Fundi n g t h e Fu t ur e
The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts is home to nearly 16,000 undergraduates, pursuing studies in over 70 different programs and departments. These students are the key to Michigan’s mission and purpose, an integral part of the academic community, a source of intellectual vitality and inspiration, and the University’s living legacy in the larger world. These are the citizens and professionals of tomorrow. The men and women who will construct the social and physical infrastructure, educate future generations, shape public policy, make new discoveries in every realm, and continue the important work of building human society. Michigan’s ability to attract and retain high-achieving students is essential to its continuing success and leadership. However, with each passing year and each inevitable increase in tuition and living costs, the competition for students among America’s leading universities becomes more aggressive and more costly. For many undergraduates, confronted with the prospect of daunting loans, financial aid has become the deciding factor in their choice of colleges. And in this domain, LSA lags far behind its chief competitors.
Making the Difference
Endowed Scholarship Opportunities
The need for scholarship funds will never diminish. Even as Michigan and other universities undergo record budget cuts in an effort to mitigate tuition increases, a college education will remain an expensive investment for many families. Access to the world-class faculty and resources in LSA and across the entire UM campus can be ensured through increased funds for endowed scholarships. Named Endowed Scholarship Funds Through a named endowment, donors may create a lasting scholarship fund that will support a Michigan education for undergraduates in perpetuity. Endowments of $1,000,000 or greater can create a community of named
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Fundi n g t h e Fu t ur e
scholars; endowed gifts of $500,000 can fund the educational costs or total costs for multiple in-state students or a combination of residential and nonresidential students; and endowments of $200,000 and $400,000 will fund one in-state and out-of-state student respectively. Scholarship Investment Fund Endowment gifts from $25,000 to $150,000 will provide recruitment and retention scholarship support to both resident and non-resident students and may be allocated to either the LSA Fund for Merit-based Student Support or the LSA Fund for Need-based Student Support, depending on donor preference. Income from this central endowment will be dispersed each year depending on areas of greatest need ensuring that each dollar is spent in the best interest of LSA students. These funds may be designated for partial tuition payment, study abroad, internships and/or research projects. Donors will be notified about how their gifts have had an impact with specific examples from students who have received support from these funds.
Expendable Scholarship Opportunities
From the heights of unprecedented giving to undergraduate support to the lows of the recent economic downturn, the impact of readily available financial aid to talented LSA undergraduates is abundantly clear. Over the past decade, thousands of students have benefitted from gifts of all sizes, allowing them to learn at a university overseas for a semester, to stay in school during difficult family times, or to pursue a community project or internship to further their education through engagement opportunities. LSA Emergency Student Aid Fund Since the economic downtown started in 2008, LSA has witnessed a tremendous increase in the number of students requiring scholarship assistance and financial aid. Their stories are the same as those being told on the nightly news: Financing being denied, grandparents who were helping with tuition now unable to afford to do so, and parents losing jobs and thus losing the means to help support their children – our students. Gifts of $25,000 might fund tuition for an out-of-state student whose parents have recently lost their home, and $10,000 could cover in-state tuition for a student whose parent has lost his or her job in Michigan. Funds are urgently needed to help allow current students to stay in LSA and to lessen their burdens in these trying times.
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Fundi n g t h e Fu t ur e
Named Expendable Scholarship Fund An expendable gift of $40,000 over four years will pay for the annual educational costs of one resident student while an expendable of $80,000 will support the annual educational costs of one non-resident student. Gifts may be allocated to either the LSA Fund for Merit-based Student Support or the LSA Fund for Need-based Student Support, depending on donor preference. Expendable Funds for Student Support The College maintains the LSA Fund for Merit-based Student Support and the LSA Fund for Need-based Student Support to help defray the costs of a Michigan education on a year-to-year basis. Gifts of all sizes can make a significant difference: Indeed, over a recent eight-year span, the College was able to fund nearly five times as many students per year due to overwhelming participation from generous alumni and friends contributing at all levels. Funds can be combined to provide tuition support, research fellowships, or other educational costs.
Contact Info
LSA Development, Marketing & Communications Suite 5000 500 S. State Street Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1382 p.734.615.6333 f.734.615.3061 www.lsa.umich.edu
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