by The Cowl Editor on April 12, 2018
Campus
by Matthew Mazzella ’20
News Staff
On Thursday, April 5, Providence College held its second annual Friars Give fundraising event. The school’s goal was to have all 3,989 students contribute, as well as parents and alumni, to help raise money for the Providence College experience.
Sarah Osowa, director of annual giving at PC, defined the meaning of the event by saying “this is PC’s second annual day of giving. It is an opportunity to invite internal and external people of the Providence College community to make a collective impact by making a contribution of any size to support the future of PC. The hope is to get 3,989 student donations to unlock generous gifts from the board of trustees, a grand total of $250,000. These funds would be used to support the student experience at Providence College.”
Between parents, alumni, and students, there was a total of 4,682 donors, and a grand total of $1,157,334 raised. Specifically, there were 718 student donors, totaling $19,500, and 655 parent donors, totaling $164,000. The bulk of the donations came from alumni, as the classes of 1983 and 1988 totaled $97,800 in donations over the course of the day.
When asked about the planning that took place to make this event possible, Osowa said, “For the past six months, a group of campus partners have worked to build awareness, help build activities, and promote the event externally to parents and alumni who are a part of the Providence College community.” Osowa and the Friars Give team are trying to create a brand for this event by making this a day to give not only for the people on campus, but for parents and alumni to look forward to each year.
Thomas McMahon ‘20 said, “I chose to give back to Providence College because of my love for the school. PC is my home away from home, so I felt it would only be right if I gave back to the school I love so much. I think every student should give some form of a donation. It doesn’t have to be much, but a little donation can go a long way, and can truly make a difference for the future of this school.”
When Brendan Cooney ’20 was asked why he chose not to donate, he responded, “I did not donate because I owe the government money for student loans because of the high tuition at this school. When I graduate and have a PC degree, I will gladly give back for future generations. But right now, I see my tuition as a donation in itself.”
Regardless of the amount of student donations, the day was a huge success. With over a million dollars raised, these funds will be going towards the student experience. The Friars Give event looks to build off this successful day of giving and look to make improvements to increase donations even more for next year. With the Friar community being so generous, PC looks to put this money to good use in the coming years to make sure every student embraces the true student experience of Providence College.