Caldwell Fellows Celebrate Community Support on Day of Giving

The Caldwell Fellows celebrated a record single-day of fundraising during NC State’s March 2022 Day of Giving. The day brought together five decades of Caldwell Fellows alumni and friends, as more than 250 individual donors stepped up to help raise more than $1 million for NC State’s oldest merit scholarship and servant-leadership development program.

Caldwell Fellows Director Dr. Janice Odom attributed the day’s success to the lasting impact the program has had on the lives of Caldwell Fellows and the University. “Cultivating leadership is no easy task, and the wise investment of resources in the development of promising young people is what we are tasked to do,” Odom said. “The friends and supporters who stepped up to give back to the Caldwell Fellows program on Day of Giving are paying it forward to the next generation of servant-leaders, dedicated to leaving our world a better place.” 

As heard in this video testimonial, the Caldwell Fellows program changes lives by providing financial support and leadership programming for NC State students selected to participate in an intensive four-year program dedicated to their development and psychological growth. Alumni of the program go on to lead companies, protect North Carolina’s coastal communities, manage newspapers, and ‘Think Big’ in the spirit of the program’s namesake, former NC State Chancellor John T. Caldwell. 

The Caldwell Fellows community organized to win two of NC State’s Day of Giving challenges – a “Largest Online Gift” challenge and the “You+2” challenge, won by Kerr & Tori Collins after they made a gift and then recruited two more friends to make a Day of Giving contribution. Many of the day’s gifts went to the Caldwell Fellows Fund, strengthening the program’s financial foundation for supporting monthly dinner seminars, annual class retreats, and leadership enrichment activities tailored for students and alumni alike. 

“The Caldwell Fellows program is where I began to learn that being a leader was not about being the most knowledgeable or being the highest performer. My experiences in the program are where I began to understand that the ability to build relationships and develop my sense of empathy are critical to being a true servant leader.” – Trevor Gadson ‘85

The Caldwell Fellows community organized to win two of NC State’s Day of Giving challenges – a “Largest Online Gift” challenge and the “You+2” challenge, won by Kerr & Tori Collins after they made a gift and then recruited two more friends to make a Day of Giving contribution. Many of the day’s gifts went to the Caldwell Fellows Fund, strengthening the program’s financial foundation for supporting monthly dinner seminars, annual class retreats, and leadership enrichment activities tailored for students and alumni alike. 

Other high-impact Day of Giving gifts to the program include: 

• John Moorefield ‘83 and Tiffany Farrell led a dollar-for-dollar match of money raised throughout the day to help the program reach new heights in annual gifts.
• Two alumni established a scholarship endowment A Full Caldwell Fellows Endowment was established by two Caldwell Fellows alumni in honor of Sandy and Jerry Barker, the fifth full scholarship endowment created by program alumni.
• Joe ‘81 and Laurie Rhyne, Cameron ‘05 and Ryan O’Quinn, and Tom Laundon ‘75 helped inspire program supporters and alumni to reach more than 200 donors, setting a Day of Giving record for the program.
• Nora Gardner ‘94 and Matt Kirtland gave a gift to establish an endowment for the program.
• Lynda Lanning ‘82 & Scott Green made a legacy gift commitment to support career  development for Caldwell Fellows.
• David Brown (‘70) also made a deferred gift commitment in honor of John T. Caldwell and the impact of his leadership as NC State’s Chancellor from 1959 – 1975. 

The results from this year’s Day of Giving will be celebrated as the Caldwell Fellows program continues its gratitude tour on the heels of NC State’s Think & Do Campaign, during which more than 1,300 program alumni and friends helped raise more than $9.1 million. In addition to already connecting with alumni in Washington, DC, New York City, San Francisco, Seattle, and Greensboro, the program will be making stops in Beaufort County, Morehead City, Wilmington, Charlotte and Atlanta to thank supporters. To learn more about upcoming gratitude tour events, email Caldwell Fellows Director of Development, Lauren Welch ‘04 at lewelch@ncsu.edu.