The George Washington University community worked together to raise funds to support scholarships and programs on campus during Giving Day 2023, which resulted in the highest number of donations GW has ever received in a 24-hour period.
The focus of the 2023 campaign was to encourage more members of the GW community to engage in Giving Day. The university exceeded its goal of 2,750 donors, receiving gifts from nearly 3,200 alumni, students, faculty, staff, families and friends, a more than 22% increase from Giving Day 2022.
Daniel J. Burgner, the executive director of annual giving at GW, said it was amazing seeing the GW community join forces to reach a common goal.
“It was so inspiring to see the entire GW community come together to support our students on Giving Day,” Burgner said. “We set a goal this year to increase donor participation, and the GW community came out strong. GW Giving Day 2023 marks the most donors in a single 24-hour period in our university's history. One of the best parts of the day was watching community members posting and sharing on social media; the energy was incredible.”
The university received gifts from donors in 50 states and 30 countries, totaling over $1.2 million raised.
Burgner said the funds raised on Giving Day will profoundly impact students and the university community.
“People gave to athletic teams, student orgs, academic departments and research,” he said. “The community came out in force to donate to areas they are passionate about. We had over a quarter of a million come through for scholarships. Those scholarship gifts will go to work supporting our exceptional students.”
There were over 65 matches and challenges that amplified donor impact.
More than 400 students celebrated at the in-person Giving Day event in Kogan Plaza featuring GW-branded prizes, flowers and snacks.
“The Kogan Plaza event this year was so much fun. We had over 400 students come through and make gifts,” Burgner said. “So many students were asking about how their gift will make an impact and why it's important to give back. This was a great opportunity for students to learn how philanthropy creates the ‘only-at-GW moments’ that make this a world-class university.”
Ten GW schools and units exceeded their goals, with GW Hillel topping the leaderboard with 186% of their goal met.
“We've already started brainstorming for GW Giving Day 2024 and are thrilled to continue this tradition. Exciting things are happening at GW, and our donors came out in record numbers to show their support,” Burgner said.