Meredith College broke ground in the fall 2023 on the Estes-Speight Family Athletic Center which will include athletic training space for softball, tennis, and golf. Chris Speight Brown, ’76, along with her siblings, gave a $1 million lead gift to name the center in memory of their mother, Mary Estes Speight, ’53, and their father, Bobby Speight.
Margaret Weatherspoon Parker, ’38, was a strict parent with high expectations of her two daughters. So when Anne Parker Phillips, ’66, and Mary Stuart Parker Alderman, ’71, decided they wanted to honor their mother with a gift to Meredith College, they wanted to make sure it would be something she would have been proud to support.
Meredith College raised $1,419,575 in 24 hours during the College’s ninth annual Make It Count for Meredith Giving Day, held on February 27, 2024. The fundraising event exceeded its $1.1 million fundraising goal by more than $300,000, and a total of 2,630 donors contributed to the campaign.
The annual Make It Count for Meredith Giving Day will be held on Tuesday, February 27, 2024. The goal for the 24 hour giving challenge is to raise $1.1 million.
Bobby and Franny Beasley saw first-hand how a student’s relationship with a professor affects their college experience. The positive experience their daughter, Lindsay Beasley, ’13, had at Meredith with Diane Ellis, Beasley’s fashion merchandising professor, was transformative and helped her both inside and outside the classroom.
In 2022, Carolyn Murray Happer and her husband Leonard Shaw Graham created the Happer-Graham History Scholarship and the Happer-Graham History Program Fund. These gifts will help support history students who aspire to become teachers and enhance learning opportunities by funding research, summer study, and conference attendance.
Alumnae and friends of Meredith College have played an integral role in supporting students in the past fiscal year. Contributing and volunteering shows students they have people who care about their education, time outside the classroom, health, future careers, and overall experience at Meredith.
Faculty and staff walked into the newly renovated Jones Auditorium on August 14 for the start of the academic year and the annual State of the College address to see new seating, carpet, and lighting; a new mechanical lift for accessibility; and general upgrades.
Meredith College held its 14th annual Retired Faculty and Staff Luncheon on September 21, 2023. The event, hosted by Institutional Advancement, welcomed more than 70 attendees. This event allows time for guests to reconnect and hear the latest news from Meredith College.
Meredith College hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on September 8, 2023, to celebrate the construction of a new softball, tennis, and golf complex that will allow athletes adequate space to train. Chris Speight Brown, ’76, along with her siblings, gave a $1 million lead gift that will name the Estes-Speight Family Athletic Complex in memory of her mother Mary Estes Speight, ʼ53, and her father Bobby Speight.
Meredith College has begun a renovation of Jones Auditorium, which was built in 1949. Phase one of the project, which includes new seating, new carpet, lighting, sound system, a new mechanical lift for accessibility, and general upgrades, started in July 2023. Phase one of the renovation is supported by a lead gift from Lisa Robie Poole, ‘86, and her husband, Ven Poole.
The Meredith College Golf Classic was held Monday, May 1, 2023, at Wildwood Green Golf Club. The event was coordinated by the Office of Institutional Advancement and this year marked the 25th anniversary of the event. All proceeds from the Golf Classic benefit the Meredith Athletics Department and enhance the experiences of current student-athletes.
This year the Class of 2023 has chosen to assist Disability Services through the Senior Class Gift project. The project will be funding ADA entrance and exit signs for the remaining campus building that do not yet have them. This is a very exciting project and one that the Class of 2023 is truly passionate about! As a component of their Senior Class Gift initiative, the class held Senior Spirit Giving Week from April 3 – 6, 2023
Institutional Advancement held a Scholarship and Donor Recognition Dinner on March 23, 2023, at the Embassy Suites in Cary, N.C. The dinner honored Meredith donors who give graciously to Meredith College and gave students receiving scholarships the opportunity to thank donors for supporting their education. More than 250 people were in attendance including the Board of Trustees.
Meredith College raised $1,349,106 in just 24 hours during the College’s eighth annual Make It Count for Meredith Giving Day, held on February 28, 2023. The fundraising event exceeded its $1 million fundraising goal by more than $300,000, and a total of 2,762 donors contributed to the campaign. Initially, a total of $1,329,823 was raised but additional cash gifts were counted from the day that were not given on the Giving Day website.
The annual Make It Count for Meredith Giving Day will be held Tuesday, February 28, 2023. The goal for the 24-hour giving challenge is to raise $1 million.
The Class of 2023 held a special event called Seniorsgiving on November 10, in Belk Dining Hall to announce and celebrate their senior class gift project. This year the class will be raising money for the greatest needs of Disability Services.
On Wednesday, November 9, Meredith College parents and families raised $14,700 in 24 hours toward this year’s project to enhance campus outdoor spaces. The goal was $10,000. The Jessie Ball duPont Fund is also providing matching funds for a portion of the total raised, so the final total will be even higher.
Alumnae, current students, and friends attended the Interior Design Affinity event hosted by the Alumnae Association, on October 23, 2022. The tour in Durham, N.C., featured the work of Alicia Hylton-Daniel, ‘08, owner of Hylton Daniel design+construction.
On October 29, the Alumnae Association and Office of Admissions held the annual Discover Meredith event, for which alumnae invite prospective students for a campus visit.
Contact Information
Jennifer Kaisersatt
Administrative Assistant to the Associate VP of Institutional Advancement
(919) 760-8374
jkaisersatt@meredith.edu
