Westminster College receives national CASE fundraising award

Westminster College is one of 101 colleges and universities from across the nation to win a prestigious 2020 Educational Fundraising Award from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).

Westminster earned the award for its overall improvement by demonstrating significant program growth over three years of data. Westminster is one of only five colleges recognized in the category of private liberal arts institutions with endowments under $150 million.

“Recognition by CASE, the premier association representing advancement in higher education, is a testament to the leadership of Westminster’s Board of Trustees, Alumni Council and President Kathy Richardson, as well as the dedicated and innovative work of our institutional advancement team,” said Vice President for Institutional Advancement Matt Stinson. “The award also speaks to the passion and loyalty of our alumni and friends who encourage and support the success of our students and faculty.”

The Educational Fundraising Awards annually recognize exemplary development programs based on a blind review of data submitted to the CASE AMAtlas Voluntary Support of Education survey. A group of experienced educational fundraisers spends hours reviewing the data to determine the awards.

Winners are not selected based solely on total funds raised. Judges select winners based on many factors, including alumni participation, patterns of growth in total support, amount raised per student and the impact of the 12 largest gifts on total support.

While the data does not include the results of the current year, the award comes on the heels of two recent and successful fundraising initiatives, Bring Back the Titans (BBTT) and Clash of the Titans (COTT), which brought in a combined $2 million during a two-month period. With a matching donation from the May Emma Hoyt Foundation and more than 850 donors, the BBTT campaign has raised over $1.8 million to date and will aid students financially impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The one-week COTT campaign to benefit marching band members and Titan athletes raised $218,197 from 1,684 donors.

“Successful fundraising happens when everyone participates, from the staff and faculty to the institution’s leadership,” said Sue Cunningham, CASE President and CEO. “This inspiring philanthropic engagement is guided by dedicated and professional development staff, and supported by generous volunteers. Collectively, we are advancing education—key to addressing the many serious challenges our world faces today.”

Learn more about CASE’s Educational Fundraising Awards.

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