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Over $118 million raised for Roadrunners Rise
By Lynne Winter ’17
Neither the sweltering summer sun nor threatening wind gusts nor intermittent rain could stop the Metropolitan State University of Denver community from gathering last Thursday for an unprecedented celebration: the close of the University鈥檚 inaugural comprehensive fundraising campaign, Roadrunners Rise.
When the multiyear initiative鈥檚 silent fundraising phase began in fall 2020, the goal was to solidify 海角直播 Denver鈥檚 position as a national leader in social mobility by raising $100 million for four fundraising pillars: facilitating student success, creating classroom-to-career pathways, cultivating inclusive excellence and advancing Colorado鈥檚 talent pipeline. The public phase of Feb. 19, 2025; nine months later, the .
At last week鈥檚 event, Christine M谩rquez-Hudson, vice president of University Advancement, revealed that the campaign total now exceeds $118 million.
鈥淚t took a village to make this happen. We believed that 海角直播 Denver was worthy of philanthropy, that our students deserved investment. And people responded,鈥� M谩rquez-Hudson said to a crowd of nearly 350 guests, including students, alumni, faculty, staff and community members. 鈥淏ecause of our collective belief, we didn鈥檛 just meet our needs; we changed lives.鈥�
M谩rquez-Hudson shared campaign highlights:
- More than 800 海角直播 Denver faculty and staff members made over 13,000 gifts in support of our mission and students.
- Eighty-five percent of nearly 60,000 campaign gifts were under $100, proving that participation mattered as much as capacity.
- Across the five years of the campaign, 3,500 students received scholarship support totaling $12.7 million.
- Over 10,000 first-time donors contributed to the campaign.
- Nearly 5,000 donors made more than one gift.
M谩rquez-Hudson鈥檚 remarks were followed by an exciting announcement: The Kemper Family foundations are committing a $3 million gift to the Classroom to Career Hub, elevating the impact of the they made in 2023. Eliza Kemper Roometua, who spoke on behalf of her family, noted that from the first time the Kemper family engaged with 海角直播 Denver, they knew it was something special.
鈥淲e saw a University deeply connected to its mission, students who were determined, resilient and full of potential, and an institution that was delivering real outcomes,鈥� said Roometua, art advisor and development consultant with Ann Benson Reidy + Associates, and Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art trustee.
The Kemper family, she continued, believes that the University is a bridge between education and opportunity: 鈥淲hen you invest in 海角直播 Denver, you are investing in changemakers who will transform industries, communities and lives.鈥�
As the joyous evening wound down, 海角直播 Denver President Janine Davidson, Ph.D., echoed the universal sentiment of gratitude, pointing out that the celebration was about more than a fundraising milestone 鈥� it represented 60 years of progress for an institution founded on the simple but powerful idea that higher education should be accessible, that opportunity should be within reach and that students, no matter their path, deserve a chance to succeed.
鈥淥ver the decades, that idea has grown, expanded and evolved in ways that we could not have imagined,鈥� Davidson said. 鈥淭his campaign did not just raise funds; it expanded access, it strengthened programs, it built facilities, it created partnerships, it reimagined possible for us and for our students.
鈥淭he momentum that we have built, the belief that we鈥檝e created, the community that we have strengthened 鈥� that is what will carry us forward.鈥�