Sixth Annual Giving Day Raises More Than $700,000

Meredith College’s sixth annual Make It Count for Meredith Giving Day held February 23, 2021, exceeded its $600,000 fundraising goal by more than $150,000. A total of 2,698 donors contributed $771,521 in 24 hours. It was reported initially that a total of $714,798 was raised but additional dollars were counted that were not given on the Giving Day website.

This year, donors were asked to make a gift in honor of a changemaker in their life, someone who is making a positive impact at Meredith, in their community, or in the world and is carving a path to a brighter future for everyone. A total of 1,407 changemakers were honored.

Various matching gift challenges throughout the day from alumnae, the Board of Trustees, Meredith parents, the Alumnae Association Board of Directors, and the Young Alumnae Board helped motivate donors to give. A daylong competition between the Odd and Even classes showed the competitive spirit of Meredith as well. The Evens won that competition 1,060 to 1,047 over the Odds. The Class of 2001 had the most donors for the Odds. The Class of 1982 had the most donors for the Evens. Overall, the Class of 1980 raised the most money.

Various videos featuring President Jo Allen, ʼ80, alumnae, and phonathon students kept the social media audience engaged. Facebook Live updates featured Erin Cleghorn, director of the Meredith Fund, and Hilary Allen, director of Alumnae Relations, featured giving totals and energized alumnae and friends to support Meredith. “Donor support of Giving Day was tremendous. It was so heartwarming to see not just donor gifts but posts on social media, photos of friends and family, and most importantly the women that were honored and the people that are making a change in the world,” said Cleghorn. “We are so grateful for each donor, for all the dollars given, and all the things that our alumnae and friends do to make Meredith College the place that it is. So thank you to everyone who made a gift for your support.”

Donors could designate their gift to any fund they chose, but highlighted funds included the newly created Diversity & Equity Initiatives fund, Chaplain’s Student Emergency fund, College’s Greatest Needs, study abroad, athletics, and Impact Scholarships.