It's about planting the seed, priming the pump, getting in on the ground floor. Harvard's Senior Gift is small compared to the University's $2.1 billion Capital Campaign in the amount of donors and money it brings in.

Its leaders say senior gift is less about money now and more about creating a habit of giving that will pay off when today's graduates are tomorrow's self-made philanthropists.

But apparently Harvard is in the habit of betting a little bit more on some seniors.

And in order to find those seniors willing to give far more than the $10 minimum, it employs a committee presided over by, among others, the president of the Porcellian Club, willing to work through elite networks which the College normally spends four years ignoring.

The Leadership Gift Committee (LGC) is far from improper under College rules, but it is not publicly advertised and appears nowhere in the training materials for senior gift solicitors. It is, however, open to anyone--along with the cocktail party in New York which it offers as a reward for a $250 gift.

And thus in the shadows of the senior gift this program creates an impression that the College is embarrassed of one of its most potentially productive pump-priming methods.

Soliciting Gifts

The senior gift works publicly through House representatives, who ask for a $10 minimum gift from seniors. This year's goal for senior participation was set at 70 percent, and though it stands now at only 58 this is a vast improvement over last year's 33 percent.

According to Jonathan C. Locker '99, one of two student chairs of the Senior Gift Committee (SGC), the SGC's purpose "is to teach students about unrestricted giving and the importance of philanthropy at Harvard and beyond."

The Leadership Gift Committee (LGC) is a small subcommittee under the auspices of the SGC dedicated to soliciting donations of more than $250, the benchmark for the "leadership gift," from members of the senior class.

According to Katheryn K. Hogan, a development associate and head of the senior gift, the LGC has been around for more than 20 years and was started by students.

The LGC solicitors are able to choose who they want to approach.

LGC members select individuals who they are comfortable soliciting, says SGC Co-chair Ann E. Schneider '99.

"We meet together as a committee to see who would be best equipped to speak with certain people," says Lauren S. Charno '99.

This often means that those with famous last names, wealthy students and more Harvard-spirited seniors are singled out for LGC solicitation.