History: Senior Class Gift
Have you ever …
- pulled long hours in the library and relied on an invigorating cup of coffee from Matthew’s Bean to get you through the night?
- taken a walk in the Shakespeare garden and reveled in the calming beauty of its environs?
- relied on those trusty i-books in the library to finish a paper, or remarked at the convenience of wireless access in the stacks?
- explored the organic life growing in the ecostudy pond out at Sunset Lake?
- learned something new from a professor’s latest research?
Did you know that these common Vassar experiences would not be possible without past contributions from the Senior Class Gift?
The tradition of giving a Senior Class Gift has been shaping the Vassar experience for over sixty years, enabling students to leave their mark on the community in a variety of significant ways. In the early stages of its history (see chart below), the Senior Class Gift most commonly benefited faculty and students with contributions to salary endowments, research scholarships, and financial aid funds. In recent decades, however, the contributions of the senior class have become increasingly personalized, as students come together to express their unique identity through the spirit of giving.
Today, hardly a single member of the campus community has not benefited from at least one of these legacies. The capacity for generosity at Vassar is huge and continues to grow with every year, as projects become increasingly ambitious. In 2001, gifts reached a whole new level of potential when an alumnus “challenged” the class to reach specific goals. Combining the class’s gifts with matched dollars from alumnae/i donors, seniors are now able to consider even more significant ways to leave their mark on the community. In addition to fostering alumnae/i-student relations, the alumnae/i challenger has proven successful in increasing senior class participation and enthusiasm for the significance of each gift.
The following chart outlines the history of the Senior Class Gift and indicates some interesting trends and changes over time. In the early years of the Senior Class Gift, from the early 1940s through to 1967, parents were solicited as part of the gift. The generous contributions of parents ranged from $5,466 in 1949 to $41,078 in 1956. Around 1967, the Senior Class Gift became just that – a gift from members of the senior class and not from their parents.
The chart also reflects the addition of alumnae/i challengers beginning with the Class of 2001.
| Class | Gift Designation | Student Participation | Total Raised |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Solar Panels on the College Center | 412/71% | $39,650 |
| 2006 | Renovation of Matthew’s Mug | 372/63% | $39,304 |
| 2005 | Faculty Research Grant Fund | 405/62% | $20,744 |
| 2004 | Library Wireless Network | 356/60% | $16,339 |
| 2003 | Sound Equipment | 403/68% | $11,862 |
| 2002 | Matthew’s Bean | 314/59% | $30,890 |
| 20011 | Library Laptops | 320/55% | $17,099 |
| 2000 | Textbook Scholarship Fund, Hill Spring Ecostudy Pond | 298/53% | $16,480 |
| 1999 | Scholarships, Minority Scholar in Residence Program | 294/51% | $5,040 |
| 1998 | Scholarships, Library Book Fund | 180 | $5,433 |
| 1997 | TA Bridge, Scholarships | 132/25% | $2,608 |
| 1996 | Pratt House Fountain, Athletics, Career Development, Scholarships | 200 | $4,618 |
| 1995 | No Specific Designation | 231 | $42,399 |
| 1994 | Fund for Interactive Education | 121 | $2,394 |
| 1993 | Library Book Fund | 201 | $4,345 |
| 1992 | Student Computer Equipment | 130 | $2,301 |
| 1991 | Fund to improve access for differently-abled students into College Center | 302/56% | $3,669 |
| 1986 | Scholarship Fund | unknown | $6,441 |
| 1985 | Scholarship Endowment | unknown | $4,228 |
| 1984 | Audio-visual equipment, Blodgett | unknown | $4,022 |
| 1983 | Renovation of Shakespeare Garden | unknown | $3,758 |
| 1982 | Endowed scholarship fund | unknown | $6,745 |
| 1981 | Lobby renovation in Main | unknown | $3,706 |
| 1980 | Completion of repair and renovation of chapel bells | unknown | $2,491 |
| 1979 | Repair of chapel bells | unknown | $2,623 |
| 1978 | Unknown | unknown | $3,350 |
| 1977 | Lobby renovation in Main | unknown | $9,401 |
| 1976 | Renovation of Rose Parlor | unknown | $10,292 |
| 1975 | Renovation of Rose Parlor | 42% | $18,000 |
| 1974 | Unknown | unknown | $1,741 |
| 1973 | Furnishings in College Centerunknown | unknown | |
| 1967 | Library Book Fund | 308/81% | $17,6362 |
| 1966 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 288/79% | $18,873 |
| 1965 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 312/88% | $21,577 |
| 1964 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 287/85% | $14,448 |
| 1963 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 313/97% | $18,342 |
| 1962 | Fund for periodicals | 254/91% | $21,222 |
| 1961 | Scholarship Fund | 266/87% | $22,927 |
| 1960 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 210/77% | $18,913 |
| 1959 | Faculty research and publication | 277/95% | $31,738 |
| 1958 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 275/91% | $27,306 |
| 1957 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 290/94% | $30,953 |
| 1956 | Faculty Salaries Endowment | 264/97% | $44,964 |
| 1955 | Scholarship Fund | 270/92% | $26,609 |
| 1954 | Scholarship Fund | 247/92% | $17,003 |
| 1953 | Scholarship Fund | 284/97% | $35,636 |
| 1952 | Scholarship Fund | 292/95% | $27,300 |
| 1951 | Scholarship Fund | 248/81% | $19,676 |
| 1950 | Scholarship Fund | 309/97% | $13,211 |
| 1949 | Scholarship Fund | 250/94% | $7,265 |
| 1948 | Scholarship Fund | 265/91% | $7,524 |
| 1947 | Scholarship Fund | 279/98% | $22,841 |
| 1946 | Scholarship Fund | 382/98% | $25,000 |
| 1945 | Scholarship Fund | 283/91% | $10,480 |
| 1945-43 | Scholarship Fund | 275/100% | $10,800 |
| 1944 | Scholarship Fund | 264/95% | $9,710 |
