MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The seventh annual West Virginia University (WVU) Day of Giving set a new record for future events, according to vice president of communications at the WVU Foundation, Bill Nevin.
“More than $30 million, and in that number, we had 8,500 gifts, and both of those numbers are records,” Nevin said.
The WVU Day of Giving is a 24-hour sprint to reach as many members of Mountaineer Nation as possible and get their financial support. This year, Nevin said all academic units, WVU Health Sciences, WVU Athletics, and staff and faculty from the regional campuses reached out to supporters they know or interact with frequently.
Those interactions developed into hourly challenges and participation gifts that created a variety of #WVU moments on social media throughout the day.
“They really reached out to their alumni and supporters and asked if they would support the university and their specific area, and they responded,” Nevin said.
Among the three large gifts received, one was a $2 million gift from Dr. Dianne G. Munchant to establish the Munchant Chair of Pediatric Nephrology at the School of Medicine.
“We received $2.6 million from the Bedford Falls Foundation to support the WVU School of Nursing and $2 million from Encova Insurance to support research that is happening at the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute,” Nevin said.
Since 2017, the WVU Day of Giving has generated more than 36,000 gifts that total more than $96 million. This year, the total was $30.4 million from more than 8,500 donors.
“It never ceases to amaze me—the loyalty and passion of our alumni and supporters—they respond every single time, and boy did they respond this year,” Nevin said.
Even though the Day of Giving had a strong rollout and social media presence, there may have been some who were left behind. Nevin said gifts can be made to the university anytime online.
“We accept donations every single day,” Nevin said. “Just go to GIVE.WVU.EDU, it’s very simple to make an online donation to support our great university.”