This Giving Tuesday, the entire Trent community is coming together once again in an effort to raise $75,000, all in support of the University’s unique college system as part of the #ContinueTheCollegeChallenge campaign.

Launching at 7 p.m. on Monday, November 26, the #ContinueTheCollegeChallenge campaign will seek to raise $15,000 in support of each of Trent University’s five current colleges – Traill College, Otonabee College, Gzowski College, Lady Eaton College, and Champlain College – as well as $5,000 to seed the Peter Robinson College Endowment to honour Trent’s historic colleges, support the Durham Greater Toronto Area campus, and to support additional key on-campus priorities.  

This year’s campaign builds off of the successful #CrushtheCollegeChallenge launched at Trent last year on Giving Tuesday, which raised over $80,000 in support of the colleges, in addition to another $71,920 in donations to support other major initiatives at Trent. This year, Trent aims to repeat the success led by the generosity of alumni, parents, students, faculty, staff, and donors.

“Last year, our donors and alumni came together to share their passion and excitement for their college communities at Trent. In part inspired by their support, this summer Trent announced a revitalization of the college system. More than ever, we believe college affiliation is core to the student experience at Trent,” said Julie Davis, vice-president of External Relations & Advancement.

Joining the Giving Tuesday campaign, President Leo Groarke has issued an incentive to inspire Trent alumni to give – $5,000 to the college that has the highest number of first-time supporters and $5,000 to the college with the highest per-capita donor participation for a total of $10,000 in challenge funding.

“What makes a campus a community? What turns a university experience into something transformative? What makes a university education such a memorable time of life?” asked Dr. Leo Groarke, president and vice-chancellor. “Last year, our alumni and donors answered that question with two resounding words: Our College. This year, we want to build on that success and show that every single gift, no matter how large, can make a big difference.” 

The funds raised for each college through this one-day challenge will go toward building endowments to provide a sustainable, perpetual, dependable source of discretionary funds for use by the college principals, wherever additional funds would make a direct, impactful and immediate difference in the lives of students.

“It is exciting to see the Trent family rally for the Colleges on Giving Tuesday,” said Lee Hays ’91, director of Alumni Engagement & Services. “Our new college principals, students, staff, faculty, and alumni are all so passionate about their beloved colleges. Several alumni have committed to make contributions in order to encourage their college mates to band together to match their donation. This is truly a team effort.”

Trent is calling on the entire community to join and help #ContinueTheCollegeChallenge this Giving Tuesday. Donations can be made online at trentu.ca/give, or by calling 1-877-MY-TRENT on November 27. For more information on the college endowments, visit mycommunity.trentu.ca/collegeendowments.

Starting as a Canadian initiative, Giving Tuesday turned into a global day of giving back after Black Friday and Cyber Monday.