The third annual Columbia Giving Day raised a record-breaking $11 million on October 29, drawing 10,452 gifts from alumni and friends in all fifty US states and fifty-three countries. The twenty-four-hour University-wide fundraising drive, in which twenty-five schools and programs compete for matching gifts, raised $3 million more than the previous year’s event. Columbia College, the athletics department, and the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science were the top overall performers, raising $3 million, $2.3 million, and $1.2 million, respectively; the School of Continuing Education, the College of Dental Medicine, and Columbia College saw the highest percentage of their graduates take part. Schools and programs also became eligible for matching funds by recruiting the most Giving Day “advocates” — alumni and friends who committed to give and spread the word about the event on social media in the days leading up to Giving Day. The School of General Studies, the athletics department, and Barnard College topped that list.
