One Day. One Stampede. One Bronco Spirit.
April 10, 2024, was another record-breaking day as alumni, students, faculty, staff, families, and friends generously came together for Santa Clara University’s annual Day of Giving (DoG).
The 24-hour event resulted in over 6,300 donations totaling more than $7.2 million - the highest number of gifts and dollar amounts in SCU’s Day of Giving history! This figure includes nearly $2 million for 54 undergraduate scholarships for students in need across multiple disciplines. The balance benefited 250+ student-centered funds, impacting almost every aspect of the student experience at Santa Clara University.
Unique to SCU, this annual event is founded on the school's tradition of service for others. A dozen staff members volunteered and dozens more staff, faculty, and students registered to donate at a Staff Senate-sponsored blood drive. The 43 units of whole blood and red cell donations collected translate into 129 saved lives in our communities. The Ignatian Center and Campus Ministry co-sponsored a food drive to combat food insecurity on campus, resulting in $17,000 and food items for The Bronco Food Pantry. In honor of the ‘dog’ theme, the law school hosted a pet supplies drive to support Muttville Senior Dog Rescue.
“I am once again in awe of the unwavering support of our Bronco community. It fuels the Day of Giving each year,” said Jim Lyons, vice president for University Relations. “While we celebrate the dollars raised, our Day of Giving is about so much more. It’s about everyone coming together to live the mission and values that set Santa Clara University apart and to support our efforts to make that education more accessible to future Broncos.”
Major priorities for this year’s Day of Giving were accessibility, affordability, and scholarships, especially through challenge gifts. In SCU’s highest figures yet, SCU received $4.7 million from over 140 challenge gifts. Challenge donors support their preferred areas by matching donations to a certain dollar amount or encouraging others to give through participation-based challenges. Nearly every challenge met or exceeded its goals.
Examples of challenges included:
- $300K in challenge gifts from sophomore parents Holly Kelly and Andy Lipsky to support neurodiverse students through the Executive Function Coach Program.
- Dorian Daley, J.D. ‘86, and her husband, Michael Krautkramer, put forth a $300,000 challenge to benefit the School of Law and a $50,000 challenge for the Climate Action Fund.
- Miller Center’s $1 million marquee challenge unlocked a grant from Miller Center’s Advisory Board after reaching $100,000 in donations.
- A Bronco Bench Foundation Challenge provided $100,000 for student-athlete scholarships and financial aid.
- The LEAD Scholars Program’s Advisory Board donated $60,000 when LEAD received 275 gifts.
Among the units that raised the most money were:
- Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship ($1,535,560 from 56 gifts)
- Athletics ($888,270.88 from 1,841 gifts)
- Santa Clara Law ($554,750.75 from 239 gifts)
- School of Engineering ($356,847.00 from 518 gifts)
- Inclusive Excellence ($353,815 from 261 gifts)
The full results for the day can be found on the Day of Giving website.