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First Time Donors

If you are considering making your first gift to the University of Redlands, first of all – Thank You! Each year thousands of parents and alumni choose to support our students and play an important role in making Redlands a great place to go to college. We are all Bulldogs for Life and there are many ways to stay involved with the University of Redlands, including making a gift. Whether you’re able to contribute $10 or $1,000 your gift will make an impact for our students by providing increased scholarship funding and more opportunities to learn in and out of the classroom.

For first time donors, we’ve put together some of the most common questions as a way of helping you navigate through the giving process. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact the Development Office at 909-748-8050 or email any of us directly and we’ll be happy to talk with you.

Common Questions:

1. How much should I give?

The short answer: give any amount that you’re comfortable with.

The long answer: Redlands receives many high profile leadership gifts throughout the year, but these only make up a small fraction of the support we receive. Don’t feel intimidated by all those commas and zeros you might read about in the latest Och Tamale article! In fact, the vast majority of all gifts are under $1,000 and they all add up to make a big impact for the university. Contributions of all sizes are important and each gift counts towards our alumni participation totals. This number is used to calculate our US News rankings and helps us qualify for grants and other funding from foundations. So go ahead, give what you can and be proud that you’re supporting students at the University of Redlands.

2. What can I support?

The short answer: just about anything that’s important to you.

The long answer: You can choose to support just about any area of campus that interests you. Athletics, a specific department or program, and student scholarship are all good options, but a priority for the university each year is the Redlands Fund. The Redlands Fund is an umbrella fund that covers many different areas of campus and can be used to easily address funding needs as they occur. The majority of this funding goes towards student scholarships, classroom resources and supporting the library, all key aspects of the student experience.

3. What is a matching gift?

The short answer: Your employer may match your contributions to the University of Redlands.

The long answer: As part of their yearly charitable giving, many employers may match their employee’s gifts to non-profit organizations like the University of Redlands. Although the amount of the match varies from company to company, it is often matched 1 to 1, effectively doubling your support to the university. In other words, it’s free money that you can help us receive by filling out a small amount of paperwork. Please visit our matching gift search page to see if you work for an employer that will match your support to the university.

4. How do I make my gift?

The fastest and easiest way to make a gift is through our secure online giving site. However, if you’d prefer to make your gift another way, please visit our page explain the different ways to make your gift for more information.