W&M Law School raises record private funds
William & Mary Law School’s alumni and friends supported the School in record-breaking numbers during the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2013.
Donations to the Law School’s Annual Fund totaled $2,073,222--the largest amount in the School’s history. The previous high mark was $1,907,660 in fiscal year 2012. Gifts to the Law School Annual Fund have increased by 50 percent during the past three years.
“These are marvelous results from a community that truly cares about its law school, and we are extremely grateful,” said Davison Douglas, dean of the Law School and Arthur B. Hanson Professor of Law. The year also brought good news for the school in admissions, he said. “We received 5,857 applications for seats in our J.D. Class of 2016 and, according to the Law School Admission Council, are one of only 12 of the nation’s 200 law schools to report an increase in applications this year. About one out of every 10 applicants to law school in the United States this year applied to William & Mary.”
Total giving to the Law School (including Annual Fund, endowment, building fund, and in-kind gifts) came to $3,581,286--also the largest in the Law School’s history, and a 28 percent increase over last year. The Law School’s previous high mark was $3,340,067 in 2011.
William & Mary Law School continues to enjoy a very strong alumni giving percentage rate. According to the latest data (from fiscal year 2011), the Law School enjoys the 14th best alumni giving percentage rate among law schools in the United States.
Douglas said that private support helps the Law School bridge the gap between tuition, state funding, and the cost of providing an outstanding legal education. Annual gifts provide scholarships for students, as well as funding for research centers, clinical programs, library resources, and student organizations and journals.
