UNA raised over $41,000 Nov. 29 on Giving Tuesday, a global day of giving.

“We were extremely pleased to have over 220 alumni and friends give through this social media push,” said Deborah Shaw, vice president for university advancement.

Shaw said they promoted the event on their social media accounts.

Shaw said this is the first time UNA has participated in the event.

“Several other universities have tried this in the past, so we just decided that it was time for UNA to try it,” she said. “We decided this over six months ago. We wanted to see how alumni and their friend base would respond.”

The money went to several different areas, Shaw said.

“We chose to let the donors decide where it goes,” she said. “When people can say, ‘I am a graduate of the College of Business, and I want it to go to business,’ or ‘I want it to go to Athletics,’ they are more likely to donate. That usually is more effective. Some do it unrestricted, and that just means it goes toward the university.”

Shaw said they will participate in the event again.

“We want to increase our efforts and the amount of that we got,” she said. “We felt like this was a great test run, and we thought it was very successful for our first time ever.”

Shaw said she hopes more people will donate next year.

“What was important for us was not just the money raised, but how many people chose to give, especially if they were first time donors.,” she said. “So, even if the amount (they donated) was small, it is still considered very successful because we got new donators.”