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Annual Giving

Make Your End of Year Gift Now

Winston-Salem State University thanks our alumni and friends for your generosity. Annual gifts are the lifeblood of the university. Your continued philanthropic support through Annual Giving supplements tuition and state appropriations, bridging the gap and supporting the university’s greatest needs. Your gift, regardless of size, ensures that WSSU Rams continue taking charge!

We welcome your donations today to any area, program, or scholarship of your choice. We also welcome gifts to the area of greatest need—also known as unrestricted support.

Annual Giving Initiatives

Annual Fund

We can allocate your donation to your passion or specific area of interest, or we can direct it to the area of greatest need as an unrestricted gift. Unrestricted gifts to the Annual Fund allow the university to allocate contributions toward the greatest need at any given time. 

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Day of Giving

WSSU’s Day of Giving is evolving!

Our annual 24-hour celebration of philanthropy - where alumni, friends, faculty, staff, students, and the community unite to make a powerful impact - is moving to the spring. Our first spring Day of Giving will launch in April 2026, with more details to come. Stay tuned for updates as we prepare for this exciting new chapter.

Engagement Center Program

During the Fall & Spring Engagement Center Programs students connect with alumni and friends of the university through live phone calls, emails, texts and videos. This is a time to share university updates and provide alumni and friends the opportunity to give their annual gift to the department or scholarship of their choice.

Class Reunion Giving

The university celebrates classes who have reached pivotal graduation milestones - 15, 25 & 50 years! Participating classes are acknowledged during homecoming and raise money celebrating their milestone year. Classes with qualifying amounts are able to present their check on the field at the Saturday homecoming game. Please contact Anissa Daniels in the Office of Alumni Engagement, via phone: 336-750-3491 or email whitbydanielsac@wssu.edu for more details.

Matching Gifts

You can maximize your donation with a matching gift from your employer. After a donation is made through our Acceptiva giving portal, an email is sent from Double the Donation with information on matching gifts. Please check to see if your company participates. Contact Advancement Services via email at advservices@wssu.edu for additional assistance.

Alumni Giving

The Alumni Giving Rate is the percentage of alumni that give back within a fiscal year. At WSSU, the fiscal year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30.

To impact the AGR, donations must be given directly to the university. Gifts to the National Alumni Association including alumni dues, and gifts to an alumni chapter do not impact the university’s alumni giving rate. Also, if one alum gives multiple gifts, they are only counted as one alum that gave. AGR is calculated by the collective number of individual alumni that give back.

Remember to make your donation or pledge payment to the university  between July 1 – June 30 to support and impact the alumni giving rate.

WSSU’s alumni giving rate over the years: 6% (2023), 6.3% (2022), 8.8% (2021) 4.4% (2020), 6.5% (2019), 5.8% (2018), 4.5% (2017), 7.7% (2016), 10.3% (2015)

Faculty & Staff Giving

Faculty and staff can break down annual contributions into monthly deductions through payroll deduction. See examples below:

$4.17 monthly gift = $50 per year
$8.34 monthly gift = $100 per year
$20.84 monthly gift = $250 per year
$41.67 monthly gift = $500 per year
$83.34 monthly gift = $1,000 per year
$208.33 monthly gift = $2,500 per year

Payroll deduction form for faculty and staff.

*Faculty & Staff also participate annually during the university's Day of Giving.

Giving Societies

WSSU currently has three giving societies that recognize alumni and friends supporting at leadership levels: The Atkins Society, Heritage Society, and 1000 HORN$ program.