1819 Circle Member Profile
Ralph Jones1819 Circle Member Profile:
Ralph Jones ’52

Ralph Jones ’52 launched a career in philanthropy before he was old enough to drive. Passing around an old ice cream carton, he collected coins for the Red Cross from his third-grade classmates. Those early beginnings foreshadowed a long tenure in higher education fundraising, a calling that gives him a unique perspective on the importance of alumni engagement.

“My father (Robert A. Jones, ‘22) was very influential, and I would watch him make passionate speeches to raise money for the YMCA at the local theater before the movies began.” Ralph was on the receiving end when he went to the Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire — during his first two years, he attended on a full scholarship.

Ralph, an admitted “grade-grubber,” almost went to Princeton. But he was looking for a home where community spirit was integral to the academic experience, where he could compete with his classmates for top grades while simultaneously building strong relationships. “I knew that Colgate was it,” he remembers.

Ralph was impressed with the quality of education and the commitment of the faculty from the very beginning. After receiving the class-high B+ on a modern European history paper, Ralph stopped to chat with the instructor. “I was expecting him to say ‘great job’, but his response was: ‘You could do better.’ Colgate has always employed professors who honestly want their students to excel.”

After graduation, Ralph attended Harvard Law School then took a position at a law firm in Rochester, NY. He developed a passion for estate planning and was recruited to work for Cornell University’s fundraising team. He later returned to his Colgate family and worked in the development office. After Colgate, Ralph held fundraising positions at Hobart & William Smith, Georgetown, and Ithaca College.

Speaking about the impact of fundraising, Ralph points to the lights on the football field. “Before we raised money for those lights, the coaches would have to line up their cars and turn their headlights on so that the football players could practice after dark.”

While he has many philanthropic priorities, Ralph has made 54 gifts to Colgate since graduating in 1952. He has supported the Maroon Council, the Colgate Athletic Council, swimming and diving, the unrestricted annual fund, and more. Ralph has also put Colgate in his will.

“Tuition alone doesn't cover Colgate’s budget. Alumni support provides the funds to create a diverse school – a better school — and to do something wonderful.”
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