Raise Some L, UofL's annual day of giving, sets record number of donors and states

Raise Some L drew support from a record number of donors, including Cardinal fans in all 50 states for the first time, in pledging to fund education, research and community engagement throughout the university.

During the annual day of giving, which occurs during Homecoming week, more than 2,450 donors contributed to the 2021 total of $2,932,603. The number of donors surpassed the initial goal of 2,021 and the previous record of 2,206 donors set in 2019 as alumni, employees, students, friends and organizations gave to their favorite UofL areas where they wanted to make an impact.

“As a national metropolitan research university, the University of Louisville is thrilled that donors from all 50 states support us,” said UofL President Neeli Bendapudi. “We can’t achieve success without the aid of our donors, and again this year, they have come forward from throughout the United States to fund the programs, projects and initiatives we execute. I thank them, one and all.”

 A highlight among several large gifts was Delta Dental’s commitment of $1.07 million to the UofL School of Dentistry, celebrated by the campaign Oct. 20 at the Health Sciences Center with a live social media segment. Other gifts included $400,000 to the UofL Health Brown Cancer Center from the Thomas Dunbar family, $112,000 to the College of Business from Yum! Brands (parent company of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut) and $100,000 to the College of Arts and Sciences from alumna Monica Pearson ’75. 

The HSC and Belknap Campus each had a special campus headquarters during the fundraising period where students who donated at least $10 could snag a pair of Cardinal socks and where donors could commemorate their giving spirit with a selfie taken against a giant "I Raised Some L" backdrop.

The fundraising site featured more than 560 initiatives, including individual colleges and schools, student scholarships and student-led organizations.

“Once again, our Cardinal Family stepped up to give back to our university and the areas they believe in,” said Jasmine Farrier, vice president of university advancement. “This record-breaking support shows that the University of Louisville is vitally connected to our alumni, the community, commonwealth and beyond.  We are grateful to our alumni, staff and faculty ambassadors who spent countless hours sharing updates about our programs across Belknap and Health Sciences to inspire Cardinals to learn more about student success, research innovation and community engagement at UofL.”

The Raise Some L campaign ran for 1,798 minutes, starting at 6:02 p.m. Oct. 19, in honor of the university’s founding year of 1798.