
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, August 28, 1995                   TAG: 9508280097
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press|
DATELINE: LYNCHBURG                                LENGTH: Medium

RANDOLPH-MACON WOMEN BACK ALMA MATER BEYOND GRADUATION

Graduates of Randolph-Macon Woman's College think a lot of their alma mater, enough so that the school regularly ranks in the top 25 nationally in giving by alumni.

For the last few years, the college has been one of the leaders in the category of alumni giving per student. In 1993-94, Randolph-Macon led the nation.

The school's alumnae contributed $8.6 million, or about $11,783 for each of the 738 students enrolled for the 1993-94 school year.

``Our ranking is an indication of how strongly our alumnae feel about the benefits of a Randolph-Macon Woman's College education,'' President Kathleen Bowman said.

Alumnae of women's colleges are among the most generous when it comes to contributing to their schools. Joining Randolph-Macon in the top 25 in alumni giving per student were nearby Sweet Briar College; Bryn Mawr College in Bryn Mawr, Pa.; Wells College in Aurora, N.Y.; Mount Holyoke College in South Handley, Mass.; Wellesley College in Wellesley, Mass.; and Smith College in Northampton, Mass. Washington and Lee University in Lexington also ranked among the top schools.

``It's a good barometer of alumnae satisfaction,'' said James C. Kughn Jr., Randolph-Macon vice president for development and public relations. ``We have alumnae making $100,000, $500,000, $1million commitments.''

The figures were compiled by the New York-based Council for Aid to Education and have been widely circulated by the schools.

The equation - determined by dividing the alumni giving that year by the student body - can be skewed by big bequests at small schools. Other figures also can be considered, such as total giving, alumni giving and the size of endowments.

Mitchell Moore, Sweet Briar's vice president for development, said the tendency of women to leave estates to their alma maters may be the reason the figures are so skewed.

``The husband gives during his lifetime,'' Moore said. ``The husband dies [and] leaves it to his wife. ... So colleges end up with multimillion-dollar estates.''

by CNB