As Columbia prepares for President and CEO Shantay Bolton’s investiture next Thursday, the college will not move forward with the Persistence Scholarship gala that was previously scheduled for the same evening.

College officials said the decision to pause the annual fundraising event this academic year is part of a broader effort to restructure philanthropic strategy under Bolton’s administration, which created the Renaissance Innovation for Student Excellence Fund, or RISE Fund, as a discretionary fund guided by Columbia’s “Renaissance Rising” strategic plan, outlining its academic, financial and enrollment priorities.

“Columbia College Chicago made a strategic decision to pause hosting a fall/spring gala this year to ensure we are fully positioned to deliver the greatest possible impact when we bring our community together for a major fundraising celebration,” Lambrini Lukidis, associate vice president of Strategic Communications and External Relations, told the Chronicle in an email.

The annual gala, typically held in December, raises funds to support Persistence Scholarships, which are awarded to students who face financial challenges that put them at risk of not finishing college. 

Started in 2022 under former President and CEO Kwang-Wu Kim, the gala brought together Columbia faculty, staff and students across several different disciplines to celebrate the value of creative work.

On October 9, the college sent a “save-the-date” announcing the gala would be held the evening of March 5, following the investiture ceremony for Bolton, who took office in July.

An investiture ceremony is a medieval custom held at colleges and universities to welcome a new president. For previous presidents, Columbia has held inaugural events. In 2013, Kim’s inauguration was held at the Field Museum.

Bolton’s investiture will begin at 10 a.m. on March 5 at the Student Center, where the galas have also been held. It will be followed by a reception, where ticketed guests can engage with activities and student work as they have been able to do at past galas. In previous years, students in the “Events Management Practicum” course planned and oversaw the galas, which showcased student and alumni work with musical performances, fashion exhibitions and live art. 

In 2022, the first gala raised $750,000. Actor and director Robert Townsend, a Columbia alum, was presented with the college’s first Columbia Icon Award. The second gala in 2023 also raised more than $700,000 for scholarships awarded to 62 students.

Last year, the gala raised over $640,000 for Persistence Scholarships to be awarded beginning in Fall 2025, according to the college. 

Persistence scholarships were still awarded this academic year despite the gala not being held, the college said.

“The college’s ultimate goal is to bolster its philanthropic operations and strategy across the board to ensure further support for President Bolton’s strategic priorities, namely those tied to student success,” Lukidis said.“This is why the RISE Fund was created and why it will be promoted throughout the Investiture.”

According to the donation page on Columbia’s Development and Alumni Relations website, the RISE Fund “provides seed funding for innovative programs at the intersection of art, AI, and emerging technologies; supports faculty and student research; builds strategic partnerships with industry and community organizations; and creates targeted scholarships that prepare students to lead the creative industries of tomorrow.” 

The college invited past gala supporters to the investiture. Lukidis also said that the college is planning a larger fundraising event for the fall.

Board of Trustees President John M. Holmes was co-chair of the previous galas. Holmes is the president and CEO of AAR Corp., one of the event’s main sponsors in the past.

Holmes did not respond to multiple requests for comment. At the ceremony last year, he told the Chronicle that he looked forward to “seeing the event grow and develop each year.”

“For me, the main event of the show are the student activations. And, you know, I’d love to have a three-hour reception because there’s just so much going on,” Holmes said.

Bolton has publicly framed the investiture as a celebration of the broader campus community.

“An investiture is a moment when we officially mark the beginning of a presidency, but more importantly, it’s a celebration of you: our students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners who make Columbia such a special creative home,” Bolton said in an Instagram reel posted Feb. 19.

Latino Alliance executive board member Oshun Cortez said they don’t think it is a “good idea” to combine the college’s fundraising efforts with the investiture ceremony.

“It seems more of a focus towards the president,” said Cortez, a sophomore film and television major.

Student Government Association President Jenna Davis said that SGA was not involved in the decision to cancel the gala this spring. 

“I will say that when this topic of it got brought up to me, I was hesitant, but then understood it is taking on a different form,” she said.

Davis said that she was “not shocked” that the gala would not be held, but trusts the new administration’s fundraising plan.

“I have trust in President Bolton that, no matter what form of the ‘gala’ we have, she has the student’s best interest in front of mind,” she said.

Cortez said that they think the college’s fundraising efforts should primarily focus on the students who rely on Persistence Scholarships.

“I think the main focus should be on students and whether they should be able to return again,” Cortez said.

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