Allegheny College finishes fundraising campaign with $202 million

Allegheny College has raised more than $202 million, concluding a five-year-long fundraising campaign and setting a record as the college’s largest fundraising campaign ever.

The campaign, called “Our Allegheny: Our Third Century Quest,” was officially launched during the college’s bicentennial celebration in 2015 with a goal of raising $200 million. Hilary Link, president of the college, said the effort came from a wide variety of events and sources, but was mostly the work of development and alumni affairs staff, the “ongoing cultivation of people who care enough about the college to want to support it philantrophically.”

The campaign focused on bolstering the college’s endowment and increasing annual support, according to a news release. More than $50 million was raised for new scholarships, $37.5 million for faculty support and professional development,$30.2 million for facility maintenance and renovation and $7.5 million to support internships and off-campus study.

Fundraising during a pandemic created a new challenge, as would-be donors grapple with an economic recession and their own respective sense of uncertainty for the future. But for Allegheny College and other institutions, Link said, raising money for the endowment and its future endeavors became more important than ever.

“There’s a wide understanding in higher education that small, private, liberal arts institutions — many of them are struggling,” she said, adding that covid-19 has been hugely detrimental to small schools and in the region, many institutions are anticipating a demographic decline in the college-aged population. The campaign’s contribution’s to Allegheny College’s endowment, she said, is a “silver lining.”

“I think having invested in the endowment does give us at least a small sense of security in what is a very challenging moment for higher education,” Link said.

Amid the pandemic, Link said, the college established an emergency fund to help students with related financial issues and supplement expenses the school hadn’t anticipated — like refunds to students, the cost of personal protective equipment and others. In the beginning, she said there was initial fear the crisis might “derail” everything. The act of fundraising became more difficult, as communication with donors had to be made over the phone and via Zoom.

But Link said she was pleased that many continued to give, allowing the college to meet and surpass its goal. Campaign contributions ranged from $5 to more than $14 million, according to the release. Foundations and corporations — including the PNC Foundation, the Richard King Mellon Foundation and many others — contributed more than $33 million through grants.

“Time and time again, our alumni, parents and friends have demonstrated their unyielding support for Allegheny, even in the most trying of times, as evidenced by record-setting giving to this historic $200 million campaign,” Link said in a statement.

Classes at Allegheny College will resume Monday, Aug. 31, under an adjusted academic calendar.