PG senior Linz Heppe is volunteering on the Senior Class Gift Campaign, and upon hearing of her work, we thought it might be appropriate that we faculty step up to the plate. The information about the campaign below. And on our end? If you commit, we'll match your five buck for each and every one of our PG seniors. Make that commitment and make us pay up!
The campaign is asking all 2007 seniors (defined by those who are walking in May or have applied for graduation this May) for a five year pledge with a first year gift. We’re asking for $5 this year and a $5 increase for each year through 2011 (totaling $75). The money will go to the Puget Sound Alumni Fund and will be ear-marked for financial aid. This means the money will provide both need-based and merit-based aid. Since 83% of our undergraduate students are receiving financial aid directly from the university, we hope that this case will hit home for the student body.
Our goal is to exemplify the value of feasible annual gifts. We want the students to know that giving is about the act and not the amount. Alumni Participation rates are crucial to the fiscal health of this university, and also for the overall value of a Puget Sound diploma. Large foundations and corporations use the Alumni Participation rate as a deciding factor when awarding grants. Essentially our message to students is “you carry it with you”— we want young alumni to know that the University of Puget Sound will be on their resume 50 years from now, and future employers are going to be more interested in the current reputation of the university than that of the past. Many students are not aware of our tuition price and cost gap—tuition, fees, room, board and auxiliary income only cover 80% of the cost Puget Sound incurs when admitting a student. The other 20% is made up by charitable giving. The tuition cost/price gap is a standard for all institutions of higher education, and has been so since the university’s beginnings. In more candid language: we’re asking our students and alumni to ensure a strong future for Puget Sound, just as Puget Sound has ensured a strong future for them.
Gifts to the campaign can be made online at www.giveto.ups.edu, but seniors must remember to include a comment regarding the associated four years of pledging. Students can also call 1-866-GO-LOGGERS or 253-879-3502 to make their gift on the phone. Gifts can be mailed to CMB 1056, or dropped by the Office Annual Giving on the 3rd floor of Jones Hall.
