BRANCHBURG TOWNSHIP, N.J. (Somerset County) — The Raritan Valley Community College Foundation raised more than $1.6 million during the 2025-26 fiscal year, marking the third-highest fundraising total in the college’s history.
The RVCC Foundation raised $1,617,245 during the fiscal year that ended June 30, reaching 108% of its fundraising goal. The money supports financial assistance for students and other priorities and programs at the college.
“We’re incredibly grateful to our generous donors, whose support for the College helps transform the lives of so many worthy students,” said RVCC President Dr. Michael J. McDonough. “At a time when higher education is facing an increasing number of challenges, these important contributions help the College offer our students the outstanding education they need to succeed and thrive.”
“These meaningful and impactful gifts—from individual donors, corporations, foundations, community partners, and our own RVCC family—have made a significant difference in the lives of so many of our students,” added Mike Marion, Executive Director, RVCC Foundation and RVCC Alumni Association.
Foundation fundraising supports student scholarships, athletic programs and teams, the Student Emergency Fund, the Resource Center and Food Pantry, faculty and student enrichment grants and student clubs.
Funding also benefits the Pray Family Center for Service Learning and Student Engagement, Center for Environmental Studies, Planetarium and Institute of Holocaust and Genocide Studies.
A major contributor to the year’s fundraising total was the foundation’s 10th annual Giving Day in March. The 24-hour campaign raised a record $228,863, surpassing its $200,000 goal and making it the most successful Giving Day in RVCC history.
The campaign also pushed cumulative Giving Day contributions past $1 million over the event’s 10-year history.
This year’s Giving Day received 848 gifts, a 28% increase from the previous year. Forty contributions were $1,000 or more, representing a 90% increase over 2025. Alumni participation also increased, with 63 alumni making donations, up more than 31% from the previous year.
Jim and Jill Gibson, Don and Penny Pray and an anonymous donor collectively provided $75,000 in matching funds for Giving Day.
The Gibsons also made a $500,000, five-year commitment to RVCC’s Center for Environmental Studies. The contribution will fund between 30 and 50 paid student internships annually in areas including forest ecology, wildlife research, coastal conservation, rare plant research and recovery, open space stewardship, native plant propagation, water quality research and campus sustainability and outreach.
“We can’t thank the Gibsons enough for their tremendous gift to the Center for Environmental Studies,” said Mike Marion. “Thanks to the Gibsons, our students can gain valuable, real-world experience in professional environmental research, conservation and restoration, servicing local community partners as well as national resources.”
The foundation’s 22nd annual Golf Classic in June raised $162,075 at Neshanic Valley Golf Course. The event also raised $6,500 for the “FUEL THE RIDE” initiative benefiting the RVCC Resource Center and Food Pantry.
The remaining net proceeds from the golf event support scholarships, educational programming and other college initiatives.
The Resource Center and Food Pantry also received an anonymous $50,000 donation, the largest gift to the program in the college’s history. The center provides food and other basic necessities to students facing food insecurity and other barriers to completing their education.
The RVCC Foundation raises private support to supplement public funding and tuition revenue and support the college and its students in Somerset and Hunterdon counties.
For more information about supporting RVCC and the foundation, contact Marion at 908-648-8567 or michael.marion@raritanval.edu, or visit rvccfoundation.org.
