Knox held its first-ever #KnoxProud Day on Thursday, June 13, featuring social media shenanigans and alumni events in 14 U.S. cities. It was a day to celebrate—and a day to give. More than 1,650 donors made a gift to the Knox Fund during the 24-hour period, earning $174,000 in challenge gifts and raising nearly half a million dollars to support current students. You make us #KnoxProud.

Two steps forward, one step back: Following recent changes to Knox’s academic program—including the introduction of a bachelor of science degree and the addition of a major in business and management—the number of applications for the 2019–2020 academic year rose 22 percent. The largest areas of growth were among students with an interest in art (up 85 percent), STEM (up 31 percent), and business (up 27 percent). With a highly competitive environment for a decreasing number of college-bound students, however, the increase unfortunately didn’t translate into a larger incoming class. Enrollment for fall 2019 will be smaller than last year’s.

Perhaps you remember Knox’s steam tunnels from the spring 2017 issue, when a broken pipe inadvertently cooked the ground (and utility lines) outside Old Main? Here’s an update from the rest of the tunnel network: Those aging pipes are now losing 15,000 gallons of water a day (up to 40,000 gallons in extreme cold), adding about $200,000 to Knox’s utility bills each year. This winter, the Board of Trustees approved funding to begin replacing the entire system, which provides heat to about 85 percent of campus. The price tag: up to $2.5 million. The first phase of construction is taking place during summer 2019, with a second phase next summer.