The Office of Institutional Advancement announced in late January that it had reached 87 percent, or $347,857, in classroom renovation fundraising for this fiscal year. The “Celebrating Our Classrooms” initiative aims to raise $400,000 annually over 10 years through the generosity of reunion classes from 1960 to 2000.

The campaign will finance numerous improvements to the teaching and learning environment on campus. Projects will include new lighting and flooring, extra seating, and “smart boards,” which will replace traditional chalkboards with computer monitors and other enhanced visual aids.

“The classroom environment impacts how faculty teach and how students learn,” said Charles J. Haberle, assistant vice president for academic administration and chairman of the Instructional Facilities Advisory Committee. “Additionally, prospective students and families are looking at our classrooms and comparing them to other colleges they visit.”

Beginning with the Class of 1960, each reunion class will be challenged to raise $40,000 to $50,000 above their Annual Fund donations to aid the project, according to David Dugas ’87, Annual Fund director. Any funds raised beyond the costs of specific improvements will go toward maintenance and future enhancements. Classes will be acknowledged with a plaque inside the particular classroom they assisted.

Over the next five years, the Office of Institutional Advancement aims to identify volunteers from each class year who will call on classmates for additional assistance in “Celebrating Our Classrooms.” To volunteer, interested alumni/ae can contact Dugas at ddugas@providence.edu or (401) 865-2775. For more information on the classroom renovations campaign and/or to make an online donation, click here.