Alumni, parents and friends of Hamilton College contributed $30.8 million during the fiscal year that ended June 30, an increase of 45 percent over the previous year and 32 percent more than the previous record, set a decade ago.
"Such unprecedented generosity toward Hamilton is further evidence of the loyalty and passion that alumni, parents and friends have toward the college," said Vice President of Communications and Development Richard C. Tantillo. "They believe strongly in Hamilton. With their gifts, they demonstrate their desire that Hamilton will continue to provide the highest quality education in the country, while remaining accessible to students from all socioeconomic groups."
More than half of all alumni made gifts to Hamilton during the previous year, marking the 26th consecutive year that more than 50 percent of all living alumni contributed to the college. Hamilton's alumni participation rate places the college among the top 1 percent of all U.S. colleges and universities for the percentage of alumni who support their alma mater.
The Class of 2007 also set a participation record for the annual Senior Gift Campaign, with 97.6 percent of the recent graduates contributing to a new endowed fund for community service.
Tantillo said a new endowed chair in environmental studies and a contribution that will enable the college to finish making the campus completely wireless are examples of recent gifts that will benefit students' education in the short run. He also called attention to the largest single gift in Hamilton's history, a commitment for a $10 million challenge gift from Keith and Wendy Wellin for new arts facilities. Mr. Wellin, a life trustee of the college, had a distinguished career on Wall Street.
Gifts received during 2006-07 are counted as part of the college's Excelsior capital campaign, a four-year public effort begun in 2004 to raise $175 million for student scholarship aid, faculty support, new and renovated facilities and unrestricted annual giving. The campaign now stands at $164 million, with less than a year before its scheduled conclusion on June 30, 2008.
The previous single-year record of $23.3 million was established in 1996-97 and included a $9.1 million bequest from the estate of Doane Comstock. Hamilton honors Mr. Comstock's philanthropy each year with an annual luncheon that brings together donors of endowed scholarships with the student recipients of those gifts.
