The Annual Fund lies at the heart of the Rhodes experience. It is the bridge between income from endowment and tuition, and what it costs to educate a student at Rhodes. Every student benefits from Annual Fund gifts.
The Rhodes Annual Fund provides immediate financial support when students, faculty, and staff need it most. These gifts support top priorities such as providing 93% of students with financial aid as well as funding technology for remote learning.
The Annual Fund supports the 6 following areas:
Different gifts help Rhodes in different ways. Annual funds support current needs. Endowment funds provide support now and in the future. Both are important, keeping the college strong year after year and for generations after.
The Rhodes Annual Fund provides immediate financial support when students, faculty, and staff need it most. These gifts support top priorities like student financial aid, student activities, research, and top faculty hires in addition to providing funding for needs like tuition support, unexpected travel expenses, and school supplies—including technology for remote learning. The uses of these unrestricted funds vary from year to year depending on new opportunities and rising needs.
Annual funds make an immediate impact and must be spent each year.
The endowment is the sum of Rhodes’ permanent invested capital used to generate funds each year for the college. The total endowment is made up of many smaller endowments, with many designated by donors to support specific areas of the college. Virtually all endowed funds are invested. A portion of the earnings are released every year, at a payout rate determined by the board of trustees, to support college priorities and the purposes specified by donors—without withdrawing from the principal.
Rather than serving as a cash reserve, the endowment is the college’s financial foundation. Preserving and growing the endowment is the best way to guarantee Rhodes’ long-term financial health and fulfill its mission.
Whether you are an alum, a parent, a student, or a friend of the college, your gift, no matter the size, supports the Annual Fund, which provides essential, unrestricted funding that touches every corner of the campus and impacts the “Rhodes Experience.”
Your gift—of any amount and to any area of need on campus—counts toward participation. Our alumni participation rate is an indicator of alumni satisfaction many prospective students use when choosing a college. Therefore, gifts to Rhodes improve the education of current students, as well as the reputation of the college, which, in turn, makes a Rhodes degree a more valuable commodity.
Your philanthropy begins right now. You don′t have to wait until you have reached the pinnacle of your career or finished graduate school.
As a student at Rhodes, your education and experiences were enhanced in many ways by the philanthropy, whether it was through financial aid, student programming, library and technology resources, or research opportunities.
You can make a gift in an amount that is significant to you that fits within your budget. You could also choose to make a larger gift to join one of leadership giving societies, The Red & Black Society or the Charles E. Diehl Society.
Gifts from our recent graduates are especially appreciated because, despite the challenges you face as you start a career and family, you choose to support the school that provided you with opportunities and was the place that you called home.
We know life can get hectic and sometimes pricey after graduation, making young alumni gifts so special. Your gift means that you truly value the friends, mentors, and knowledge you gained at Rhodes.
