The Parents’ Campaign of The Wake Forest Fund is the annual campaign to raise unrestricted money for the University’s current operating budget. When parents and families make gifts to The Wake Forest Fund, the money is used this fiscal year for the University’s most pressing priorities – from recruiting and retaining top faculty, to providing leading edge technology in the classrooms and library, to our expanded and outstanding career development program. Gifts to the Parents’ Campaign make an immediate impact on Wake Forest students!
Each and every gift – of any size is appreciated. The number of parent and families who support the Parents’ Campaign is a strong indicator of student and family satisfaction with the University.
For More Information
To learn more about how you can support these efforts, contact:
Brad McIlwain (P ’07)
Director of Family Giving
Office of Family Engagement
mcilwajb@wfu.edu
336.758.3527
2024-2025 Parents’ Campaign
The 2024-2025 Parents’ Campaign is underway! In recent weeks, Provost Michele Gillespie and Parents’ Campaign Chairs, Meredith and Brian Feurtado (P ’26, P ’28), have sent messages to the parent and family constituency asking for support. As of October 31, 2024, 526 donors have given $1,199,440 to the Parents’ Campaign.
Our goal for this year is to raise $6.5 million dollars from 3,400 current and past parents and families.
Most private schools have three main sources of funding: tuition, income from the endowment, and annual gifts. Tuition does not cover the full cost of running a private university. Without the generous support of current and past parents and families – along with alumni and friends – tuition would have to be higher than it currently is to maintain the full Wake Forest experience our students enjoy.
Annual, unrestricted gifts to The Wake Forest Fund are not invested – they are used right now to sustain current year operations and activities. Annual gifts are the lifeblood of the institution by providing a source of unrestricted operating support. As foundations and corporations consider grant applications, they frequently ask about the percentage of participation in giving from Wake Forest alumni, parents and families, and friends.
You can designate your gift to any of the following areas of the Wake Forest Fund as part of your Parents’ Campaign contribution – Beautiful Campus, Career Readiness, College, Student Aid, Student Experience, ZSR Library, School of Business, School of Divinity, School of Law, Graduate School, or School of Medicine.
The decision as to the size of your gift is a personal one – the important part is that parents participate in the Parents’ Campaign, no matter the amount. Families give from $10 to $50,000; gifts at every level are needed and appreciated!
An increasing number of parents and families have chosen to join one of our Giving Societies. There are benefits for both the donor and the university when joining a Giving Society. More information about these commitments can be found here: https://giving.wfu.edu/giving-societies/
Are there other ways to support Wake Forest?
The leading areas of restricted support for parents and families have been as follows:
Access and Opportunity
- 1834 Scholars Program
- Magnolia Scholars/First in the Forest
- Merit and Presidential Scholarships
Campus life
- Campus Life Program Funds
- Campus Recreation
- We Are Wake
College and Academic life
- Academic Department Funds
- Center for Entrepreneurship
- Endowed Chairs and Fellowships
- Library
- Office of Personal and Career Development
- Program for Leadership and Character
- Wake the Arts