Expectations were greatly exceeded Sept. 13, as the South Dakota State University Foundation hosted its third annual One Day for STATE fundraiser and raised more than $1.3 million.

In the previous two years, the one-day event brought in about $300,000, so the growth over the past year is evident, raising over a million dollars more, and donations are still coming in the mail.

Erin Glidden, Director of Loyalty Giving for the SDSU Foundation, describes One Day for STATE as a way to celebrate SDSU, the Alumni Association, athletics, students and our faculty and staff to get together to celebrate and share the message of why people should make a philanthropic gift to the university.

“Our original goal was to have 2,400 donors in 24 hours, and we finished with over 3,400,” Glidden said about the foundation surpassing its expectations.

Throughout the year, the SDSU Foundation raises funds for the university’s main initiative at the given time, whether it be scholarships, student activities or endowments.

When donating during One Day for STATE, donors had the option to choose which department, college or group receives the money from their donation. The SDSU Scholarships fund easily received the most money, with Jackrabbit Athletics and the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in second and third, respectively.

The SDSU Foundation promoted One Day for STATE through social media pushes and events including Union Coffee hour, a student patio party, the Giving Makes Me Happy party and the Yellow and Blue Block Party. 

Some students helped during the big day by contacting donors, promoting these challenges on social media and through the events on campus. One of these students was Muriel McLaughlin, a sophomore English major.

She explained that a lot of the money came from donors who pledged “x” amount of money for every set number of donations made to a specific department. For example, a person might give $3,000 once 20 donations are made to the athletic department.

These challenges are a huge part of why One Day for STATE was so successful. Even a donation as small as $1 could help “unlock” one of the larger donations made by a challenge donor.

“Everyone came together to promote One Day for STATE,” McLaughlin said. “It was an awesome experience.”

Since donations are still coming in, final statistics from the day will be released sometime later this week.