Fourth Annual Giving Day Raises More Than $2.3 Million

BU Today



Daylong event sets University fundraising record
Shaun Dawson (MET’16), who hosted various Giving Day Facebook live sessions, with interviewee Erica Appleman (CAS’09, GRS’10,’18) during the Giving Day celebration at the BU Pub.
What a difference one day makes. On Wednesday, Boston University celebrated its fourth annual Giving Day, a 24-hour fundraising drive that raises support for the BU Annual Fund, which helps support the University’s schools and colleges, clubs and organizations, athletics, libraries, Study Abroad experiences, and other areas. Once again, the event made history, raising over $2.3 million from more than 11,598 gifts from students, alumni, parents, faculty, staff, and friends of BU—an increase of $800,000 over last year. Totals were tracked throughout the day on the Giving Day website.
“Year after year our community comes together in support of BU, breaks records, and impacts the lives of current and future students,” says Dan Allenby, the University’s assistant vice president for annual giving. “I’m in awe of what we’ve accomplished this year, and collectively, through this event.”
Students, faculty, and staff celebrated across campus, gathering in over a dozen locations to encourage others to support BU before the day ended. Live streaming from Athletics headquarters, the GSU, and the BU Pub allowed Terriers to reconnect no matter how distant from Comm Ave. Many used social media to share stories and tell why they chose to give back, using the hashtag #BUGivingDay. Giving Day was a trending topic on Twitter throughout the day. Overall, the donor pool consisted of people from 51 countries supporting over 207 different funds.
There were dozens of Giving Day celebrations on both the Charles River and the Medical Campus, but the largest was at the GSU, where Rhett the Terrier encouraged givers and danced to beats provided by WTBU’s student deejays.
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