Donor Impact Report
KALAMAZOO COLLEGE FUND
July 2025–June 2026
Every year, Kalamazoo College Fund donors give generously, and that support is put to work immediately, exactly where students need it most. You’re not funding one program or one student—by combining your gift with those from over 2,000 alumni, parents, and friends—you’re giving K the flexibility to say yes. From a scholarship that keeps a student enrolled, research opportunities that change their trajectory, or a moment of support no one could have predicted. This is what you make possible: mentorship, discovery and a sense of belonging that shapes every part of the K experience. This report celebrates you and the impact you had on students, faculty and staff who benefited from your generosity.
What You Support
SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL AID
98% of students receive some form of aid. Through your gift, you gave students the opportunity to focus on learning, exploration and making the most of their K experience.
FACULTY EXCELLENCE AND RESOURCES
When faculty have what they need, students do too. You help provide stability and support that fuels great mentorship and deep learning.
K’S IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES
Your immediate-use gift to the Kalamazoo College Fund is put right to work—funding the programs and campus priorities that keep K moving forward.
2025-26 Year in Review
Sam King ’28
A history and French double major, Sam King ’28 has spent his time at K chasing experiences well beyond the classroom—running cross country and track and pursuing opportunities across Europe. After his first year at K, he had the opportunity to join an archeological dig for the Gabii Project in Italy, living and working alongside students from around the country for five weeks: cleaning ancient artifacts, exploring cities by train, and adjusting to life fully on his own for the first time.
This spring, he’ll continue that journey in Strasbourg, France—living with a host family and taking classes entirely in French.
“K has the ability to connect students with a myriad of experiences that go beyond the classroom,” Sam said. “I have been fortunate enough to receive some of these opportunities which would otherwise not have been possible without the grants and external aid provided by the College and our donors and alumni.”
Mentorship in Motion
Color explodes in the lab of Dr. Daniela Arias-Rotondo, Roger F. and Harriet G. Varney Associate Professor of Chemistry, from the photos and plants gifted to her by students to the new compounds taking shape in experiments around the room.
Her lab’s goal is ambitious and ongoing: developing compounds that can absorb sunlight and convert it into useable solar energy.
“I am the idea person,” Dr. Arias-Rotondo (Dr. DAR as her students call her) says. “I make plans on how to get there, but I do very little myself. Students are the ones who are doing 90% of what happens in the lab.”
Students in her lab learn as much as possible—they maintain the equipment, changing gas cylinders and oil in the vacuum pumps. “Confidence grows when they do more! Sometimes the process may be slower, but we can see the payoff.”
What sets K’s research relationships apart from other schools or even graduate student work, is that everyone in the lab has close to equal footing. Undergraduates bring an energy and excitement that Dr. DAR doesn’t take for granted. “When students see the things I do every day for the first time, it makes it cool again to see it through their eyes.”
That relationship doesn’t end when a student studies abroad or steps away for a sports season. “I want them to know that they can come back, even with an academic quarter off.” Projects keep moving without them, and the lab makes room for it, because, for Dr. DAR, the point was never just the research; it’s teaching and mentoring the people doing it.
Meena Moritz ’28
“Undergraduate research is not an option everywhere. At a time when national funding is uncertain, you fuel student learning—and we feel it.”
Caroline Johnson ’28
“Dr. DAR teaches us what we need to know but challenges us. When you ask her a question, she’ll ask what we think first. She’s collaborative, but she pushes us to problem-solve on our own.”
Mallory Gentry ’28
“Dr. DAR’s lab helps you build research skills while getting comfortable making mistakes. I’m grateful to you for opportunities like this.”
Calvin Strader ’28
“We work on a different arm of the project, but there’s a collective goal Dr. DAR sets for the day—it makes the work feel like something we’d do in the industry. She’s been incredibly influential and will be a mentor for life.”
Gifts through the Kalamazoo College Fund help make labs like this possible—not by funding one experiment or one student—by providing students the mentorship, space and equipment that turn a classroom lesson into hands-on discovery.
Community as Classroom
“The Center for Civic Engagement provides transformative experiences that can shape a K student’s experience and life beyond college. Through student-led programs, community-based courses, and internships, K students apply their learning alongside community partners while building skills, finding a sense of belonging, and exploring their paths as social change and enlightened leaders. These opportunities also strengthen our community partners by advancing their missions and expanding their reach. None of this would be possible without the generous support of our donors, who make these unique experiential learning opportunities a reality for so many K students.”
Sashae Mitchell ’13
Director of the Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement
Day of Gracious Giving 2026
You help make it possible: a place to call home at K. A place to belong. A path forward. On the Day of Gracious Giving, you provided funds that went straight into the scholarships, faculty support and programs that shape a student’s path from their first day at K to their last.
Students learned about your impact on their K experiences in real time while enjoying black and orange snack boxes, a philanthropy-themed scavenger hunt and prizes that included a pizza party with President Emeritus Jorge G. and Dr. Suzie Gonzalez ’83.
Relive the nostalgia of the Day with our viral video!
$600,662
Dollars Contributed
1,223
Number of Donors
195
New Day of Gracious Giving Donors
Carrying K Forward
Thank you for expanding your impact on K’s students and faculty through this year’s Kalamazoo College Fund. Together, you gave more than $3 million. Below, Alex shares what inspires him to give—some of it may sound familiar. Whatever brought you to K, and whatever moves you to give, we’re grateful for you.
Why Alex Cadigan ’19 gives through the Kalamazoo College Fund
“The foundation I built at K continues to shape both my career and my life. My computer science and math education provided the technical skills that launched my career as a software developer, while the broader liberal arts experience helped me develop critical thinking and communication skills that are just as important.
“I’m grateful for the opportunities, mentorship, and community that K provided, and for those who provided for me. For many of us, K played a defining role in shaping who we are today—our education, our careers, and many of our closest friendships began there.
“Supporting K helps ensure that the same transformative opportunities remain available to students. At a time when higher education faces significant challenges, alumni support plays an especially important role in sustaining the programs and experiences that make K unique.”
kzoo.edu/onlinegiving • 269.337.7236 • 1200 Academy Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49006 • kcf@kzoo.edu