The Class of 1999 will create a $15,000 scholarship fund to be administered by the Office of Financial Aid as this year's senior gift.
Jeff Sassorossi '75 Deputy Director of the Alumni Fund Office, the department that raises the money for the gift each year, said they are asking students to consider making a two year pledge toward the creation of the fund.
The Alumni Fund interns who are coordinating the project are seniors Debbie Bender, F. Scot Berg, Paul Killebrew and Farrah Russell.
Bendersaid the two-year commitment is a change from the normal four-year pledge.
Bender said the gift normally goes directly into the funds used by the Office of Financial Aid to award aid packages, but this year's class decided to establish its own scholarship instead.
"Next year the award will go to a deserving person in the Class of 2000, 2001 or 2002," Bender said.
She added that depending on how much money is raised this year the class may offer scholarships to more than one student.
Bender said the class decided to create the scholarship because "we thought it would be good to establish a fund directly for students."
The scholarship will be separate from the traditional Alumni Fund donations to financial aid.
In the midst of this year's donation drive there has been much talk of the potential effects of the Social and Residential Life Initiative on giving to the College.
While the results of the Initiative on donations to the Alumni Fund are still unclear, Bender said she does not believe the Initiative had any affect on seniors' donations.
"I think we haven't had all that much feedback," she said. "It's hard to know at this point ... I wouldn't say the results have been affected by the whole thing."
At the time of printing, Assistant Director of the Alumni Fund Christopher Boffoli said he is unsure how much has been raised at this point.
"We're still in the process of receiving donations," Boffoli said.
He said that while in past years his office has set a goal of $100,000 in four-year pledges, this year the same goals did not apply because they changed the time period of the donations.
