The Senior Class Gift Committee has received donations from about 12 percent of the senior class so far – totaling more than $15,000.

The committee hopes to eventually get donations from as much as one-third of the graduating class, but 361 seniors have already donated. David Anderson, coordinator of the Senior Gift Committee, said the committee has been stressing increased participation rather than more money and has no specific monetary goal for the year.

In a new policy for this year, a senior who donates can designate which University organization their money goes toward. The gift committee’s current records show that the most popular recipients this year have been Student Activities Center-registered student organizations, student financial aid, the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, athletics and the President’s Fund for Excellence.

The money raised from this year’s graduating class will also fund the Old Man Schenley textbook scholarship, as well as a small plaque in honor of the late campus fixture.

“We’re the last class to know who he was,” Anderson said.

Eddie Bieber, known to many on campus as Old Man Schenley, is remembered for sitting on a bench outside the residence hall of the same name, where he resided for decades after the University had purchased the building.

Last year’s seniors raised more than $36,000 to fund a Spirit Office on campus. A record 24 percent of seniors donated.

To raise money this year, the committee has been hosting Senior Nights at various area bars and pubs. Seniors can donate up until Commencement, and the gift committee plans to continue holding events and opportunities until then for seniors to give.