Giving Day Is a Huge Success

By Kim Wunner, June 16, 2025

A sunny day in creating culture of philanthropy in the IC Community.

Students in the big chair, celebrating Giving Day. Photo Credit: Allison Usavage '11.

On a gorge-ous April day of blue skies, budding trees, and warm sun, event tents lined the Campus Center quad. Students crowded the lawn sunbathing and playing cornhole and frisbee. IC radio station WICB pumped out music all day, and ICTV ran a marathon 24-hour broadcast. This is how Ithaca College does Giving Day.

The aim was simple: an immense expression of gratitude. And, that is what the Ithaca College community delivered.

“We wanted a day to come together as a community and recognize everything IC means to us. This place is shaped by the people who give their time, energy, and heart to it every day — and it deserves a moment of collective appreciation,” said Justin Hausner, director of advancement communications, who liaises between Advancement and Marketing Communications teams.

Gratitude is the feeling generated when we recognize and acknowledge something good in our lives. Some argue it is pathway to connection and belonging as it is a reciprocal activity, an extension of appreciation for the good thing we received. In that way, gratitude is a gift for a gift. That was the philosophy at the center of Giving Day.

“Giving is about supporting something you love because it supported you. It is one way to show your gratitude for the experience and impact IC has had on your life," said Laine Norton, Vice President for Advancement at Ithaca College.

“Ithaca College has, and continues to, play a significant role in my life. So much of who I am today has its roots in the time I spent at IC. The same thing is true for my son, Robert, who graduated from the School of Music in 2010. To me, Giving Day is certainly about helping to ensure students benefit from their time there but also to emulate the importance of paying that forward. ” - Jerry Dietz '75

From noon on Thursday to noon Friday, the Ithaca College community celebrated its campus and culture where all students are encouraged to find their voices on the paths to making their unique imprints on the world. The IC experience is tailored to the curiosity and passions of the individual, designed to expand new ways of thinking and spark ingenuity. From the literary New Voices Festival to semesters in London, to becoming a national champion diver, to being in the heart of the Super Bowl broadcasts at Radio Row, to rubbing elbows with titans of industry in NYC’s financial district, to life-changing internships ... there is diversity and depth in the pursuit of each person’s version of excellence.

Those transformational opportunities and many more are made possible by Ithaca College’s Annual Fund that supports the IC experience. It combines with college tuition dollars to make the campus and its experiences a reality. Giving Day offers an opportunity for the IC Community to build that fund.

“You and I, along with our alumni and everybody on this campus, we are united by the power of the Ithaca College experience but we are also united in our faith in the future of this institution,” said Ithaca College President La Jerne Terry Cornish as she joined leadership and students alike in counting down to the start of the 24 hour celebration.

The power of the IC experience reverberated as the gifts kept coming in. When the 24 hours was over, Ithaca College received 4,639 gifts from 4,456 donors totaling $1,003,090.

The IC community came together to support IC students and the IC Experience.

Students at a “Gratitude Station” - where stacks of blank note cards were filled out with notes of Thanks from students to donors.

On campus, the sentiment of appreciation electrified the day. Students were invited to “Gratitude Stations” where stacks of blank note cards were waiting for hand-written messages of thanks that would later be sent to Giving Day donors. For each card completed, students were gifted a food ticket to Ithaca’s coveted Silo Food Truck (owned by IC alum Katie Foley ’01) on Thursday and Dainty Donuts on Friday. Earlier in the day, blue lawn signs were installed across campus, each displaying a program the annual fund had funded. It was not uncommon to overhear students as they walked by a sign say “I didn’t know that” or “wow, my roommate was part of that ... it was really cool.”

Lawn signs were installed across campus, each displaying a program the annual fund had funded. Photo Submitted.

In a larger context, the celebration was about creating a culture of philanthropy ... that is, a culture where gratitude is front and center.

“We wanted to give our students and alumni an opportunity to understand how the Annual Fund directly impacts the IC experience.”, Norton said.

The most poignant remark was overheard when a staff person walked by two students: “When I graduate, I’m going to give to ultimate frisbee.” That is exactly the longevity of community the Giving Day celebration hopes to spark.

Give a Little Bit of Love

If it is in your means, consider giving to IC’s Annual Fund. Every gift makes a difference in delivering the IC Experience to each and every student.