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Give. Share. Watch. Live 10-hour webcast highlights fourth annual Giving Day

For everyone who has ever wondered what Lawrence University is all about, a LIVE, 10-hour webcast Wednesday, Oct. 11 will provide an insider’s look at some of the people and programs that make the university an interesting and vibrant place.

Lawrence’s fourth annual Giving Day event, which will be webcast live at go.lawrence.edu/givingday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., features interviews with faculty, administrators, accomplished alumni and students, including some who currently are studying abroad. There also will be nearly a dozen live musical performances, hands-on demonstrations and maybe a surprise guest appearance or two.Giving Day studio

Kasey Corrado, Lawrence’s social media director, will be back in the hostess chair for the fourth year in a row. She’ll be joined by Ken Anselment, dean of admissions and financial aid, who returns for his second stint as co-host.

“Even though this is our fourth annual Giving Day and we’ve gotten into a bit of a groove when it comes to the live show, there is still that undeniable excitement about what is going to take place when the red light goes on,” said Corrado, who calls Giving Day “her favorite day of the year at Lawrence.”

“I love meeting with guests and showcasing how they contribute to the Lawrence community in a variety of ways” she added. “We’ve put together another wonderful line-up of student musicians, leaders and athletes, alumni and staff. I’m looking forward to sharing their stories with our audience.”

Anselment, whose lone battle scar from his initial Giving Day hosting duties — a scratchy throat from over talking — admitted that will serve as a helpful reminder to keep the focus on the guests.

“Giving Day is about letting members of the Lawrence community shine in all their multi-interested, multi-talented ways,” said Anselment. “My job is to set them up and let them be at their brightest.”

It’s the surprises that come with hours of planned, yet improvised, programming, where some of the best moments happen, said Anselment.

STudent musicians performing on Giving Day
Musical performances are always a staple of Lawrence’s Giving Day webcast.

“I knew last year the day was going to be special during our very first segment when President Burstein picked up the pom-poms and shook them right along with the dance team. Now that’s commitment,” he said, adding that getting lifted by Lawrence dance instructor Margaret Paek— who is about half his size — was a lesson in grace and physics “I won’t soon forget.”

An eclectic cast of Lawrence “celebrities” scheduled to visit with Corrado and Anselment include:
• President Mark Burstein

• Gary Vaughan, discussing Lawrence’s innovation and entrepreneurship program, including a presentation from a member of last spring’s winning team at The Pitch Competition.

• Amy Ongiri from the film studies program, with staff videographer Chris Gore-Gammon, who will give a virtual reality demonstration.

• Copeland Woodruff talking opera

• Coaches from the athletic department

• Biologist Israel Del Toro discussing the Pollinator Project.

• Performances by the Faculty Brass, Cantala women’s choir, an ensemble of 19 cellists, and others.

• The student bands Sol Studios and The Embers as well as singer Bernard Lilly, a student from the Academy of Music and the student duet Jerry Wang and Eva Tourangeau.

Garrett Katerzynske, Lawrence’s director of video production, not only juggled most of the proverbial chain saws in lining up the guests for this year’s production, he also steps into the director’s chair for the first time.

“The live show is a marathon of technical demands and I’ll be positioned at the epicenter of the creative storm, directing crew back stage and talent on screen,” said Katerzynske. “Beautiful moments and unexpected issues can unfold simultaneously and if we’re lucky, we’ll spin problems into happy accidents. The cameras keep rolling and the results are always entertaining.”

In scouring the campus the past several months for guests, Katerzynske said he uncovered some incredible stories and witnessed many remarkable performances.

A chemistry demonstration on Giving Day
Hands-on demonstrations always add an element of the unknown to the Giving Day webcast.

“The faculty and students on this campus surprise me every year,” he said. “I can’t wait to watch everything come together in the studio.”

Lawrence held its first Giving Day in 2014 as a one-day-only fundraising event for alumni and friends to show their support for Lawrence, its programs and students. Since that first event, Giving Day has generated more than $3.7 million from more than 6,400 students, alumni, parents, faculty, staff, and friends of the university.

Many of the guests appearing on the webcast are grateful beneficiaries of the generosity of Giving Day donors and serve as examples of the way funding assists faculty, students and programs on campus.

As in previous years, Lawrence Giving Day 2017 has been made possible by a generous group of alumni, parents and friends who have committed to be “Game Changers,” providing matching funds as motivation for others to support the college.

“Giving Day’s goal isn’t just to raise money, although that is an important aspect,” said Kayla Schumacher, Lawrence’s director of annual giving. “This is a chance for everyone in the Lawrence community to come together for 24 hours and celebrate the things they care about here.

“The entire community is encouraged to take advantage of the fantastic giving challenges on Giving Day,” Schumacher added. “We hope participation in the day continues growing this year as more members of our community choose to give back. For the fourth time, Lawrence will show the world what we can accomplish when we all come together in just one day.”

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Give. Watch. Share. 12-hour live Giving Day show celebrates all things Lawrence

With apologies to Lorne Michaels and the late great Don Pardo, “LIVE…from the Hurvis Center…it’s Giving Day.”

It’s the Little Apple(ton), not the Big Apple, but starting at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 10, Lawrence University will stage its second annual “Giving Day,” a 12-hour live extravaganza webcast worldwide, featuring a cast of thousands, or at least dozens, ranging from President Mark Burstein and Mile of Music co-founder Cory Chisel to head football coach Rob McCarthy and the Lawrence Faculty Jazz Quartet.

Giving Day newsblog
Giving Day co-host Kasey Corrado (right) gets ready to try out a pair of hip waders courtesy of biologist Bart De Stasio (center) as he gives her a primer on doing research out in the field during 2014’s Giving Day live show..

The show will include interesting interviews and eclectic performances celebrating things happening at the college and showcasing the people and programs that make Lawrence distinctive.

Held for the first time in November, 2014, Giving Day is a special one-day opportunity for alumni and friends to show their support for Lawrence and its programs. Last year’s Giving Day, with the help of “game changers” who matched donations, raised $1.1 million for the college.

Kasey Corrado, Lawrence’s social media specialist, returns for her second stint as co-host of the 12-hour live show. She will be joined by senior Jon Hanrahan, a piano performance major from Johnsburg, Ill.

The webcast, available at go.lawrence.edu/givingday, will feature hourly “themes” on such topics as diversity, the arts, community service and of course, academics. From 7-8 p.m., everyone will be asked to don their thinking caps for a 60-minute trivia warm-up for Lawrence’s real deal 50-hour contest coming in late January.

Last year’s Giving Day was such a surprising success. Although we had planned for months, nothing really prepared us for what it turned out to be,” said Corrado, who is looking forward to reprising her one-part Barbara Walters, one-part Ellen DeGeneres role of a year ago. “I’m excited to see what happens this year.”

During the course of the show, Corrado will be more than just a passive host. She’s planning on learning a little Mandarin, creating a work of art with the help of sculptor Rob Neilson and boning up on her chemistry knowledge with chemist Stefan Debbert.

“I love that I get to co-host this show again,” said Corrado, whose first hosting stint came less than six months after getting hired at Lawrence. “As corny as it sounds, I feel like I’m getting to help make history at Lawrence.”

“Compared to last year, this is a far more ambitious undertaking, so I fully expect all kinds of interesting things to go wrong. It is 12 straight hours after all.”
— Rachel Crowl

Hanrahan, whose qualifications for his co-host role include four year’s performing with Lawrence’s improvisational troupe Optimistic Feral Children and three years as a trivia master, says his game plan is simple: Just dive in.

“I’m going to keep a curious mind turned on and gently nudge guests to the point where they have no choice but to share what they think, deep down, makes Lawrence such a weird, wonderful, impactful place,” said Hanrahan, who claims he’s made it through an entire trivia contest weekend without the aid of caffeine.Giving-Day_newsblog

Hanrahan says he’s excited about interacting with what he calls a line-up of “funny, smart, or strange people.”

Amid all the fun and games, Hanrahan wants the viewers to also appreciate the purpose of Giving Day.

“I really want our older viewers to come away with a reminder of what a transformative place Lawrence can be and I hope that current students get a glimpse of what goes on in the buildings that they don’t typically enter.”

Rachel Crowl, one of the masterminds behind this year’s Giving Day live show, will again handle all the off-camera chain saw juggling that goes with staging such a production.

“Compared to last year, this is a far more ambitious undertaking, so I fully expect all kinds of interesting things to go wrong. It is 12 straight hours after all,” Crowl said with a laugh.

Since July, Crowl has donned her executive producer/director/writer hat, scouring the campus for “talent.”

“I just used my institutional Rolodex to cajole, bribe and otherwise convince friends on the faculty and in the student body to appear on the show so we could cram as many facets of life at Lawrence as possible into 12 hours,” said Crowl, who promises a few surprises along the way. “I feel it’s my responsibility to put on a show that’s crazy entertaining, informative and one that makes the viewers want to support the institution.”

#LUGives15

According to Cara Gosse, director of annual giving, last year’s Giving Day trial run “surpassed our wildest expectations.”

“We were blown away by the way the college community pulled together to celebrate Lawrence, past and present,” said Gosse. “This year we have more than 200 Game Changers—alumni, parents and friends — who are providing matching funds to motivate others to support our students and the school they love. We’re so excited to do it all again. We want this year to be bigger, better, and bLUer.”

The complete Giving Day webcast schedule can be found here.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

A record breaker: Lawrence sets single-year fundraising mark

Lawrence University students may not realize it, but they have cause to celebrate. They will be the primary beneficiaries of a record-setting fundraising year by the college.

In the second year of Mark Burstein’s presidency, Lawrence set a one-year fundraising record with $34.7 million for the recently completed 2014-15 fiscal year. The previous high mark, $31.4 million, was established in 2008.furnraising-record_newsblog_1

As part of the overall fundraising total, the college also broke the record set last year for the Lawrence Fund, the college’s annual giving program, with $3.8 million.

More than 62 percent of the record fundraising total was designated for scholarships to support Lawrence’s “Full Speed to Full Need” campaign launched last year. The sole purpose of this focused effort is to provide financial aid to students of limited means. The college since has raised $22.6 million toward the full scholarship fund match.

“This record fundraising year is not only a tribute to President Burstein’s clear vision for Lawrence, but also a tribute to the generosity of spirit of those who make up the Lawrence community — students, faculty, staff, administrators, alumni, friends of the college and trustees,” said Susan Stillman Kane ’72, chair of the Lawrence Board of Trustees.

“The central theme of Mark Burstein’s vision, the value of the liberal arts and the importance of our educational mission in this rapidly changing world,” Kane added, “is enhanced by his goals of making a Lawrence education affordable for all students, sustaining a balanced university budget and creating an environment where a diverse student population can thrive. This resounding affirmation of his vision and the outpouring of philanthropic support this past year is unparalleled.”

Lawrence enjoyed a jump in its alumni donor participation rate (37 percent), the college’s first increase since 2004. Nationally, private baccalaureate arts and science colleges have seen the  average alumni donor participation rate drop every year from 2002-2014. According to the 2014 Voluntary Support of Education Survey, Lawrence’s alumni donor participation rate was nearly four percent above the national average, ranking 46th nationally among 204 peer institutions.

The college also saw a small increase in its retention rate, which measures the portion of prior year alumni donors who gave again the following year. At 80.3 percent, it was Lawrence’s second-highest mark since 2004. According to Target Analytics Index of Higher Education, the median retention rate for colleges and universities is 62 percent.

“This record fundraising year is not only a tribute to President Burstein’s clear vision for Lawrence, but also a tribute to the generosity of spirit of those who make up the Lawrence community…the outpouring of philanthropic support this past year is unparalleled.”
— Susan Stillman Kane ’72, chair of the Board of Trustees

“This is tremendous news because it provides a clear demonstration of how highly engaged and supportive the alumni community and friends of Lawrence are in securing the college’s future,” said Charles Saunders, ’84, a member of the Lawrence Board of Trustees and outgoing president of the Founders Club, a gift club which recognizes donors who contribute gifts of $1.000 or more annually to the Lawrence Fund. “This allows us to make significant progress on maintaining our affordability, which is the primary issue facing colleges and universities today.”

In Forbes’ 2015 Grateful Grads Index, which ranks colleges by the median amount of private donations per student over a 10-year period, Lawrence ranked 63rd nationally among all colleges and universities and was the highest ranked among Wisconsin schools.fundraising-record_newblog_2

The Lawrence Fund provides close to seven percent of the college’s annual operating budget and helps bridge the gap between what students pay in tuition and actual operating costs. The Lawrence Fund, along with endowment earnings, help reduce each student’s tuition by more than $10,000 per year. In addition to providing student grants and scholarships, the Lawrence Fund also supports everything from classroom resource and athletic equipment to sheet music for conservatory students.

The record-setting fundraising year included another milestone for the college, with membership in the Lawrence-Downer Legacy Circle crossing the 1,000-member threshold. At the end of the 2014-15 fiscal year, membership in the college’s planned giving program jumped by nearly 11 percent over the previous year, growing to 1,016 members.

“The act of including Lawrence in one’s estate plans is arguably the most profound endorsement anyone can make,” said Dave Mitchell, ’71, legacy gift planning co-chair of the Lawrence-Downer Legacy Circle. “The fact that membership in the Legacy Circle increased by more than 10 percent speaks volumes about Lawrence’s special place in our hearts.”

For the third consecutive year, the Lawrence Fund enjoyed 100 percent participation from all 32 members of the Lawrence Board of Trustees as well as all 31 members of the Lawrence University Alumni Association Board of Directors.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College” and Fiske’s Guide to Colleges 2016. Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Funding Help: Lawrence joins Foundation Center’s National Network to provide resources for area grantseekers

Lawrence University has become a Funding Information Network partner with the Foundation Center of New York and that’s good news for northeast Wisconsin nonprofit organizations and other agencies seeking funding sources.

FINpartnersquaread_newsblogThrough a collaboration with the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, United Way Fox Cities and Oshkosh Area United Way, Lawrence will serve as host to a Funding Information Network location, providing free public access to a valuable collection of funding resources for a wide range of area grantseekers in the college’s Seeley G. Mudd Library.

“This is the type of funding information resource that small nonprofits can really benefit from, but can rarely afford,” said Jenna Stone, who leads Lawrence’s grants office as the executive director of corporate, foundation and sponsored research support. “The searchable databases of grants and funders put incredibly detailed information at the fingertips of nonprofit staff, volunteers, schools, teachers and other grantseekers.”

As one of only seven Funding Information Network partners in Wisconsin, Lawrence will provide under-resourced and underserved populations that need vital information and training with tools to become successful grantseekers.

Located nationally and internationally, Funding Information Network partners offer free access to the Foundation Center’s extensive information on grantmakers as well guidance on how to apply for grants. The Center’s core collection of resources includes “Foundation Directory Online,” which profiles more than 110,000 U.S. grantmakers, “Foundation Grants to Individuals Online,” “Philanthropy In/Sight,” print directories and proposal writing guides.

“This is the type of funding information resource that small nonprofits can really benefit from, but can rarely afford.”
       — Jenna Stone

These databases and electronic and print resources are available to the general public any time Lawrence’s Seeley G. Mudd Library is open.

“The Community Foundation is committed to strengthening nonprofits in our area, so we are happy to be a part of a partnership that gives them access to such a valuable resource,” said Curt Detjen, Community Foundation president and CEO.

To launch the Funding Information Network site, Lawrence will hold an informal open house and a series of three free training sessions to assist area grantseekers on how to effectively use the Foundation Center resources and identify potential funders.

A community open house at Lawrence’s Mudd Library will be held Monday, May 11 from 4-7 p.m. It will include tours of the library, information on library resources available to the public and an introduction to the Funding Information Network resources.

Mudd-LIbrary_newsblog
Lawrence’s Seeley G. Mudd will be home to an extensive amount of free resource information on grantmakers as well guidance on how to apply for grants. The library also will host a series of training workshops for grantseekers in May (19, 28) and June (6).

On Tuesday, May 19 from 6:30-8 p.m., Lawrence will conduct the first of three “Introduction to Finding Grants” workshops in the Mudd Library. These hands-on workshops, led by members of Lawrence’s own grant-writing staff, will provide an overview of the grants landscape, basic strategies for identifying potential funding sources as well as a demonstration of “Foundation Directory Online.”

The workshop will be repeated Thursday, May 28 from 6:30-8 p.m. and again Saturday, June 6 from 10-11:30 a.m. Space is limited at each session and an RSVP is required to reserve a spot.

Additional information about the Funding Information Network at Lawrence, library hours, directions, upcoming events and RSVP instructions is available here.

Established in 1956, the Foundation Center is the nation’s leading authority on organized philanthropy, serving grantseekers, grantmakers, researchers, policymakers, the media and the general public. Thousands of people visit the Center’s web site each day and are served in its five regional learning centers and its international partnerships with hundreds of Funding Information Network locations.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2015 and the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Lawrence Receives Record $25 Million Gift for Scholarship Endowment

A lives changer.

That’s how Lawrence University President Mark Burstein sees a $25 million anonymous gift the college has received to support student scholarships.

major-gift-news-blog2The $25 million gift is the largest in Lawrence history and will be used to establish an endowed scholarship to help meet the financial need for future Lawrence students. It is a dollar-for-dollar matching gift that will result in a new $50 million in additional endowment to support scholarships.

“A gift this size will truly change lives. We are humbled by the donor’s generosity,” said Burstein. “This gift and subsequent matching support will further enhance Lawrence’s role as a catalyst for social mobility.

“The magnitude of a $25 million gift is really immeasurable, but we know it will impact generations of students from across the country and around the world,” Burstein added. “The students who benefit from this gift will go on to make a difference in their home communities. That will be the ultimate dividend of this gift.”

“Few moments happen in the more than 160-year history of an institution like Lawrence that are truly transformative. This is one of them,” said Terry Franke, a 1968 Lawrence graduate and current chair of the college’s Board of Trustees. “A boost of $50 million in our endowment guarantees that Lawrence remains affordable for generations to come. I’m sure it will excite our alumni as much as it does me.”

Based on the average financial aid package for the 2014-15 academic year, the endowment draw from this gift will allow Lawrence to offer financial aid awards that meet the full institutionally demonstrated financial need of at least 50 students each year in perpetuity.

“The magnitude of a $25 million gift is really immeasurable, but we know it will
impact generations of students from across the country and around the world.”
— President Mark Burstein

Since becoming Lawrence’s 16th president in July 2013, Burstein has made affordability a central institutional priority.

Major-Gift_newsblog#2“We fully realize college costs can be a financial burden, which is why we are so focused on scholarship support,” said Burstein. “With this gift, along with an institutional commitment to contain expenses and manage tuition growth, we aim to help students from all backgrounds attend Lawrence and reap the benefits of a challenging and rigorous education.”

The importance of a college degree in improving a person’s social mobility was underscored in a 2008 Brookings Institution report, “Getting Ahead or Losing Ground: Economic Mobility in America.”

According to the report’s authors, when children born into the bottom fifth of the United States of the income distribution earn a college degree, their chances of making it to the top fifth of income earners nearly quadruple, and their chances of escaping the bottom income quintile increase by more than 50 percent. While half of all people from high-income families have a bachelor’s degree by age 25, only 1 in 10 people from low-income families do.

The record-setting gift comes on the heels of other positive financial news for Lawrence. The college is coming off its best year ever for gifts to its annual giving program — the Lawrence Fund — with an institutional record $3.7 million raised during the 2013-14 fiscal year.

The Lawrence Fund provides nearly 10 percent of the college’s annual operating budget. It helps bridge the gap between what students pay in tuition and actual operating costs and in conjunction with endowment earnings, helps reduce each student’s tuition by more than $10,000 per year.

In July, Lawrence announced a $2.5 million gift to expand its current teacher education program to include elementary teacher education certification beginning in the fall of 2015.Major-Gifts_newsblog_4

Earlier this year, Lawrence received a $2.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Title III SIP program for a comprehensive program designed to increase the graduation rate of at-risk students.

“Collectively these gifts and grants have fueled considerable institutional momentum that will help our students have a positive, productive experience while they’re here and prepare them to succeed in a rapidly changing world,” Burstein said.

• Lawrence’s previous largest gift was $16 million in 2006 for the Warch Campus Center.

• For the 2014-15 academic year, Lawrence provided $33.4 million in institutional financial aid.

• Ninety-six percent of Lawrence students are receiving need and/or merit based financial aid for the 2014-15 academic year.

• The average need-based student financial aid package for the current school year is $35,600.

• For the current school year, 21 percent of Lawrence students are receiving federal Pell Grants, which are given to undergraduates from low-income families with the highest need.

• As for June 30, 2014, Lawrence’s endowment was nearly $250 million and experienced a 16.2 percent investment return over the fiscal year.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2015 and the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Individualized learning, the development of multiple interests and community engagement are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

Lawrence Fund Enjoys Record-Breaking Year

Lawrence University alumni and friends rewarded first-year President Mark Burstein with a special present — a record-setting fundraising total.

Classroom_Annual Fund_newsblog
The Lawrence Fund provides essential support for virtually all aspects of a student’s education, including scientific equipment such as this re-circulating flume for the geology department.

But the real beneficiaries are Lawrence’s students.

For the recently completed 2013-14 fiscal year, the college raised an institutional record $3.7 million for the Lawrence Fund, breaking the previous mark of $3,647,259 set in 2008-09.

The Lawrence Fund, the college’s annual giving program, provides close to 10 percent of the annual operating budget and helps bridge the gap between what students pay in tuition and actual operating costs. The Lawrence Fund and endowment earnings help reduce each student’s tuition by more than $10,000 per year, provide much-needed support for everything from scholarships and classroom resources to athletic equipment and sheet music for conservatory students.

Lawrence’s overall fundraising for the 2013-14 fiscal year totaled $17,681,384, the sixth-most in school history.

“This past fiscal year’s record-setting Lawrence Fund total is testament to our alumni’s loyal support of the college’s mission. I’m humbled by the generosity of the 10,308 individual donors who gave to Lawrence last year,” said Burstein, who marked the end of his inaugural year as president June 30. Earlier this year, Forbes ranked Lawrence highest of any college or university in Wisconsin on its 2014 Grateful Grads Index.

Helping the Lawrence Fund establish an institutional all-time high was a record-setting gift of $804,817 by members of the Class of 1964, the most ever by a 50th reunion class.

Lawrence also added 90 new members in the past fiscal year to its Legacy Circle, the college’s planned giving program. It was the most new members in a single year since 2000 and raised the program’s total to a record 907 members.

“Making Lawrence more affordable is among our highest priorities,” said Burstein. “Support for the Lawrence Fund assures students and families from all incomes that a Lawrence education remains accessible at a time when they have less resources to support their children in college. No other form of giving has a more direct and meaningful impact on our students.”

For the second year in a row, the Lawrence Fund enjoyed 100 percent participation from all 30 members of the Lawrence Board of Trustees as well as all 35 members of the Lawrence University Alumni Association Board of Directors. Collectively, they contributed a total of $587,986 — nearly 16 percent — to the fund’s overall total.

Among Lawrence’s 20,500 alumni, nearly 36 percent contributed to Lawrence’s overall fundraising efforts in the past fiscal year. According to the New York City-based Council for Aid to Education’s most recent Voluntary Support of Education Report, private baccalaureate institutions averaged 20.1 percent alumni participation in 2012-13 (the most recent year for which figures are available.)

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2015 and the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Individualized learning, the development of multiple interests and community engagement are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

 

$250,000 Gift from Sentry Insurance Honors Retiring Chair, Lawrence Alumnus Dale Schuh ’70

Lawrence University has received a $250,000 gift from the Sentry Insurance Foundation in honor of retiring Sentry Chairman Dale Schuh’s leadership and more than 40-year career with the company.

Dale-Schuh_newblog
Dale Schuh ’70

A 1970 Lawrence graduate who earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, Schuh also has served on the college’s Board of Trustees since 2008. The $250,000 gift will be used to continue Schuh’s commitment to Lawrence students. He and his wife, Annette, endowed a scholarship at Lawrence in 2009 that assists students who are the first in their families to attend college.

“As a first generation college student, I have a fond spot in my heart for Lawrence University,” Schuh said.

Since joining the Board of Trustees, Schuh has served on numerous committees, including recruitment and retention, executive committee and finance committee, which he has chaired since 2011. He also has been active as an admissions volunteer. From 2010-2012, Schuh served as president of Lawrence’s Founders Club, providing extraordinarily important leadership to the college’s most generous donors.

Most recently, Schuh served as the chair of a 15-person presidential search committee that led to the selection of Mark Burstein, executive vice president at Princeton University, as Lawrence’s 16th president.

“Dale Schuh’s leadership of the Presidential Search Committee was my first experience of how dedicated Lawrence alumni are to their alma mater. His enthusiasm for Lawrence continues to be contagious,” said Burstein, who took office July 1. “I thank Sentry for honoring Dale’s extraordinary career in this way. Lawrence, and more importantly, our students, will benefit significantly from their generosity.”

Schuh joined Sentry as an actuarial intern while still a student at Lawrence. He became a full-time employee in January, 1972 and spent his entire career with the company. Within eight years of joining Sentry, Schuh was named vice president of corporate planning. He also held the roles of vice president actuarial and control and senior vice president of marketing. Schuh was named president and chief operating officer in 1996 and two years later was elected chief executive officer and chairman of the board of directors.

“During Dale’s period as a senior executive, he has either been in the engine room or directly at the helm during some of the most pivotal moments in Sentry’s history,” said Peter McPartland, Sentry president and CEO. “When I began working with Dale, one of the first things I noticed was his intelligence, total understanding of how the insurance business works and his grasp on all aspects of Sentry. He never stopped thinking about Sentry and how to make Sentry better.”

Under Schuh’s leadership, Sentry’s financial strength and position significantly improved. It now holds an A+ financial rating from AM Best Company.

“The past dozen years have slipped by quickly,” said Schuh. “I am proud to have been with the company through thick and thin. I feel very confident about this company’s future.”

The gift to Lawrence was one of two   the foundation made in Schuh’s honor. A $50,000 contribution was also presented to United Way of Portage County to kick off the organization’s 2013 campaign.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2014 and the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Individualized learning, the development of multiple interests and community engagement are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries. Follow Lawrence on Facebook.