Mississippi University for Women surpasses fundraising goal of $25M

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Mississippi University for Women has long been known for helping students achieve their goals.

Now the university is celebrating surpassing one of its own.

The “Be The Light” campaign started in 2017 with the goal of raising $15 million.

The W reached that goal and kept going to raise more than $25 million.

Every dollar makes a difference and that difference took off when Mississippi University for Women started its “Be the Light” fundraiser.

Executive Director of Alumni and Development, Andrea Stevens said this was The W’s first comprehensive capital campaign.

They focused on raising money in four main areas: scholarships, facilities, endowments, and athletics.

“Every dollar can help purchase a book, it can help pay for gas for school, it can help pay for tuition or room and board, and with our students working, most of them work part-time there are a lot of them that are full time so scholarships are important and do allow students to realize their dreams in higher education,” said Stevens.

President Nora Miller understands the importance of giving back to the place that gave her an education.

“It’s important to give back when you realize all the opportunities you were given as a result of the education that you received. I attended the W and I know that it has changed my life forever and I want to make sure I’m giving back,” said Miller.

With budget cuts from the state, university leaders knew they had to find other resources.

“Our state support has been declining where we used to receive almost 60% of the funding from the state now we are at like 45% or something like that so it’s becoming more and more important we have other resources,” said Miller.

Stevens said that fundraising begins with building relationships with donors.

“It is a very moving experience when you are able to match the donor with the gift they are truly passionate about. Fundraising is about relationships. It’s about learning who the donor is. What their passions are and what they want to support,” said Stevens.

Some of those donors even have the opportunity to meet the recipients at an appreciation luncheon the university host.

This is just another way The W is looking to be better together.

For 24/7 news and updates, follow us on Facebook and Twitter