Donations to colleges and universities were up 3 percent, adjusted for inflation, in fiscal 2024, which ran from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, for most institutions. Donors gave $61.5 billion during the period. The data comes from the Voluntary Support of Education Key Findings 2024 report, which was conducted by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. After donations fell 5 percent in last year’s report, the increase in giving was a welcome boon.
“That’s very heartening and affirming,” said Sue Cunningham, CEO of CASE. “Those who choose to be philanthropic, whether they’re individuals, foundations, or corporations, are determined to invest in higher education because they’re appreciative of the huge impact that higher education has on people’s lives.”
The Key Findings report shares top-line details of the VSE, which surveyed 736 colleges and universities; the full report with additional charts and details will be released in April. Another highlight: Contributions from donor-advised funds were up 12.1 percent, and gifts from DAFs accounted for 10.6 percent of all giving to higher education.
“Donor-advised funds are clearly growing in terms of use as an investment tool philanthropically for donors,” Cunningham says. “They’re using them to be more strategic about their giving.”
Foundation giving, according to the report, increased 13.3 percent, and gifts from alumni jumped 7.5 percent. One category that declined was corporate gifts, which were down 7.3 percent.
The number of gifts of $100 million or more rose in 2024 to a total of 14, up from 11 in 2023. While Cunningham applauds the generosity of these donors, she says, CASE wants to focus less on the size of the contributions and more on their “transformative impact.”
“Those gifts are investing in everything from supporting students who otherwise might not be able to study at higher education levels or research breakthroughs or different innovative programs,” she says. “The other piece is really reflecting that a gift of any size is really valuable and impactful in investing in higher education.”
Federal Spending Cuts
While the report data is from the 2024 fiscal year, the fact that donations were on the rise is good news as colleges and universities grapple with federal funding cuts, contends Carla Willis, a managing principal at Washburn and McGoldrick, a fundraising consultancy.
“When we look at all of the factors swirling around us related to some of the activity with the new administration, to see that there is an increase indicates there’s a confidence still in supporting higher education amongst alumni, amongst corporations and foundations,” she says.
The report data tracks with what Willis’s higher-education clients are seeing. “We’re working on a number of large, medium, and small campaigns, and in most cases, those campaigns were on track to meet goals or even exceed goals,” she says.
Some universities have lost federal research dollars. The report found that research received a good share of support from donors. When looking at money earmarked for the current year, the largest share was allocated to research — 43.6 percent. However, when it came to endowed gifts, those directed to student financial aid got the lion’s share — 48.3 percent — while research drew 8.8 percent of gifts.
The report also included data on how much alumni gave based on when they graduated, which both Willis and Cunningham say stresses the importance of continued engagement with alumni. Those who graduated less than five years ago gave the smallest share of gifts, 0.5 percent of dollars collected from all alumni. People who graduated six to 10 years ago gave 1.1 percent. However, as alumni aged, they were able to contribute significantly more. Those who graduated 31 or more years ago donated 85 percent of all alumni dollars, while those who graduated within the past 30 years, combined, gave 15 percent.
“It’s really important to pay attention to this information,” Willis says. “You have to engage with them when they’re giving smaller gifts. And because of the relationship and the communications over the years, when they’ve had successful careers, they’re already engaged and the alma mater isn’t just reaching out at that point. People are more inclined to make a generous gift if they have a relationship.”
