University of Alabama completes record $2.1 billion fundraising campaign
Donors funded scholarships, faculty support and major campus projects, including new named colleges and more than 800,000 square feet of facilities.
The University of Alabama announced on Monday that it has completed a 10-year comprehensive fundraising campaign, resulting in more than $2.1 billion in charitable commitments.
The campaign, The Rising Tide 2.0, launched in 2016 and went public in 2021. The Rising Tide 2.0 campaign is the most successful higher education capital campaign in state history, surpassing its previous fundraising goals of $1.5 billion in 2024 and $1.8 billion in 2025.
“The success of The Rising Tide 2.0 reflects the deep belief our alumni, friends and supporters have in The University of Alabama and in the promise of our students, faculty, staff and future,” UA President Peter Mohler said.
“Their generosity is opening doors for generations of students, strengthening the work of our faculty and expanding the spaces where discovery, creativity and leadership take shape,” Mohler added. “This historic campaign is a powerful investment in the Capstone’s momentum and in the impact UA will continue to make across Alabama and beyond.”
Since 2016, UA has seen a 37 percent increase in endowed scholarship money awarded and a 38 percent increase in the number of students awarded endowed scholarships.
Campaign donations have established 1,212 new scholarship endowments, 84 new endowments supporting faculty and more than 800,000 square feet of new and renovated facilities.
During the campaign, two UA colleges were granted names honoring major donors. The two schools received gifts that established fully discretionary funds, which, according to UA, give the schools flexibility to support students and faculty as new challenges arise.
The J. Frank Barefield Jr. College of Arts and Sciences was made possible by a $35 million gift from UA alumnus Frank Barefield, president of Abbey Residential LLC.
The Lee J. Styslinger Jr. College of Engineering honors the late Lee J. Styslinger Jr., founder of Altec Inc., following a $25 million gift from his wife, Catherine.
Donors committed more than $538 million to UA facilities.
A roughly 118,000-square-foot renovation at Bryce Main resulted in the Catherine and Pettus Randall Welcome Center for the Performing Arts. The center, which will open in 2027, was made possible by a $20 million investment from UA alumni Clay and Cameron Smith, alongside Smith’s mother, Linda.
Hewson Hall, a new academic building for the Culverhouse College of Business, was another accomplishment of the fundraising campaign, achieved by a $15 million gift from James and Marilyn Hewson.
Other new or renovated facilities made possible through The Rising Tide 2.0 include Drummond Lyon Hall, Holle Center for Communication Arts, Stran-Hardin Arena, the Parker-Haun Tennis Facility, the Crimson Reserve golf practice facility, the UA Basketball Training and Player Development Facility, the Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium renovation and addition, and the John and Ann Rhoads Softball Stadium renovation.
“The Rising Tide 2.0 has been a tremendous accomplishment for The University of Alabama and is further evidence of the institution’s success during the last decade,” Bob Pierce, UA’s vice president for advancement, said.
“The number of students who will benefit from the philanthropy of our current benefactors over the generations to come can’t be counted,” Pierce continued. “I am awed by the generosity of our donors and am indebted to them as well as our university leadership, capital campaign cabinet and volunteers and, of course, our talented professionals in the Division of Advancement, for their dedication to the Capstone and their desire to make the university even better tomorrow than it is today.”
Throughout the campaign, donors contributed nearly $425 million for endowed scholarships, $94 million to support faculty and more than $1 billion to support student-focused programs and initiatives.
Gifts of all sizes powered the campaign, with more than 310 gifts of $1 million or more and 594,019 gifts of $100 or less. More than 118,000 people made their first gifts to the university during the campaign.
