Elon University will celebrate its 126th birthday Tuesday with the largest alumni involvement in university history. About 60 Elon students, faculty and staff and over 700 alumni volunteers worldwide have been working to make Elon Day a success.

“President Lambert wants this to be the single largest day of giving in our history,” said John Barnhill, assistant vice president of university advancement. Lambert will host a global College Coffee event Tuesday morning that will be live streamed worldwide.

Last year 1,013 donors gifted a total of $116,867 to Elon. Barnhill said Elon hopes to double, if not exceed, the amount of donors this year.

“So far, [Elon Day] has been the most coordinated effort to support the university,” Barnhill said.

Elon Day committees have been working to engage more than just students, faculty and staff. Alumni engagement is making a huge impact this year. At least 19 regional Elon Day events hosted by alumni chapter leaders are scheduled to take place around the world on Tuesday, Barnhill said.

Elon Day began in 2014 as a quasi-centennial celebration of Elon’s Founder’s Day. Last year’s event was put together quickly and much less strategically than this year’s, Barnhill said.

Major changes include a champagne toast for members of the senior class, an increase in the number of staff on the planning team and involvement from the senior class giving committee and the student-alumni council.

In addition, Barnhill said, an outreach program called “Four for Elon” was created this year to encourage donations in a more personal manner. Each alumni volunteer has been asked to reach out to four friends who haven’t made their gift to Elon.

“We’re hoping peer-to-peer outreach is going to make a bigger difference than sending a postcard,” Barnhill said.

Social media also plays a key role in Elon Day. A group of social media ambassadors have been working to get people involved on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Last year, Barnhill said, #ElonDay was a nationwide trending topic on Twitter.

“We’re really counting on the social media aspect,” Barnhill said. “With so many young alums it’s the way we communicate today.”

The only other times Elon giving is so high, Barnhill said, is at the end of the fiscal year and the end of the academic year. Elon Day is by far the biggest day of the year for donations, he said.

“When you talk to almost every single alumni, the word love comes up,” Barnhill said. “So why would we be surprised that they would want to be a part of Elon Day?”