The Kansas State University Foundation will host its second annual Day of Giving on April 8, a 24-hour fundraising event where challenges and incentives encourage the community to support K-State programs, colleges and research.
“We just want people to show up and celebrate, but also recognize that support, even small support, can make a great difference here at the university,” Sara Prince, associate vice president of development for the Foundation, said.
Prince said the day not only raises money for units at K-State, but also invites students to celebrate donors who’ve helped improve students’ experiences here.
“Whether you’re a scholarship recipient or not, your life as a student is touched in some way every single day by money that is invested by alumni and friends.”
The Day of Giving started in 2025 when the Foundation was inspired by President Richard Linton, who had come from a university that had a successful fundraising day each year.
“That culture was something that we really wanted to build here,” Prince said. “We have a lot of great support and philanthropically-minded donors, but we know that there’s more inspiration out there and more to be done in talking about what a next-generation land-grant university could be.”
In 2025, the event brought in $3.4 million, according to the Foundation’s website.
“We had over 1,600 donors last year,” Prince said. “I would love if we could walk away this year doubling that. I think we easily can. … Growth is always our goal, but we don’t set a firm goal for this because the sky’s the limit.”
On the Day of Giving, the Foundation will host an event on Bosco Plaza from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., where attendees can partake in games like Plinko, write thank-you letters to donors and listen to music and updates from Wildcat 91.9; among other activities. The Foundation will also have opportunities for students to get t-shirts and other prizes.
Hourly challenges, called Purple Power Hours, will give K-State programs opportunities to receive bonus funds. There are also special challenges for student organizations and faculty and staff during the event timeframe.
“The unit that has the most donors to student organizations during that time will unlock a prize,” Heather Strafuss, fundraising services manager for the Foundation, said. “Similarly, the units that have the most faculty and staff make a gift during that time unlock a prize. It’s a fun, exciting way to get people involved and make a little bit of gamification for people who are competitive.”
New this year, Prince said, is a squirrel-naming activity.
“Whether you were on this campus decades ago, like I was, or you’re on campus today, you know that squirrels run rampant on our campus,” she said. “As part of Day of Giving, you can make a gift and honorarily name a squirrel. … There will also be, for the first 200 students, these really super cute squirrel keychains with a K-State button.”
To encourage students to donate, those at the event can earn points for a passport to earn free food.
“We don’t want to forget about that piece that we are talking about giving, but we do also want to reward coming and getting information and being educated on what happens in year two,” Prince said.
Strafuss said students should know that monetary donations aren’t the only way they can support K-State during Day of Giving.
“We’re just encouraging people to participate in K-State Day of Giving as much as they can,” she said. “They can do that in a number of ways, whether it’s by attending the event and learning more, naming a squirrel and having some fun with that … even if its just going to social media sites and resharing [information] with friends and family and just saying, ‘Hey, I’d love to see three people help me support Cats Cupboard today, because this is a passion of mine.’ Every gift counts, but we are aware of the fact that not everybody can, so just participating in whatever way they can would be a great way to highlight the day.”
For more information and a complete schedule of Day of Giving challenges, visit the Day of Giving website.
