With their yearlong endeavor nearly complete, the Senior Gift Committee is leaning towards bestowing the Class of 2004 cash donation to the Office of Financial Aid. The final decision will be heavily influenced by results of a website poll that provided seniors three options including the Campus Renewal Fund, the Wesleyan Annual Fund (WAF) and the Office of Financial Aid.
“The largest percentage of the votes went towards financial aid,” said co-chair of the Senior Gift Committee Rebecca Gelenberg ’04. “Now the committee is in discussion and they will make the final decision some time this week.”
Individuals involved in the process tried to explain their classmates’ thinking.
“While I don’t speak for everyone, I think [financial aid] is something people think is important,” said committee member Rebecca Weinstein ’04. “It’s something a little more tangible than the other funds; you know where the money is going.”
Aside from the three formal options, there were also three write-in campaigns organized by different groups on campus. One campaign sought to have the gift go towards the purchase of a wheel chair for Professor of English Christina Crosby, who was injured in a bicycle accident last fall. Another campaign sought to have funds go towards the new organic farm being constructed on Long Lane Avenue. The final group advocated for funding to go towards the creation of a multi-cultural library in 200 Church.
Seniors can continue to donate to the class gift up through senior week. The committee hopes that by then, the gift will have reached the $6,000 mark.
While specific voting totals are unavailable, none of the write-in campaigns was able to accrue more than 50 votes while the Financial Aid office received well over 100.
Once it is decided where the funding is headed, there will still be time to increase the financial amount of the gift. At press time, 636 seniors out of a total of 709 had contributed at least one dollar to the class gift. The Senior Gift Committee has spent much of the year trying to attract as many classmates as possible.
“Most of what we do is get participation up,” Weinstein said. “We have phone-call nights when we encourage seniors to give. From the senior poll to the phone calls and flyers, we basically are trying to get as many people involved as possible.”
The committee’s hard work has paid off with 90 percent of the class having made contributions. As stated on the Senior Class Gift website, the goal is for participation levels to reach 92 percent, thus topping the record of 91 percent set by the Class of 2003.
One program that helped improve contributions was linking the Senior Pass to the donation drive.
“The Senior Pass allows seniors to attend senior events like senior cocktails and senior week at a discounted price,” said Senior Class President Jenina Nunez ’04. “Part of the purchase goes towards the senior gift. And if you are on the pass, you save more than $100, so it’s a good deal.”
This setup, as well as the general enthusiasm of seniors has led to the large participation.
“I am really impressed in the numbers on our website, something like 350 students voted–which is pretty great,” Gelenberg said.
Her fellow committee member concurred.
“People have definitely been supportive,” Weinstein said. “A lot of phone calls [to request donations] involved people who wanted to give but just weren’t sure how to.”
While the Class of 2004 has a realistic shot at establishing a new participation record, they will likely fall short of the monetary benchmark. The Class of 1998 set the standard with a final total of $10,065. If you would like to donate to the senior class gift or have any questions, contact the senior gift co-chairs at seniorgift04@wesleyan.edu.
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