Centennial Challenge off to a solid start

Centennial Challenge off to a solid start

BY JEREMY MILLER
Special to the Rice News

Rice young alumni know a good deal when they see it, especially if it means supporting their alma mater and possibly raising its national ranking.

The Centennial Challenge to Young Alumni, an initiative aimed at increasing alumni participation in the classes of 1998-2008, was announced  two months ago, and the Rice Annual Fund is seeing positive early results.

From Dec. 1 to 30, all young alumni gifts were matched 3-to-1, essentially quadrupling the value of all gifts. A 2-to-1 match is now in effect through March 21, and a 1-to-1 match will carry through to June 30.

According to figures released by the Annual Fund, 670 young alumni have already risen to the challenge; last year only 242 young alumni had contributed in the same time frame. Young alumni are now 47 percent toward their 1,400-donor goal, and they have taken advantage of $218,000 of the total $525,000 in matching funds offered by alumna Cathryn Rodd Selman ’78 and two anonymous board members.

Rice’s total young alumni participation now stands at 15 percent, a 3.2 percent increase over last year during the same period. Alumni giving is an important measure of alumni satisfaction and loyalty in rankings like U.S. News and World Report, so every participation point counts.

Centennial Challenge to Young Alumni
Want to rise to the challenge? Give to Rice
The Centennial Campaign
Learn more about the campaign to lead Rice into the second century
The initial success of the Centennial Challenge is encouraging, especially as the national trend among the top U.S. universities has shown a steady decline in giving among recent graduates. The Annual Fund attributes the challenge’s early progress to its loyal alumni, many of whom have unique reasons for giving.

Participation in annual giving has proven especially important during difficult economic times. Gifts to the Rice Annual Fund provide long-term strength and stability to the university. That’s largely due to its current-use funds, which keep Rice flexible enough to address unexpected challenges. Judging from recent figures, many alumni are acknowledging the value of this priority. Compared with last fiscal year’s totals, the Annual Fund has seen a 14 percent increase in funds through Dec. 31.

The Annual Fund will feature recent graduates’ reasons for giving on its recently launched Web site at www.rice.edu/centennialchallenge. Users can read why individual alumni rose to the challenge, check on the challenge’s progress and even fill out their own ”challenge questionnaire.”