Donations for Class Gift continue to roll in, but still short of goal

In less than three weeks Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore could be taking a plunge into the Charles River if half of Boston University seniors donate to the senior class gift.

Elmore’s swim is one of many incentives to donate to the senior class gift, said project manager Allison Rowe. Donors can use “donor cards” to skip lines at special events such as a party at Tequila Rain, and take advantage of donor-only activities, such as a barbeque on BU Beach.

Student donors can allocate their gifts to many organizations at BU, including colleges, departments and student organizations such as the Howard Thurman Center and Student Union, Rowe said.

Rowe said Elmore’s participation has been an enormous help in the campaign.

“He’s normally been supportive of the campaign, but not so much the face of the campaign,” Rowe said.

In addition, the BU Alumni Council has promised to donate $100,000 to the class gift if at least 2,011 graduates donate.

Rowe said this year’s campaign stands out from past campaigns because of Student Union’s participation.

Student Union president Arthur Emma, a College of Arts and Sciences senior, said Union decided to get involved to make sure students realize how crucial donating to the class gift is.

“Too many times at our school, the administration has tried to plan events and push forward programs from the top to bottom,” Arthur said in an email. “As we know, this is rarely, if ever, a successful strategy.”

Arthur said that Union hopes to show that student organization can have a significant impact on relevant school issues.

“As the student body leaders, we were first motivated by our love of BU to get involved with the Class Gift, but we also wanted to show the awesome things that become possible when students at BU are trusted to take the lead with important issues,” Emma said.

In addition to the perks of having a “donor card,” Rowe said senior class participation in the gift has an impact on BU’s rankings.

“The more that students are giving back, the more it looks like students are appreciating the school and saying, ‘thank you,’” Rowe said.

“Last year, a miserable 8 percent of seniors at BU donated to the Class gift, while 100 percent of Dartmouth [College] seniors donated,” Emma said. “This is an opportunity for our class to make history.”

Because donating has an effect on BU’s rankings, students have a direct incentive to donate, Emma said.

“Now that we are applying to jobs, the ranking of our university is particularly relevant to all of us,” Emma said.

While Rowe said a record amount of participants had already been reached last week, nearly 1,000 more seniors are needed to reach the goal.

If 2,011 students donate by the Senior Breakfast on May 6, Rowe said Elmore will suit up in his tuxedo and jump into the river immediately following the breakfast. If the goal is reached by May 21, Elmore will jump during graduation weekend.

“I think sometimes the reasons students don’t want to give is they feel like they’re already paying tuition, but tuition doesn’t cover all the costs of and education,” Rowe said. “It’s really just about the participation. We’re not asking for any certain level of money.”