Record UVA Darden Alumni Participation, Strong Scholarship Funding Highlight Year in Giving

The generosity of the alumni and friends of the University of Virginia Darden School of Business helped provide critical support for the School and its funding priorities in the 2016 fiscal year, a banner year for unrestricted support that showcased a strong response to Dean Scott Beardsley’s call to fund current and future-use scholarships.

The fiscal-year 2016 results and highlights included:

• $19.7 million raised, a 24 percent increase over the previous year
• $5.1 million raised for the Darden Annual Fund, with a record number of alumni donors representing 43 percent alumni participation
• Record reunion giving participation, with 85 percent of reunion attendees giving to the Annual Fund
• $8.1 million raised for student scholarships — a $6.5 million increase from the previous year, helping to ensure the School continues to attract the best and brightest students and representing a strong first year for Beardsley’s Darden Scholarship Challenge goal to increase scholarship funds

In April 2016, Darden also earned the distinction of having the most dollars raised of any school at UVA in the first-ever GivingToHoosDay, a 24-hour online day of giving. In addition to the record $570,897 raised in 24 hours, Darden finished the day with the second highest number of gifts at UVA and won a number of special challenge gifts throughout the day, including the most international gifts in an hour.

The strong fundraising year coincided with the January 2016 hiring of Kara Mullins as executive director of advancement, bringing 16 years of fundraising experience to the School.

“I am elated by the support from our alumni and friends in fiscal year 2016,” said Mullins. “The generosity and clear commitment to the School is laudable on many levels and ensures that we can move Darden forward as an institution dedicated to delivering the world’s best education experience and, ultimately, to improving the world.”