Alumni, students, faculty, staff and friends came together to support scholarships, programs, and the Laboratory Schools at Illinois State University on Giving Tuesday, December 1. Donors made 1,445 financial gifts totaling $556,733.

This year’s Giving Tuesday preliminary results at Illinois State surpassed last year’s totals of $343,461 from 1,273 individual gifts.

Illinois State was one of thousands of institutions and organizations that benefitted from gifts on Giving Tuesday, a worldwide day dedicated to generosity and giving back. Gifts were accepted online and donors were able to designate specific departments, programs, the University’s Laboratory Schools, and scholarship funds that benefit students attending Illinois State.

“Our entire campus community came together to make this a record-breaking day,” said Lora Wey, executive director of Annual Giving. “Giving Tuesday is a powerful example of our commitment to growing our culture of philanthropy at Illinois State University.”

Illinois State alumni and friends pledged challenge gifts to encourage others to show their support on Giving Tuesday. To show the University’s appreciation, students signed a giant thank you card located on Milner Plaza.

“The generosity shown by members of our extended Redbird family on Giving Tuesday was truly amazing,” said President Larry Dietz. “Their financial gifts support many important University programs, as well as scholarships that help students complete their studies. That type of support is a vital part of Illinois State’s ongoing success.”