The Class of 2013 Fund recently hit 500 participants, marking the first time a class fund has hit the milestone so early in the year.

“We are extremely excited,” Jessica Douglass (MSB ’13), co-chair of the class fund board, said. “It speaks to the dedication and enthusiasm toward philanthropy that the entire class fund board and our class in general have.”

The board, led by co-chairs Douglass and Christina Dupre (SFS ’13), is composed of four chairs — events, marketing, stewardship and outreach.

Douglass attributed the board’s success to the various events held through the fall semester.

“In previous years, most boards have upped their efforts in the second part of the year, but we wanted to hit the ground running this fall,” Douglass said. “We’ve had a few events in September and October to get out the message about the class fund.”

Two events in particular were a cowboys-and-aliens-themed event at Old Glory Bar-B-Que during Senior Disorientation and a famous-couples-themed party at local bar George during Halloween.

“These events really got people getting excited about the fund,” Douglass said. “It really highlights the message that these seniors are giving back to Georgetown just as Georgetown has given back to them all four years.”

Dupre agreed, but she also pointed to the board’s teamwork.

“We’re a very cohesive group, and we have a very good marketing team,” Dupre said. “In addition, we’re a very diverse group, so we can reach out to our own networks and friends to get the word out.”

The 500 participants, which represents about 30 percent of the graduating class,, are encouraging for the board’s year-end goal, Douglass said.

“Our goal is 85 percent participation, and seeing how we’re at 30 percent already, we’re well on our way,” Douglass said.

Looking forward, the board has future events planned for the senior class, including a Nov. 20 event called “500 Reasons to Say Thanks.”

“As people leave for Thanksgiving, we’ll be giving out hot chocolate and some snacks,” Dupre said. “We’ll have a huge wall and post-its, and people will be able to write down reasons they are thankful to Georgetown. It’ll be a huge collage.”

The statements will also be released through social media.

Douglass encouraged seniors to donate to the class fund, which will support the Campaign for Georgetown and its 1789 Scholarship Imperative, which funds undergraduate scholarships.

Dupre agreed, saying that raising awareness about the importance of donations is the board’s main goal.

“We want to make people understand that while Georgetown has money and tuition is very high, scholarships really come from donations,” Dupre said. “People don’t always know that, but we want to stress that the money that people donate goes towards scholarships and rebuilding the school. The money is going to legitimate causes, and Georgetown doesn’t have infinite money.”