Participants in Wednesday’s (March 26) Day of Giving at West Virginia University will have multiple opportunities to boost the overall impact of their gifts through hourly and all-day challenges.
The 24-hour fundraising event, organized by the WVU Foundation, is in its eighth year, encompassing the entire WVU System and raising more than $96 million since 2017.
“Mountaineer Nation has made a significant difference each year through their generosity on Day of Giving,” Kristen Shipp, WVU Foundation executive director of annual giving, said. “Your gifts are critical for enhancing student programs, groundbreaking research, improvements to campus and more. We are grateful for your unwavering support.”
Alumni and friends can unlock additional dollars for the areas of WVU that matter most to them by taking part in day-long and hourly challenges on Wednesday. Among the all-day challenges:
- The top three registered Day of Giving ambassadors who inspire the most gifts through their unique URL will win additional funding for their program/unit of choice.
- Three donors who share on social media why they made a gift on March 26 will be selected to receive additional funding for the unit they tag. Donors must select the share feature from the confirmation page after making their donation and use #WVUDayofGiving and #IGave.
- The Country Roads Challenge calls for participants to record a video of themselves on social singing or performing “Country Roads” to help their favorite unit or program. Three of the most creative #WVUDayofGiving posts will be selected to earn additional funding for tagged units.
- Mountaineer alumni and friends can post pictures on social wearing their favorite WVU gear. Three creative #WVUDayofGiving posts will be selected to earn additional funding for tagged units.
- The WVU Pet Photo Challenge asks supporters to post pictures on social of their Mountaineer pets sporting WVU gear. Three creative #WVUDayofGiving posts will be selected to earn additional funding for the tagged units.
Hourly challenges also offer exciting opportunities to secure additional funds based on participation and dollar amount raised. Some of the highlights include:
- From midnight-1 a.m. ET, the top three participating groups with the most gifts during the day’s opening hour will win additional funding.
- From 10-11 a.m. ET, the top three participating groups with the most gifts from WVU alumni will win additional funding.
- From noon-1 p.m. ET, the top three participating groups with the most first-time donor gifts will win additional funding.
- From 2-3 p.m. ET, the top three participating groups with the largest gifts made online will win additional funding.
- From 3-4 p.m. ET, the top three participating groups with the most faculty and staff gifts will win additional funding.
- From 8-9 p.m. ET the top three participating groups with the most young alumni gifts (2014-2024 graduating classes) will win additional funding.
- From 11 p.m.-midnight ET, the top three participating groups with the most gifts in the day’s final hour will win additional funding.
Supporters are encouraged to visit the WVU Day of Giving website for full instructions and a complete list of challenges — two pre-Day of Giving challenges are already underway. To be eligible for the social media challenges, users must use the #WVUDayofGiving hashtag and set their privacy settings for the post to public.
Donations on Wednesday can be made online at dayofgiving.wvu.edu, where participants can also stay updated on challenge winners, live leaderboards and the donor wall. Gifts of $5 or more are accepted throughout the day.
On campus, Day of Giving information tables will be staffed Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Mountainlair and two locations at Health Sciences (Market and Pylons). Faculty, staff and students can learn more about WVU Day of Giving, make a gift and grab a Flying WV cookie.
Day of Giving supports the University’s greatest priorities and opportunities, as well as unrestricted funds at both the University and unit-specific levels.