MONROE, LA – The University of Louisiana Monroe would like to thank faculty, staff, students, and community supporters for their help in exceeding the Giving Tuesday goal of $100,000. Due to the generosity of 159 donors, the 2022 Giving Tuesday campaign brought in an estimated total of $147,433.93.
"Exceeding the Giving Tuesday goals both in number of participants and financial gifts is truly rewarding as this success shows that people believe ULM changes lives,” said Susan Chappell, Executive Director of the ULM Foundation.
The 2022 Giving Tuesday campaign focused on three specific areas of need: Athletic Excellence, Faculty and Staff Excellence, and the Centennial Scholars Program.
Gifts designated for Athletic Excellence will help provide support for athletic scholarships, facilities improvements, and other program needs for ULM Warhawk Athletics.
Gifts designated for Faculty and Staff Excellence will help invest in ULM employees’ development, research, and opportunities to excel.
The Centennial Scholars Program, launched in 2021, provided a $500 scholarship to third graders in Ouachita Parish. These students will be included in the incoming freshman class of fall 2031, the centennial year of the University. The Centennial Scholars Program will steward these students, now fourth graders, until they reach college age, giving hope to children who may have never known a college degree was an option for their futures.
Giving Tuesday donors were also able to designate their gifts to many other areas of need including the ULM Alumni Association, Greek Life, and KEDM Public Radio. Many donors also chose the “My Passion” option, which allowed them to give to a program or scholarship fund that is most important to them.
The 2022 Giving Tuesday donations were bolstered by three $1,000 matches for specific programs. Alberta Green and ABG Professional Development Solutions offered a $1,000 match for gifts designated to The Sound of Today Marching Band. Anonymous $1,000 donations were also pledged for the Centennial Scholars Program, as well as Faculty and Staff Excellence. Each of these matches were funded in full because donors met the $1,000 threshold.
This year’s Giving Tuesday marked the 10th anniversary of this global generosity movement. Giving Tuesday was created in 2012 as a simple idea: a day that encourages people to do good. Over the past ten years, this idea has grown into a global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate, and celebrate generosity.
Chappell expressed the gratitude of the ULM Foundation by saying, “We’d like to say a huge ‘Thank You’ to all who participated and donors who designated matching gifts.”