The community we built: Why the Class of 2026 is giving back
When we think about what we will carry with us after Skidmore, it’s easy to point to the big moments — leadership roles, milestones, the experiences that mark our growth. But when I reflect on our time here with classmates like David Aybar ’26, co-chair of the Senior Gift Committee, we keep coming back to something quieter: the everyday moments that built our community.
For David, that understanding started long before he arrived on campus. Skidmore was already part of his family’s story. His mother, Gloribel Cruz ’98 is an alumna and built a foundation for her career here, and Skidmore is where David sought to challenge himself, sharpen his own critical thinking skills, and grow with intention.
For me, arriving at Skidmore as a first-generation student from Harlem, New York, came with a different kind of weight — the pressure to succeed as I grew into the leader I knew I could become. What I didn’t realize at the time was that belonging wouldn’t come all at once. It would be built slowly, through the people I met, the spaces I stepped into, and the moments where I chose to show up, even when I wasn’t sure I was ready.
Skidmore offered me, Djeneba Sanogo '26 (standing in center), the mentorship, leadership opportunities, and sense of belonging that helped me grow into who I am today. Through the support of this community, I found my voice and my path, and I want to help ensure future students have access to the same transformative experiences.
That idea, of showing up, is something David and I — and indeed our entire class — share.
Some of our most meaningful memories aren’t tied to formal titles or structured events but to the spaces in between. Those moments remind us that Skidmore isn’t held together by institutions alone, but by the way each of us continues to show up for one another.
David once shared that some of his favorite moments on campus are simple ones. Time spent in the dining hall working alongside friends. Conversations that begin with coursework and drift into deeper questions of life. Those everyday interactions are where community becomes real. After all, it’s the people who make our Skidmore education personal and an entire community invested in us who have worked to help all of us thrive.
Whether it’s welcoming a new member to a club, encouraging a teammate after a difficult practice, supporting a peer in a difficult moment, or advocating for classmates through the Student Government Association, we’ve all seen how community is built through consistency. It’s built in the small decisions to create space for others, to encourage someone to step into leadership, or simply to be present.
Over time, those small moments begin to matter more than anything else.
That’s what makes the Senior Class Gift so meaningful.
For my Senior Gift co-chair, David Aybar '26, and me, community is at the heart of why we're giving back. “What has made Skidmore most meaningful to me is not simply the education I received, but the people who made that education personal — professors, administrators, mentors, and friends who truly care," David said. "That is what made Skidmore feel like home.”
Serving alongside an incredible Senior Gift Executive Committee including Lila Glanville ’26, Jazlin Chen ’26, Milo Flamenbaum ’26, Madelyn Besikof ’26, Kam Haq ’26, Julia Maguire ’26, Madison Situ ’26, Anna Barnes ’26, and Avery Mathis ’26 has given us the opportunity to think more intentionally about what it means to give back. Each of us has had a unique experience at Skidmore, but we are connected by the community we’ve built together.
Our class is continuing a Skidmore tradition: Senior Gift is an opportunity for us to make a first gift back and support the areas of Skidmore that we love and have shaped us during our time on campus.
Together, we’ve focused not just on fundraising, but on creating spaces where our class can come together one more time — through events like trivia nights, murder-mystery dinners, and moments that allow us to reconnect before we move on to our lives as Skidmore alumni.
As David shared, “Senior year is our class’s opportunity to collectively give back to the institution that shaped us. It is more than a fundraising effort. It is a statement of gratitude and belief in Skidmore’s future.”
We’ve come to see that giving back isn’t about an amount — it’s about participation. It’s about being part of something that extends beyond our individual experiences and honoring the professors who challenged us, the mentors who believed in us, the friends who supported us, and the spaces that have allowed us to grow.
For me, this experience has also shaped how I think about the future. Through my work with Senior Gift and my interest in philanthropy, I’ve begun to see giving as a way to bridge opportunity for others. For David, it’s a continuation of the values he was raised with, his family’s story, and, of course, his own aspirations for the future. Each member of our committee and our entire class has their own story.
In different ways, we’ve all come to the same realization: We arrived at Skidmore thinking about what each of us could gain. We leave thinking about what we can give.
Senior Gift Committee member Milo Flamenbaum ’26 (left) says he has enjoyed being involved in many aspects of the Skidmore community over the past four years, from “seeing the smiles and dancing at Big Show and Earth Day to building connections through the Student Events Council (SEC) and First-Year Orientation,” adding, “My time on the Senior Gift Committee has connected me more with my class, knowing I am helping keep our vibrant community going even after graduation.”
It’s about the collective impact of the Class of 2026 choosing to show up one more time for a place that has shaped us in ways we are still learning to understand. It’s about ensuring that the sense of community we experienced — in dining halls, classrooms, club meetings, athletics venues, and late-night conversations — continues for the students who will come after us.
If there’s one thing Skidmore has taught us, it’s that community doesn’t happen by accident. It is built, sustained, and carried forward by people who care enough to invest in it.
That’s what Senior Gift is all about.
