Alumni and Families Mobilize for Record Fundraising Year
College affordability, housing, and research drive more than half a billion dollars in gifts.
Dartmouth raised a record $512 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, surpassing for the first time a half-billion dollars in annual fundraising. Alumni, families, and friends rallied behind affordability, housing, and research at a moment of national debate over the role of higher education.
This vote of confidence in Dartmouth's mission and programs was driven in part by an extraordinary bequest from the late Barbara Britt and Glenn Britt '71, Tuck '72, which yielded $175 million toward financial aid for undergraduates and Tuck School of Business students. The gift enabled Dartmouth to nearly double the family income threshold—from $65,000 up to $125,000—at which a financial aid package for an undergraduate requires no parental contribution.
Fundraising across the institution generated an additional $337 million, up from $296 million in FY2024, an increase of 14%.
"Dartmouth alumni and families are again demonstrating their profound commitment to our mission of research, teaching, and preparing students for responsible leadership," says President Sian Leah Beilock. "We are seizing this moment to deliver the greatest benefit to our students and faculty. We thank our global community for rallying this year to invest across the university in areas of high promise and impact. When we act together, we make a difference."
Ellie Loughlin '89, who completed her term as a member of the Board of Trustees in June, led the board's advancement committee.
"Our community is clearly inspired and energized by the five areas of focus that President Beilock has championed to advance Dartmouth's mission," Loughlin says, referring to mental health and wellness, environmental stewardship, dialogue, innovation and impact, and lifelong Dartmouth.
Two major themes emerged in the year's giving, Loughlin says: First, the role played by Dartmouth parents, who made crucial contributions to the new Davidson Institute for Global Security, the renewal of Fayerweather Hall, and a $15 million, dollar-for-dollar challenge in support of student internships, which so far has raised almost $10 million.
Second, the outsized role of groups of Dartmouth alumni and friends acting together to make a larger impact, including:
- More than one in four alumni—28.4%—who together contributed $43.6 million in annual gifts to the Dartmouth College Fund;
- Donations to Tuck Annual Giving and the Thayer Annual Fund that exceeded their goals;
- Members of the Class of 1989 who came together to fund a new residence hall;
- Alumni from the Class of 1979, Sphinx, and the 1991 Ivy League champion football team, and others, who contributed more than $40 million to the legacy of the late football coach Buddy Teevens '79;
- And the many alumni who have supported athletics capital projects for the renewal of Thompson Arena, Berry Squash Courts, the new Allen Boathouse, and enhancements to the Zimmerman Fitness Center.
Britt Bequest Transforms Affordability
The gift from the Britt estate—which, when fully realized, will total more than $200 million—is allowing Dartmouth to take a major step toward realizing its commitment to making the undergraduate experience affordable to all students, regardless of their ability to pay.
Thanks to the Call to Lead's ambitious scholarship goal, Dartmouth has one of the most competitive financial aid programs of any peer institution. Over the past five years, Dartmouth has expanded need-blind admissions to international students, eliminated student loan requirements, and provided financial aid for off-campus and foreign study programs.
The Britt gift is the largest bequest dedicated to undergraduate scholarships in Dartmouth's history, and the $125,000 family income threshold at which no parental contribution is required is one of the most generous of any comparable college or university in the United States, allowing Dartmouth to attract a more socioeconomically diverse student body.
Twenty-two percent of undergraduates who matriculated last September qualified for the new initiative—an increase of almost 8 percentage points over the previous income threshold.
A quarter of the Britt bequest supports endowed scholarships at Tuck. The largest-ever single gift to the business school, it is already having a transformative impact on Tuck's ability to attract talented students.
But Tuck has not stopped there. To celebrate its 125th anniversary, it launched the Team of 100 scholarship campaign, convening 100 alumni to raise $125 million toward endowed scholarships. As of August, the campaign has raised $116 million to expand access to Tuck's transformative MBA experience.
The funding for scholarships is critical for Tuck, currently ranked #4 in Bloomberg Businessweek, to remain competitive among its peers and enroll top MBA talent.
"Academic talent and curiosity paired with the distinctive voice each student brings to campus is the foundation for all we do in the classroom, lab, or studio at Dartmouth," says Lee Coffin, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid. "Our investment in scholarships has repositioned the university as one of the most affordable in the nation on the basis of a family's defined need, and it has helped Dartmouth enhance our learning environment with a broad socioeconomic rainbow."
Expanding Housing to Strengthen Community
Philanthropy is helping Dartmouth take advantage of a once-in-a-generation opportunity to add 1,000 beds for faculty, staff, and students in the next decade, supporting mental health and wellness by relieving the stress of housing insecurity throughout the community.
To date, alumni, family, and friends have contributed a total of $82.5 million toward a $175 million campaign to build new residences for undergraduates on West Wheelock Street, near the heart of campus.
The campaign launched last fall with a $30 million gift from Thomas A. Russo '77 and Gina T. Russo '77 to build an apartment-style residence for juniors and seniors. In February, Dartmouth announced a second: the Class of 1989 Hall, which will be built thanks to a $30 million pledge from 650 members of the Class of 1989.
Dartmouth's push to renew its existing undergraduate housing continues with the ongoing overhaul of Fayerweather Hall, expected to reopen in fall 2026. In addition to foundational support through the Infrastructure Renewal Fund, three Dartmouth families have come together to donate $7.5 million toward this effort.
Parents and Alumni Support Research and Dialogue
At an event for alumni and parent volunteers in New York City this spring, Dartmouth announced a major new research center on campus—the nonpartisan Davidson Institute for Global Security, dedicated to innovative research at the intersection of international security and economics, deep engagement with policymakers, and the preparation of undergraduates to lead during an era of transformation in the global geopolitical order.
The institute grew out of a four-year pilot program funded by Dartmouth parents and volunteer leaders Jim and Julia Davidson P'19, P'23, who subsequently provided the lead gift to formally establish the institute. Their gift, along with the generous contributions of 20 other alumni and parents, totaled $34 million.
The Davidson Institute is just one example of how alumni and families supported innovative research teaching and research in FY2025, as well as Dartmouth's commitment to fostering a community that embraces authentic dialogue across differences. Other highlights include:
- The campaign to raise $100 million for Dartmouth NEXT—a university-wide initiative expanding opportunities for students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—received a $12 million gift, bringing the total to $95 million to date.
- The Byrne Family Cancer Research Institute at the Dartmouth Cancer Center successfully completed a five-year, $50 million campaign to support the translation of innovative cancer research to patient care. The institute launched in 2022 with the largest single gift ever made jointly to Dartmouth and Dartmouth Health—a $25 million matching grant from philanthropist Dorothy Byrne, a Dartmouth parent and grandparent and longtime supporter of the university and medical center.
- Dartmouth raised $1.5 million in current operating funds to support Dartmouth Dialogues, now in its second year. The program, premised on the belief that discovery and innovation thrive in environments that support viewpoint diversity, is providing vital skills training and opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to engage each other across ideological differences. Nearly 15,000 people attended Dialogues events during the 2024-25 academic year.
Alumni and families have committed close to $5 million towards a $16.5 million goal to support Evergreen, a student-centered initiative that builds on the work of Geisel School of Medicine and Arts and Sciences researchers, blending artificial intelligence and behavioral science to create a personalized digital platform that promotes student well-being.
Celebrating Innovation in the Arts
As the reimagined and expanded Hopkins Center for the Arts prepares for its grand opening in October, alumni, parents, and friends have to date contributed $96.2 million that reflects the central importance of arts to Dartmouth's academic mission.
When it reopens, the Hop will resume its role as a gateway to Dartmouth's vibrant Arts District, engaging students, faculty, creators, and community members in the power of the arts.
"Gifts from alumni, parents, and friends touch every corner of Dartmouth—every student, every member of the faculty, every program and facility. I am profoundly grateful to have such dedicated and generous partners in our work," says Beilock. "These investments will define Dartmouth for generations to come."
