Welcome to Fundraising Friday, AB Today's weekly digest of recent developments in development.
Michigan State University pesident Kevin Guskiewicz announced Friday a record -setting $401 million donation from Greg and Dawn Williams, $390 million of which will directly benefit all athletes and sports at the university, according to athletic director J Batt Of the $390 million, $290 million will be used for Spartan Athletics as part of FOR SPARTA: The Capital Initiative for MSU Athletics, which was announced Tuesday, and $100 million will go toward an entity to be formed by the affiliated organization, Spartan Ventures. According to a report by CBS affiliate WLNS in East Lansing, the remaining $11 million “will be directed toward academic and extracurricular initiatives,” according to the university. This will include the MSU Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, the Risk Management and Financial Insurance Program in the Eli Broad College of Business, the Spartan Marching Band and Pep Bands, and the Sparty Mascot Program.
University of Virginia Athletics and the Virginia Athletics Foundation announced Nov. 25 a $5 million gift to the Athletic Director’s Excellence Fund from Drew and Kate Parker. The gift will be used at the discretion of athletic director Carla Williams to support Virginia men’s basketball.
The Missouri State University Foundation announced Nov. 13 its receipt of $12.5 million in new gifts, including $3 million from three anonymous seven-figure donations toward MSU’s football program, a new member of the NCAA’s Football Bowl Subdivision and Conference USA.
Providence College Athletics announced Tuesday that an anonymous donor will match men's ice hockey revenue share donations at a 10-to-1 ratio up to a total of $3 million. The Men's Ice Hockey Revenue Share Challenge will end Dec. 31.
The Valparaiso University men's basketball program has received a significant boost to its recruiting and retention efforts, with a $1 million commitment to establish the Paul D. and Janet C. Schrage Basketball Excellence Fund. The gift from the Schrages, announced Nov. 24, is in alignment with the recently-launched Men's Basketball Excellence Fund, which provides resources to the program's greatest areas of need, such as team travel, nutrition and new student-athlete benefits.
Total amount of these gifts:
$402,000,000
Running total for 2025:
$1,601,168,500
Total amount tracked by AB Today in 2024:
$943,830,339
