To the Class of 2016,

While our last four years may have flown by, this October we decided upon a class legacy that will remain forever: an endowment to CAPS.

This gift speaks volumes to the character of our class. We made a decision as a class to raise money for something bigger than any statue or monument could ever be. We all love getting our pictures taken next to 1940’s gift, the Nittany Lion Shrine, or throwing our graduation cap off of 1992’s gift, the Landmark Sign, but what makes this gift so truly amazing is the unseen impact it will have on future generations of Penn Staters.

This gift does not discriminate. This gift is here to help anyone and everyone willing to believe that it’s okay to not be okay. This gift is here to help people seeking internal peace.

In the first year of being an established endowment, funding from this gift will support an embedded counselor in the residence halls. Penn State will be one of the first universities to create such a program. The recognition by the Class of 2016 to address CAPS need for more support encouraged other university supporters to give to CAPS — thank you to the Kirsch Family for their generosity.

However, it is easy to become content once the decision has been made to say something is important. As a class and Penn State community, we cannot rest on our own laurels. Financial support is the only support that will allow our class’ gift to have the meaningful impact we all know it should.

As we approach our last few weeks of classes, we ask that all seniors graduating this May who have not yet given any part of their general deposit to the Class Gift to give now. We ask that parents make a gift to support Counseling & Psychological Services at Penn State. We ask the university faculty, staff and administration to recognize the important steps they can take as individuals to support this gift and join us with their own gift.

Our class has chosen a selfless gift, and we now have the opportunity to be selfless as individuals.

Our gift can help create a culture where we feel safe to talk about personal struggles, but we need to turn our commitment into reality by making a gift today.

Let’s transform our pride into giving. Let’s put our words into actions. Let’s go one step further and give. Let’s make our legacy all it can be.

The 2016 Class Gift Campaign