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Support the CUNY American Dream Machine on #CUNYTUESDAY

On November 29th, 2016, the City University of New York, which serves half a million students annually, will be holding their first University-wide Giving Day, #CUNYTUESDAY, in tandem with this year’s #GivingTuesday movement. 

Powered by GiveGab, this Giving Day was established by CUNY to bring in funds for scholarships, emergency funds, and other services to benefit the students.  Through the power of social media and collaboration, this day aims to raise $1Million in just 24 hours and will be an exciting close to CUNY Month, a month of exhibits, performances, and lectures spanning the month of November.

A letter from Chancellor James B. Milliken expressed excitement for the future of CUNY. Below is a small segment:#CUNYTUESDAY

“The 21st Century CUNY will be more connected across campuses, with the city and its institutions, with the workplaces offering the most promising career opportunities, and with other universities and institutions across the globe.”

Although this is the first Giving Day encompassing all colleges within the CUNY system, one college, CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice, has held their own annual Day of Giving for two consecutive years now, raising over $200,000 from 230 donors in 2015 alone.  In order to provide insight and inspiration to the other 23 colleges who haven’t yet participated in such an event, we interviewed Stephanie DiBrienza, Alumni Engagement & Donor Relations Specialist at John Jay College, and shared her story on the official #CUNYTUESDAY website in the Inspiration section.

Among the many helpful insights shared in this interview, Stephanie shared her most positive experience while hosting their annual Giving Day.  Beyond all the support received from the college community, what stood out most was the moment a student approached her to donate what little money she had to show appreciation for the help she had received from the past year’s Giving Day event.  The student said,

“This is all that I have, I hope it makes a difference for someone else.”

This is the giving spirit we love to see emerge from these amazing events.  It’s not about how much each person gives, but how many people come together to give what they can in support of a cause they care about!

As with all our Giving Days, the GiveGab team is excited to be powering CUNY’s first University-wide Giving Day and we look forward to celebrating their success!  To learn more about this special event, visit cunytuesday.org.

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