Chairman's Report THE 1955 ALUMNI FUND

19,163 alumni, parents and friends joined in giving $774,860 to Dartmouth's . 41st annual Alumni Fund, achieving a new dollar record in support of the Collage and an alumni participation record of , 69.4%, highest in the nation.

ONCE again Dartmouth alumni have demonstrated their loyalty to the College and their belief in the worthiness of its purpose by contributing to the Alumni Fund in greater numbers and with more dollars than ever before. The tremendous 1955 total of $774,860, almost $75,000 in excess of the objective, was given by 19,163 alumni, parents and friends.

When reporting the results of the Fund a year ago, I mentioned being particularly impressed by the seemingly tireless efforts of the class agents. This year, as I watched the constantly mounting returns, I could sense a power and vitality behind every aspect of the Fund which resulted in an extraordinary "acrossthe-boards" success. The magnitude of this achievement and the tremendous growth of the Fund can be better appreciated by a glance at the chart on the back page which reviews the highlights of its history since 1915. It took twelve years for the Fund to pass the $100,000 mark and another seventeen years to break through the $200,000 figure. Since that time, however, the Fund's growth has been spectacular. A whopping $577,000 was realized in 1951 and now, just four years later, the threequarter million barrier has been topped, bringing the 41-year total of the Alumni Fund's gifts to Dartmouth to $8,700,000!

Over 1800 Fund workers took part in last spring's outstanding- performance. Responding to their appeals, contributions were made by 17,201 alumni, a new record, representing 69.4% of all living graduates and non-graduates. This figure brought about a tie between Dartmouth and Princeton in the spirited competition for leadership of all colleges and universities in alumni percentage of participation.

Because of Dartmouth's limited endowment, income from the Alumni Fund has been, and will continue to be, vital to her continued growth. For that reason, an increasing number of alumni and friends welcome the opportunity of participating in this annual free-will offering. During the post-war years, inflation brought the new problem of steadily increasing expenses. Although it was difficult for the Fund to accomplish its traditional purpose of meeting this mounting deficit, the challenge was met. With confidence gained from this experience, the alumni in the years 1951 through 1955 have generously contributed far beyond the budgeted operating expenses of the College.

Concentrating on Dartmouth's great need for adequate scholarship funds, the Fund had made possible four endowed Alumni Fund Scholarships of $30,000 each, and given $191,200 to an Alumni Fund Scholarship Reserve, in addition to meeting each year's objective. This amazing accomplishment has now been climaxed by the 1955 Fund which exceeded the requirements for estimated operating expenses sufficiently for the Trustees to allocate $60,000 to the Daniel Webster Scholarship Endowment and $52,300 to the Scholarship Reserve. The grand total of $423,500 allocated to scholarships by the Alumni Fund over these five years has helped to make possible the financial assistance which Dartmouth has been able to provide for 25% of the last three entering classes as compared with the under-20% level of a few years ago.

The substantial increase in the scholarship resources has enabled Dartmouth to attract and bring to Hanover many outstanding young men who might otherwise have had to go elsewhere. Typical of these undergraduates are the three Alumni Fund scholars who appear near Bartlett Tower on the cover of this report: Arthur R. Johnson '57, Robert W. ten Bensel '58, and the latest selection, Charles S. Eytel '59.

The backbone of the Dartmouth Alumni Fund is the class agent system. Under this plan the head agents, and class agents they appoint to assist them, together with the newsletter editors, cooperate in conducting class cam- paigns. Rivalry between classes is stimulated by the Green Derby competition and those classes most effectively organized turn in the best records. The tables on pages 4-5 review these class accomplishments. There were many outstanding performances, and I hope each alumnus will take a few minutes to study the record of his class and the other outstanding classes.

Unprecedented class accomplishments were turned in by three classes that produced contributions in excess of $25,000. Ford Whelden piloted 1925 to its third successive victory as the top dollar class with an all-time high of $28,349, and at the same time won a second Green Derby. Close behind came 1924 led by Harr Ranney, whose untimely death occurred June 29. In three years of Harr's inspired leadership this class increased in number of contributors from 320 to 374, in dollars from $13,247 to $28,070, and climbed from seventh to second place in its Green Derby. Another important record scored by 1924 was to produce a dollar improvement over the previous year of $5,576 which was the greatest gain made by any class. In third place, Mary Frederick paced 1915 to its ninth successive Green Derby victory, a feat never before equalled by any class,, with a total gift of $25,418 from 255 classmates. This average gift of $99.61 is another all-time high scored by this famous class. Larger gifts from a substantial number of alumni were reflected by 42 classes out of 60 going over their dollar quotas even though these objectives were raised $50,000 above the pievious year. .

In participation the 1955 campaign also produced amazing results. For the ninth consecutive year, a new record in number of contributors was established, the gain over 1954 amounting to 904. Outstanding among the accomplishments of individual classes was that of '4l under a new head agent, Bruce Friedlich, with an astounding 133 more contributors. There were 22 class agents who obtained gifts from over 400 members, including Kev Sullivan, head agent for 1954, in his first year of alumni life. The success of many of the young classes in participation augurs well for the future of the Alumni Fund.

Parents contributed generously and in record numbers to the 1955 Fund. A total of $50,596 was given by 1,050 parents. I am sure all alumni join me in extending congratulations and thanks to Joel Mitchell, father of a Dartmouth junior, who so capably directed this year's campaign as Chairman of the Parents Committee, and whose report appears on Page 7.

On behalf of the Alumni Fund Committee, I wish to extend warmest thanks to the 1800 Fund workers. I know I speak for all this group when I express special appreciation to Nick Sandoe '45, Executive Secretary of the Fund, for his capable management of an exacting task and for his enthusiasm. To him, to his associate, Cliff Jordan '45, and to the efficient staff in Hanover, we say "well done." Finally, there is an unseen segment of the Fund team, the Dartmouth wives, mothers, and secretaries, without whose help our work could not be carried on. To these ladies, the heartfelt thanks of all alumni.

It has been a real privilege to be Fund Chairman during the last two years. Nothing I have ever done has given me greater personal satisfaction. I am happy to turn the reins over to Bill Morton '28, a fellow Fund worker with a distinguished record of accomplishment, with confidence that under his capable leadership, the Fund will continue to grow and to provide vital strength for Dartmouth College.

Next years chairman

BILL MORTON '28

Serving as chairman of the Dartmouth Alumni Fund for the 1956 and 1957 campaigns will be William G. Morton '28 of Syracuse, New York. A Tuck School graduate and Executive Vice-President and a Trustee of the Onondaga County Savings Bank in Syracuse, Bill Morton has long been active in fund and alumni affairs. He was head agent of 1928 for 1947-1949, and received the Harvey P. Hood Trophy for his outstanding work in piloting 1928 to its first Green Derby victory in 1947. He served for four years on the Alumni Council in 1949-1953, and returns to the Council to be Fund Chairman.

A member of the local alumni interviewing committee for 11 years, Bill recently served on the National Enrollment Committee, and was president of the Dartmouth Club of Central New York in 1935-36. He is a trustee of the Syracuse General Hospital, a director of the Chamber of Commerce, and a member of the finance committee at Syracuse University.

ALUMNI FUND CHAIRMEN

1915-18 FRED A. HOWLAND '87 1919-20 EDWARD W. KNIGHT '87 1921-22 THOMAS W. STREETER '04 1923-24 CLARENCE G. MCDAVITT '00 1925-26 ALLAN L. PRIDDY '15 1927-28 GEORGE M. MORRIS '11 1929-30 FREDERIC H. LEGGETT '98 1931-32 WILLIAM J. MINSCH '07 1933-34 JOHN G. STERLING '11 1935-36 JOHN W. HUBBELL '21 1937-38 SIGURD S. LARMON '14 1939-40 SUMNER B. EMERSON '17 1941-42 HARVEY P. HOOD '18 1943-44 HENRY E. ATWOOD '13 1945-46 JOSHUA A. DAVIS '27 1947-48 RICHARD A. HOLTON '18 1949 JOHN R. MASON '15 1950-51 CHARLES J. ZIMMERMAN '23 1952-53 KENNETH M. HENDERSON '16 1954-55 ROGER C. WILDE '21

The names of alumni contributors to the 1955 Alumni F are listed with their respective classes in the class-no section of the December issue of the Alumni Magazi