Alumni donations to Harvard

A record-breaking fiftieth-reunion total is one among many contributions.

The University had received 77,000 gifts as of May 24, including those from reunioning classes, reported University Treasurer James F. Rothenberg ’68, M.B.A. ’70, during the HAA’s annual meeting. The Harvard and Radcliffe classes of 1961 not only had the largest attendance of a fiftieth reunion in history, he announced, “they have also broken the all-time reunion gift record—for any Harvard class—by raising a remarkable $61 million.” The class of 1986 achieved the “highest class turnout in twenty-fifth reunion history and exceeded their immediate-use funding target,” he noted, and the class of 1981, celebrating their thirtieth reunion, “are well on their way to setting a new standard for immediate-use fundraising at Harvard.” (No additional figures were announced.) Rothenberg added that the senior-gift campaign yielded an 82 percent participation rate and a record number of leadership gifts. “You are profoundly generous,” he said, thanking alumni, students, parents, and friends of the University. “You have given of your time and resources. You have shared your creativity and energy for the enduring benefit of this remarkable institution, as it continues to expand the boundaries of knowledge, here and around the world.”

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