Updated: Aug. 2, 2016 at 1:40 p.m.
Officials have raised more than $875 million for the $1 billion campaign as of the end of July, according to a University release.
This new total is about a 4.8 percent increase since February of this year. About $770 million had been raised by this time last fiscal year.
University officials said that student aid will be the primary focus of the campaign during fiscal year 2017, which will coincide with University President Steven Knapp’s final year at GW.
“Philanthropic support for student aid will be a priority in the coming year as the university seeks to further President Steven Knapp’s legacy of increasing access to a GW education and improving success rates of all students once enrolled,” the release stated.
Sixty thousand individual donors have given to campaign so far, with more than a third of them donating to support students.
Major donations since February include $2.19 million from the Avenir Foundation to create an endowment for the Textile Museum and roughly $87,000 from the annual Senior Class Gift.
Aristide Collins, the vice president for development and alumni relations, said that fundraising during the next fiscal year will prioritize improving student experiences.
“In the final year of President Knapp’s tenure, we are encouraging our alumni, parents and friends to make a philanthropic commitment to support GW students,” Collins said in the release. “Student scholarship and fellowship support through our Power & Promise initiative is a key priority, but athletics, student services and career services also are essential elements of our overall focus on enhancing the student experience.”
Officials still plan to reach their goal of $1 billion by June 2018, according to the release. The campaign, which publicly launched in June 2014, has raised more than $500 million over the past two years.
This post has been updated to reflect the following correction:
Due to an editing error, the Hatchet incorrectly stated when the campaign will end. Officials plan to reach $1 billion by June 2018, not June 2017. We regret this error.
