KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — More than 50,000 people donated to the University of Tennessee during the 2019-2020 fiscal year, breaking records in generosity.
Donors gave $319,000 to the Student Emergency Fund, which was created to help students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Join the Journey campaign, which launched in 2012, also closed after raising more than its original $1.1 billion goal 2 years early.
The campaign reached $1.33 billion in contributions, making it the most successful in UT’s history, according to officials. This year's Big Orange Give campaign also raised $2.55 million in just 24 hours.
“The entire Volunteer community can be proud of what they’ve accomplished,” Chip Bryant said in a press release, vice chancellor for advancement. “Thanks to the commitment and passion of our alumni and supporters, this difficult year has surpassed all others in terms of the breadth of support for UT and its talented students.”
One student who benefited from the Student Emergency Relief fund used the money to find an apartment in Knoxville. He said that without the support, he would have had to leave Knoxville and return home without reliable internet access to finish his classes.
Donors could choose which areas of the university they wanted to support, and officials said most chose to support scholarships meant to help fund students' educations.