Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding is most successful for groups with 5+ members who need $1,000 to $15,000 and are passionate about their mission and drive plans into action. Participating groups are responsible for creating content for their campaign, promoting their campaign to their own networks of current or prospective donors, preparing personal thank you messages, and submitting regular updates on their project. The amount of effort and commitment determines how successful the project is.

Ideally, a campaign is live for 2-4 weeks. This gives people time to get the word out about the campaign while also instilling a sense of urgency to donate, which is an important part of fundraising. In general, groups should plan for 8-10 weeks to complete a campaign from the planning and preparation to the follow-up and thank you messaging.

Crowdfunding is offered through the Office of University Advancement under the supervision of the Annual Giving Office. Our office will work with your group to create a personalized page and oversee all necessary steps in the crowdfunding process.

This will ensure that the project has appropriate university branding, that gifts to projects are tax deductible, and that no tax liability accrues to an individual as a result of receiving the funds personally through an external crowdfunding site.

Finally, 100% of each and every donation made through GiveCampus is directed towards the project! In contrast, other popular, non-WPI crowdfunding sites typically charge a fee and do not provide full gift support.

The more time you have to prep, the better! Ideally, 4-6 weeks prior to your intended launch date. If you have an project that you need funded and want to inquire about your timeline, please reach out to the Annual Giving Office.

The funds will go directly into a university gift fund, a Workday account, designated for the project’s use. The funds will be available 7-10 days after the donation is received through GiveCampus.

Yes, any donation to a crowdfunding effort on campus made by a student, counts toward the Class Giving model. Class Giving tracks that participation of giving for students within the same class.

For any questions about crowdfunding, please contact Karissa Mongeau, Associate Director of Annual Giving, at kmongeau@wpi.edu or 508-831-5180

Make an impact at WPI by donating, creating challenges/matches, and sharing the campaign! Lead by example and make your own gift early. It's much easier to ask your friends and family to join you in making a gift when you’ve already done it yourself!

Leverage your gift and encourage others to give by offering a match or challenge. 

• A match will match dollars/donors as they come in. For example, “Gompei will match dollar for dollar up to $50.” 
• A challenge unlocks only if a certain threshold is reached. For example, “Gompei will give $100 if 5 donors give.” 

Share via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Text Message, Email, Phone Call, Carrier Pigeon… The sky’s the limit!

100% of each gift goes to the project that it is funding.

Yes, all gifts made to WPI are tax deductible. A gift receipt will be sent to each donor by University Advancement.

Yes! All donations count toward your annual giving for the year.

All contributions will go to the project that was funded, regardless of if the project meets its stated goal.

It might be! Please check out doublethedonation.com and search for your employer. If they are listed, your gift is eligible for an employer/corporate match. When donating to a crowdfunding effort on GiveCampus, you will be able to enter your employer information there.

Our WPI Tax ID: 04-2121659.

For any questions about crowdfunding, please contact Karissa Mongeau, Associate Director of Annual Giving, at kmongeau@wpi.edu or 508-831-5180