All In, Every Year: How Tuck Annual Giving Fuels the World’s Strongest Alumni Participation

“Throughout the proud and storied history of the Tuck School, no single factor has meant more to our success than the trusted support and engagement of alumni,” says Dean Matthew J. Slaughter. “We are the world’s first graduate school of management, supported by the world’s best alumni network.”

Tuck’s culture of generosity can be traced all the way back to its founding 125 years ago when the philanthropic support of Edward Tuck D’1862 helped establish the Amos Tuck School of Administration and Finance, named in honor of Edward’s father. Generations of alumni have since taken up the mantle, united by a shared desire to give back in support of future Tuck graduates and leaders. For more than five decades, a broad base of support through TAG has provided the school with vital revenue each year—fueling investment in everything from core operations to cutting-edge innovations and strategic priorities. In addition to the highest alumni giving rate, Tuck also maintains the highest per capita giving among its business school peers. 

“The level of commitment and generosity Tuck alumni demonstrate for each other, and the Tuck School, is unmatched in all of higher education,” says Interim Chief Advancement Officer Liz Nuñez. “It’s fundamental to who we are as a global Tuck community.” 

A lot of work goes into sustaining this success, from staff and volunteers alike. This includes effective peer-to-peer outreach by hundreds of enthusiastic TAG volunteers, who help galvanize support from their classmates. Among those volunteers, Charlie Plimpton T’77 has helped his class become one of the strongest performers in TAG participation each year. In FY25, they matched their graduation year by logging an impressive 77 percent participation rate, continuing a nearly 50-year run of outstanding TAG support from the class. Plimpton sees TAG as an expression of the profound connection alumni feel toward Tuck and each other. 

“It’s not about the amount you give,” he says. “It’s about standing side-by-side with your class and seeing what you can accomplish together. What I’ve consistently seen is alumni want to be counted; they want to ring the bell and be a part of that.” 

Plimpton and his fellow T’77 TAG volunteers are in frequent contact with their classmates throughout the year, with the primary goal of strengthening relationships and staying connected. The most dominant topic of conversation recently has been the class’s upcoming 50th reunion in 2027. 

“The message has been let’s get together and celebrate,” says Plimpton. “If we’re engaged and committed to showing up for each other as a class, TAG participation tends to follow.” 

Just as TAG’s success depends on the strength of the alumni network, Tuck likewise depends on TAG to deliver a transformative education. Alumni gifts to TAG, of all sizes, create a collective impact that is deeply felt across the school: 

Last year, TAG-enabled investments in AI helped Tuck become the first U.S. business school to strike a licensing agreement with OpenAI to make its ChatGPT Edu product available to all students, faculty, and staff. Within the curriculum, TAG also supports the creation of at least 15-20 new elective courses each year with AI and its implications surfacing in almost every Tuck class. 

“There is not one aspect of the Tuck experience that TAG doesn’t touch in some way,” says Nuñez. “From Admitted Student Weekend to Investiture, and beyond, the Tuck MBA journey is made possible through TAG support.” 

An astounding 50 percent of all alumni who made a TAG gift last fiscal year were “perfect givers”—members of the Tuck Evergreen Society who have made a gift every year since graduation. One of those perfect givers is Caroline Wells T’20 who sees her TAG participation as a way to pay her Tuck experience forward. 

“I’m a big believer in the idea that ‘to whom much is given, much is expected,’” says Wells. “I cannot overstate the impact my Tuck experience has had on me as a person and a professional, and part of the way I live that philosophy is by giving back to Tuck.” 

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