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2017
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April
AU receives gift of Airlie, a spectacular 300-acre property in Warrenton, VA valued at $18.8 million. AU will leverage the working farm, hotel, events space, and conference center for innovative academic and sustainability initiatives.
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2018
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May
69传媒 University鈥檚 Museum is selected to receive a once-in-a-lifetime gift from the Corcoran Art Collection of 9,000 artworks, valued at $32 million.
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September
AU launches the Sine Institute of Policy & Politics, a laboratory for university-wide collaboration and an incubator for policy innovations, made possible through a milestone gift of $10 million from Jeff Sine SIS/BA 鈥76, and Samira Sine.
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2019
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JANUARY
AU releases Changemakers for a Changemaking World, a five-year strategic plan with four clear expected outcomes: improving retention and graduation rates, achieving operational excellence, enhancing AU鈥檚 reputation, and diversifying and growing revenue.
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FALL
The university鈥檚 plans for a new state-of-the-art facility for athletics, recreation, wellness, and community-gathering are announced. The project鈥檚 launch is made possible by lead gifts from Amy and Alan Meltzer, CAS/BA 鈥21; Jack Cassell, SOC/BS 鈥77, and Denise Cassell; and the Bender Family Foundation, Inc.
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2020
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FALL
Change Can鈥檛 Wait surpasses $250 million raised toward the campaign鈥檚 $500 million goal.
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2021
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April
The university launches Challenge Accepted, its new brand narrative.
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May
On May 12, 2021, over 1,200 members of the AU community gather virtually for the public launch of Change Can鈥檛 Wait: The Campaign for 69传媒 University. Over the next 24 hours, the announcement receives nearly 20,000 views.
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June
The David and June Trone Family Foundation鈥檚 $5 million gift establishes AU鈥檚 first endowed eminent scholar chair. The support accelerates AU鈥檚 leading-edge scientific work in understanding the relationship between the brain, behavior, and disease.
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October
Member-supported Washington 69传媒 University Radio (WAMU 88.5), the leading public radio station in the nation鈥檚 capital, celebrates its 60th anniversary. The station is an integral part of the Change Can鈥檛 Wait campaign.
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2022
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SPRING
More than 500 Eagles join President Sylvia M. Burwell on a national tour to celebrate AU change makers and bring the priorities of Change Can鈥檛 Wait to life. With stops in Fort Lauderdale, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, and New York, these events feature conversations about AU鈥檚 role in in addressing today鈥檚 pressing issues.
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JUNE
AU announces the university鈥檚 second-largest naming gift to a capital project in AU鈥檚 history, a cumulative $15 million from Alan and Amy Meltzer to name the Alan and Amy Meltzer Center for Athletic Performance, part of the Student Thriving Complex.
AU鈥檚 largest investment in student thriving to date, the Student Thriving Complex is a $109 million initiative that will encompass student well-being resources, renovations to the Mary Graydon Center, and the Meltzer Center for Athletic Performance.
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July
At the close of the FY22, AU raised $982,931 for the AU Funds for Excellence, more than 69传媒 (229 percent) the amount raised for these funds in the first year of the campaign.
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2023
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Winter
Change Can鈥檛 Wait鈥檚 national tour continues with stops in Miami, Philadelphia, Boston, and Chicago to celebrate the campaign鈥檚 momentum and share the university鈥檚 approach to tackling today鈥檚 societal challenges with the AU community.
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February
4,034 donors raise $931,320 through matches and challenges 69传媒 this record-breaking 69传媒 Day.
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March
The Elevate Scholarship Initiative launches with a $25M goal and matching university investment to fund more scholarships for undergraduate students鈥攈elping to ensure every AU student has the financial resources they need to reach graduation.
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April
Elyn Zimmerman鈥檚 Sudama鈥攈er reimagined monumental grouping of 450,000-pound granite boulders originally installed at the National Geographic Society headquarters鈥攊s gifted by the organization and unveiled on campus behind Kay Spiritual Life Center.
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April
In recognition of a multi-million-dollar commitment from Amy Meltzer and Board of Trustee member Alan Meltzer, CAS/BA 鈥21, and AU friends Jaime and Andrew Schwartzberg, AU announces the renaming of the Center for Israel Studies to the Meltzer Schwartzberg Center for Israel Studies at its 25th Anniversary celebration.
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April
AU announces the Shahal M. Khan Cyber and Economic Security Institute, made possible by a generous $5 million gift from Shahal Khan, SIS/BA 鈥95, to advance cyber and economic security.
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May
A generous gift to the School of Public Affairs from Linda Fotis, CAS/BA 鈥78, Stephen Fotis WCL/JD 鈥86, and Bill Fotis honors their father鈥檚 legacy and endows the Charles W. Fotis, Sr. and Dorothea G. Fotis Family Distinguished Professor in Health Policy. Professor Erdal Tekin was appointed in May 2023.
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July
Change Can鈥檛 Wait closes Fiscal Year 2023 on a high, having raised more than $414 million toward the $500 million goal.
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August
The campus Tunnel reopens with new and renovated dining and retail venues as part of the Student Thriving Complex project.
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September
Robert Kogod, Kogod/BS 鈥62, H 鈥00, and Arlene Kogod make a transformational $15 million gift to the Kogod School of Business to endow three eminent scholar chair positions鈥攐ne each in finance, marketing, and sustainability. Professor Sonya A. Grier is named as the Arlene R. and Robert P. Kogod Eminent Scholar Chair in Marketing, and Professor Valentina Bruno is named the inaugural Arlene R. and Robert P. Kogod Eminent Scholar Chair in Finance.
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September
Professor Mohammed Abu-Nimer was installed as the inaugural Abdul Aziz Said Chair in International Peace and Conflict Resolution, an endowed position to honor the legacy of the late peacebuilding pioneer Abdul Aziz Said, SIS/BS 鈥54, MA 鈥55, PhD 鈥57. The chair was made possible through the generosity of Said鈥檚 wife, Elena Turner Said, SIS/BA 鈥82, along with a matched gift from the university and support from generations of colleagues, family, friends, and alumni, including brothers from Phi Epsilon Pi, the Jewish fraternity Said championed and advised for decades.
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October
AU Museum announced a generous gift from Carleen Keating, CAS/BA 鈥64, in memory of her late husband Nick Keating, SIS/BA 鈥63, MA 鈥64, to endow the C. Nicholas Keating and Carleen B. Keating Director position. Longstanding museum director and curator Jack Rasmussen, CAS/MFA 鈥75, MA 鈥83, PhD 鈥94, was named the inaugural position holder.
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October
A substantial gift from Gary Veloric, Kogod/BSBA 鈥82, and the Veloric family to the Kogod School of Business renames the AU Center for Innovation to the Veloric Center for Entrepreneurship and creates the Gary and Nancy Veloric Event Fund to bring memorable concerts and events to campus.
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December
Change Can鈥檛 Wait reaches the $450 million milestone with no signs of slowing down.
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2024
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March
AU breaks ground on construction for the Alan and Amy Meltzer Center for Athletic Performance, a signature piece of the new Student Thriving Complex. The largest student-focused construction project in the university鈥檚 history, the complex will allow generations of Eagles to find and define their purpose through athletic pursuits, well-being, and connection.
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Spring
Change Can鈥檛 Wait embarks on the final stretch of its national tour, starting in Los Angeles and culminating in New York City.
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April
Lydecker Way and Tunnel is named in recognition of a gift supporting the Student Thriving Complex and the campaign from Board of Trustees vice chair Charlie Lydecker, SPA/BA 鈥85, and Christine 鈥淐hris鈥 Lydecker, Kogod/BSBA 鈥86, MS 鈥88.
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April
Honored Benefactors, university donors of $1 million or more, are celebrated at the unveiling of a recognition wall in front of Bender Library.
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June
Change Can鈥檛 Wait surpasses its $500 million goal, marking a milestone of the university鈥檚 historic campaign to change the way students thrive, faculty and staff advance discovery, and the way we connect with our region and the world.
