Record number of donors support Tulane during Give Green

Tulanians turned out in greater numbers than ever before to raise over $1.2 million on Tulane University’s fifth annual giving day.

During the 24-hour Give Green: A Day for the Audacious event held on March 22, Tulane alumni, parents, faculty, staff, students and friends made more than 4,000 gifts — shattering previous records.

Gifts made on Give Green are directed to Tulane’s annual fund, providing immediate resources to support first-class academic programs, groundbreaking research, transformative experiences and much more.

More than a dozen gift challenges and matches allowed donors to magnify their gifts and raise even more money for their chosen schools and units.

One such challenge came into play later in the day, and successfully helped to break the previous record of how many gifts were made on Give Green. Anonymous donors, who are parents of a current junior and members of the Family Leadership Council, agreed to give a late-in-the-day surprise $40,000 to support Tulane students if the total amount of gifts reached 4,000. Spurred on by that challenge, the total number of gifts shot past that milestone, reaching 4,061.

The Darden Family Big Green Grand Prize encouraged friendly rivalries between schools and units by offering bonus funds for the highest number of gifts on Give Green. Tulane Law School, the School of Liberal Arts and the School of Professional Advancement each won an extra $5,000 because they received the highest number of gifts in their respective categories. Tulane Athletics, the Newcomb Institute and the Center for Public Service won $2,000 each. The A. B. Freeman School of Business, the School of Science and Engineering and Tulane Bands each received a bonus $1,000.

The TAA Clubs Challenge was sponsored by the Tulane Alumni Association, in which clubs of similar size competed for the highest per capita participation. Charleston captured the small-market club prize, Philadelphia won the medium-market award, and South Florida received the large-market club recognition. Winning clubs will receive funding for a signature series event.

Enthusiasm was palpable on Tulane’s campuses, and Tulanians across the globe also showed their excitement. Contributions came from 13 countries. And in cities across the United States, alumni clubs met on the evening of March 22 to celebrate Give Green.

Every year, Give Green breaks fundraising records. This year’s total number of gifts represents nearly a 100 percent increase over the number of gifts given in the first-ever Give Green in 2018, and the amount of money raised has increased nearly 200 percent since the inaugural event.

“There is incredible power in collective giving,” said Jenny Nathan Simoneaux, executive director of Annual and Leadership Giving at Tulane. “On this fifth anniversary of Give Green, it is wonderful to look back and see how much Tulanians can accomplish when they get together to share their love for the university. I look forward to seeing how much this day grows over the next five years.”