UAF tops 1,300 donors during Giving Day event
Marmian Grimes
907-474-7902
March 27, 2026
More than 1,300 alumni and supporters stepped up this week to boost their favorite programs with donations during this year’s 49-hour Giving Day event March 24-26.
When the event closed at 1 p.m. on March 26, 1,301 donors from around the world had contributed more than $546,000 to dozens of scholarships and programs throughout UAF. They paired their donations with more than 60 challenge events and matching gifts from individual and business sponsors, including 8 matches of $10,000 or more.
UAF alumni giving increased again this year. More than 500 alumni contributed during Giving Day, an increase of more than 50 donors. Alumni represented more than 38% of donations. The total donors jumped by about 150 from last year.
"We are celebrating another Giving Day with record-breaking support. Thanks to our community’s incredible generosity, we met every single one of our goals, including a 12% jump in alumni participation and a 13% rise in overall donors to support students, scholarships, programs and more,� said Theresa Bakker, UAF’s director of development and alumni relations. “Thank you to our challenge champions and every one of our 1,300-plus supporters for ensuring the future is bright for UAF."
Giving Day donations will go toward a wide variety of programs, including merit- and need-based scholarships for UAF students, scientific research, academic and student-support programs, community outreach, ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ Nanooks athletics and the planned Troth Yeddha’ Indigenous Studies Center, the University of ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æâ€™s top fundraising priority. The center again topped the donor leaderboard, drawing more than $40,000 in gifts from 115 donors.
UA Giving Day is a crowdfunding-style philanthropy event. It ran from noon on March 24 through 1 p.m. on March 26.
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