Calvin College has been honored by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) with two prestigious fundraising awards.

It won a 2006 CASE-WealthEngine Award for Educational Fund Raising for overall performance and a second award for overall improvement.

Calvin was one of only four schools to win awards in both categories in 2006.

It also was one of 27 four-year college or university winners in the overall performance category and one of 18 four-year college or university winners in overall improvement.

Among the other state schools named as winners in the overall performance category were Lake Michigan College (a two-year institution) and the University of Michigan. Calvin was the only state school honored in the overall improvement category.

Calvin vice president for advancement Dirk Pruis says Calvin's connections to the local community and its national Christian constituency each play a big role in the recent award.

"West Michigan," Pruis says, "is a very generous community. Philanthropy runs deep here. In addition, our constituents, both here in West Michigan and nationally, are tremendously generous and supportive of Christian education at all levels. I know we work hard (at Calvin) in our fundraising to communicate our mission and impact on the community and more broadly. But I also know that being part of a supportive community helps us a great deal in our work."

Colleges and universities around the world were eligible for the 2006 awards. Schools are not allowed to apply for the honor; rather CASE selects honorees annually from among the 1,246 of colleges and universities which submit data to the Council for Aid to Education's Voluntary Support of Education survey.

CASE convenes a panel of judges from the ranks of senior development professionals and CASE volunteers with all the judging both blind and data-driven.