This Wednesday, a new Clemson tradition will begin. Starting this year, April 6 will be known as Clemson University’s Give Day.

Give Day is an annual funding drive with the stated intention of “provid[ing Clemson] students with the ‘Clemson experience’… provid[ing] both current and future Tigers with an exceptional college experience — one that they will never forget.”

One of the programs the funds raised during Give Day will go toward is the Pearce Center for Professional Communication, a program aimed at “strengthen[ing] Tigers’ writing, critical thinking and problem-solving skills.”

Funds will also go towards the Creative Inquiry undergraduate research program, the Robert B. and Susan B. Hambright Annual Leadership Program in Engineering and several other ongoing student enrichment programs. Additionally, funds will be allocated to renovate university facilities as well as the construction of new ones.

Clemson hopes that Give Day will help the university reach its private-donations goal of one billion dollars as part of the Will to Lead program (WTL). If this goal is reached, Clemson will be the first university with an alumni base of our size to reach this threshold on a single project.

In their FAQs, the Give Day organizers say that gifts to the university any other day “are already making a difference,” but that “[m]aking a donation on April 6 will ensure that you continue to make an impact on current and future generations of the Clemson Family.”

When asked what makes Give Day special, the organizers said, “The Will to Lead for Clemson capital campaign is a special time in Clemson’s history. Every gift — no matter how big or how small — makes an impact and creates

opportunities for the Clemson Family.”

The head of WTL and Clemson’s Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations, Brian O’Rourke, said that Clemson’s network of alumni give so enthusiastically because they “realize that investing in their school makes their diploma worth more in the workplace.”

If you want to help spread the word about Give Day, the organizers recommend you “[s]hare the news with your classmates, spread the word to your co-workers and don’t forget to post on social media using the hashtag #clemsonGIVEDAY.

Give Day donations are tax deductible and go toward IPTAY credit when given online at clemsontigers.com.

More information on Clemson University’s Give Day can be found at www.clemson.edu/giveday.