NEW YORK CITY ? Donors gave an all-time record of at least $25.6 billion to American colleges and universities in 2005, an increase of 4.9 percent over the year before, thanks largely to greater generosity from alumni and foundations.

Stanford raised $603.6 million, more than any other university last year, and the second-highest total ever behind Harvard’s $683 million in 2001, according to the annual survey released Thursday by the Council for Aid to Education.

Second was the University of Wisconsin-Madison, whose $595.2 million included a $296 million foundation grant awarded to its medical school following the conversion of Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Wisconsin to a for-profit company.

Wisconsin was followed by Harvard ($589.9 million), the University of Pennsylvania ($394.3 million) and Cornell ($353.9 million). The top 10 schools alone accounted for about half the national growth.

Gift revenue at Kansas University Endowment Association reached $86.4 million in 2005.