Challenge.

The festivities for this year’s challenge included alumni gatherings at pubs in New York City, Boston, and Chicago. Alumni from all over were invited to participate in two faculty Webinars: a lunchtime session with April Bernard, associate professor of English and director of creative writing, and an afternoon Web discussion with Sheldon Solomon, professor of psychology. Throughout the day, donors were entered into raffles to win a faculty book: Make No Small Plans by Mary Lynn, professor of American studies; We Others by Steven Millhauser, the Pulitzer-winning Tisch Professor of Arts and Letters; or Rich, Free, and Miserable by John Brueggemann, holder of the Quadracci Chair in Social Responsibility.

Along with the camaraderie of rallying together for the daylong challenge, the end result was over $250,000 that will help fund student research and internships, financial aid, cocurricular offerings, and other key Skidmore programs.