Class of 1955

Leave a Legacy

Celebrate Reunion & Homecoming with a contribution in honor of your class, affinity group, or team! Even though we can't be together on campus this year, you can leave a legacy to the next generation of Rensselaer alumni by joining your classmates, teammates, and friends in support of your Reunion class gift.

Please note that we have extended the window of time you can make a gift and have it count toward your class totals. Any gift made between July 1, 2019 and April 30, 2021 will count toward your class Reunion participation and dollar totals!

Why Join Your Class? Your Participation Makes a Difference!

Participation rates can have a major impact on institutional reputation. U.S. News & World Report considers undergraduate alumni participation rates as a barometer of alumni satisfaction and factors them into its rankings. Rankings create reputation, reputation affects enrollment, and enrollment affects tuition revenue. Overall giving rates to all schools, including Rensselaer, are factored in national rankings. If we can raise the percentage of donors to Rensselaer by only a few percentage points, our national ranking will increase, and your degree and the degrees of today’s students, will be that much more valuable!

Why is your participation so important? Annual gifts help ensure the continued excellence of the Rensselaer experience. Plus, participation sends a message to the world about the quality of the Rensselaer degree and alumni success:

• Value of a Rensselaer degree: Parents and prospective students look at national rankings and alumni participation rates as indications of how satisfied alumni are with the school and quality of the degree. As the quality of the institution grows, so does the value of your degree!
• National ranking: U.S. News and World Report uses participation rates when calculating rankings. Right now, the Rensselaer overall alumni giving rate lags behind that of other national universities, but you can change that!
• Financial strength: Annual giving is an essential resource for the university. Corporations and foundations look to alumni participation rates as a key measure of alumni satisfaction in their alma mater because they believe their philanthropic research dollars should go to an institution with proven results.

For more information about funding opportunities and programs, please visit the Annual Giving website.

Competition Among Reunion Classes: Help Your Class Win!

Each year, hundreds of our loyal and generous alumni make special gifts in honor of their Reunion. This is an important and exciting tradition, and class gift competitions are one of the highlights of Reunion & Homecoming.

This year, the class with the highest participation percentage, and the class with the highest dollar amount raised, will each be awarded a memorial paver stone marking the achievement. These pavers are displayed on the ECAV concourse, and updates on each class will be sent periodically. Help your class leave a legacy, and win the competition!

Additional Information

You can make a gift in support of any fund and it will count toward your Reunion Class Gift! Just select “Other” from the fund designation drop-down on the giving page and type in the fund you would like to support.

Thinking of supporting by making a gift of appreciated stock, arranging for a gift in your estate plans, or have questions about maximizing your gift by utilizing a corporate match? Visit the Rensselaer Giving website for more details.

For more information about Virtual Reunion & Homecoming on April 14-16, 2021, visit the Reunion & Homecoming website.