Dec. 1, 2018

Each April our beloved mascot, Rocky D. Bull, celebrates his birthday during USF Week. This year the birthday bull made history by sharing the spotlight with the inaugural USF Giving Day to promote a cause very close to his heart – student success.

Giving Day 2018 encouraged alumni, parents, friends, faculty and staff to make a gift of any size to enhance the USF Foundation Endowed Scholarship, which supports undergraduate and graduate students on all three campuses.

The entire campus took part in the festivities – decorating offices, handing out birthday cake, and wishing Rocky a very happy birthday on social media – all in an effort to raise awareness about the need for philanthropic support and spread the word about USF Giving Day. Hundreds of students participated too, expressing their gratitude through thank-you notes that were mailed to Giving Day donors.

The first Giving Day attracted many new donors to support student success at USF and set a record for the most online gifts made in one day in the university’s history! We look forward to celebrating Rocky’s birthday again next year as part of Giving Day 2019, creating a new tradition of giving at the University of South Florida.