Elizabethtown College 2015-2016 Annual Report of Giving

Message from the President of the College and the Vice President for Institutional Advancement and Community Relations

At Elizabethtown College, the Fall Season involves reflection on our past year and expressions of thanks for the multitude of blessings that color our present.

It is in this spirit that we extend our sincerest gratitude to you for your generosity.  Throughout the past academic year, Elizabethtown College has been extremely fortunate to receive impressive levels of support from members and friends of our community.  Whether the gifts have been received in the form of volunteers providing their time or sharing their expertise to strengthen our programs, or as individuals having displayed their generosity through monetary donations, the 2015-2016 Annual Report of Giving is packed full of examples of individuals whose selfless engagement has strengthened the College in exceptional ways.

Because of our devoted family of supporters, Elizabethtown College is able to deliver a first-class educational experience to our students.  With your involvement—along with that of alumni, friends, parents, grandparents, faculty, staff, corporations and foundations—the College realized a record number of volunteers and received $8 million, a total which signified the second-highest year of donations in Elizabethtown’s history.  It is the names of these exceptionally generous Blue Jays that are recorded in the pages of this report.

Strengthened by these contributions, along with other notable achievements like the remarkable and record-breaking success of the “Power of One Day” and successful launch of the BE INSPIRED. campaign, the College is forging ahead into exciting new territory.  Just this Fall, Elizabethtown was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as #14 among Pennsylvania liberal arts colleges and tied for #115 among national liberal arts colleges in the United States.  Given the excellence and sheer number of colleges in Pennsylvania and across the country, these rankings validate our high-quality faculty, commitment to a liberal arts education and strong core curriculum.  Likewise this Fall, the College has begun creating a new three-year strategic plan that will give us the opportunity to envision a bright future for Elizabethtown.

It is only because we are able to stand upon a strong foundation that Elizabethtown College can meet our challenges, as well as reach higher to realize bigger dreams.  The strength of that foundation throughout 2015-2016 has come from your generosity. For your support and dedication, we express our sincerest thanks.  Likewise, in the year ahead, we invite your continued partnership in the noble mission that the College aims to fulfill.  Together with your support, remarkable things can continue to happen.  We invite you back to campus soon so that you can experience first-hand the transformation that your involvement is bringing into being.

With sincere thanks,

Carl J. Strikwerda President		David C. Beidleman Vice President for Institutional Advancement and Community Relations