There are multiple ways to support Darden's priorities. Please select a priority below to learn more.

Priority 1: Student Fellowship & Financial Aid
Priority 2: Faculty Support & Curriculum Development
Priority 3: Infrastructure, Experience & Technology
Priority 4: Annual Fund Giving & Unrestricted Funds

1. Student Fellowships & Financial Aid 

Operation Top Talent aims to increase the number of partial and full fellowships offered at Darden in order to attract the best and brightest students in a global, diverse, fiercely competitive applicant pool.

Named fellowships in one of these three categories:

1. Colgate W. Darden Fellowships: Full, individually endowed fellowships given to attract top applicants to the School. Colgate Darden Fellowships provide the donor flexibility in designating a student profile to match specific donor interests (such as military service, entrepreneurship, business backgrounds, geographic regions, underserved minorities, etc.).

Minimum commitment: $1 million for a fully funded fellowship awarded annually

2. Darden Jefferson Fellowships: Full, merit-based fellowships including a generous living stipend, given in collaboration with the Jefferson Scholars Foundation to students who have the highest level of academic excellence, ethical leadership, diplomatic decisiveness and a track record of putting ideas into action.

Minimum commitment: $1 million fellowship to be awarded periodically; $1.5 million fellowship to be fully funded and awarded annually.

3. Charles C. Abbott Fellowships: Partial, class or memorial fellowships funded by endowed and current-use funds to attract highly desirable candidates to Darden that will enable the School to assemble the most talented and promising class of students.

Minimum endowed commitment:
$500,000 (one-half fellowship)
$250,000 (one-third fellowship)
$150,000 (if alumnus graduated less than 15 years ago)

To create a fellowship, choose one of the three categories. If you select a Charles C. Abbott or Colgate W. Darden Fellowship, you can personalize it by naming the fellowship after yourself or another person (e.g., [Donor Name] Fellowship). If you choose, you can target the fellowship support to a student who meets a certain criteria or hails from a specific geographic area.

For a Darden Jefferson Fellowship, you can name the fellowship in conjunction with the Darden Jefferson Fellowship brand (e.g., [Donor Name] Darden Jefferson Fellowship). However, since these fellowships are awarded solely to the top academic candidates applying to Darden, the support may not be targeted to a particular student and, unless funded at $1.5 million or more, may not be awarded each year.

2. Faculty Support & Curriculum Development, Endowed

Chaired professorships, executive chairs and research funds will enable Darden to retain its top-ranked professors and recruit a new generation who will create knowledge, models and ideas that will change the way the world does business.

Faculty Support, payable over five years

Center for Asset Management, payable over five years

Institute for Business in Society, payable over five years

3. Infrastructure, Experience & Technology 

Gifts toward Darden’s No. 1-ranked education experience support alumni services, world-class infrastructure and technology-enhanced learning tools, including digital teaching materials and video conferencing technology that will bring the world to Darden and Darden to the world. 

Audiovisual and Video Conferencing Technology, payable over five years

Digital Teaching Materials, payable over five years

An anonymous donor has offered a one-to-one match for all gifts to Priority 3, up to $8 million. Gifts meeting this challenge would be used to improve infrastructure, technology and students' classroom experience.

Darden seeks an additional $4.5 million to fully endow the Armstrong Center for Alumni Career Services. In honor of Beverley W. “Booty” Armstrong (U.Va. ’64, MBA ’66), an anonymous donor has offered a one-to-one match for all gifts to the center for up to $2 million.

4. Annual Fund Giving & Unrestricted Funds 

Gifts to the Darden Annual Fund, as well as unrestricted gifts, provide essential operating funds and fuel emerging priorities, enabling Darden to seize opportunities and support innovation at the discretion of the dean. 

Darden Annual Fund

The Darden Society recognizes donors who make leadership gifts of $2,500 or more to Darden each year. Membership extends to alumni of the four most recent classes at the $1,000 level.

Darden Society Members are recognized at the following levels:

Dean's Innovation Fund: $50,000 to $10 million endowed funding

Unrestricted gifts to the Dean's Innovation Fund will be recognized with a naming opportunity for buildings and spaces on the Darden Grounds, including but not limited to:

View our Unnamed Spaces.

For more information, contact the Office of Advancementat +1-434-924-6576.