Several years ago, the College of Arts and Sciences leadership set out to create an endowed fund with the explicit purpose of funding best practices for student growth, supporting projects that foster excellence in education, scholarly or creative activity, community engagement, and service. Since the fund’s creation, numerous donors have given to the CAS Endowed Opportunity Fund and put the college within $9,000 of reaching the $100,000 goal.
This fund is a flexible resource that enhances the student and faculty experience by providing funding not appropriated in other portions of the college’s budget. In the past year, funds like these have assisted dozens of students and faculty in conducting such things as:
- Phone interviews on health information
- Research on fish populations impacted by the Hamilton Dam removal
- Payment for students to have academic work submitted for publication
- Assistance for students attending virtual conferences
- Helping a student to develop prototype signage in a Flint neighborhood to improve community connections
- Purchasing biological materials for use in lab research
- And more!
Dr. Cameron McLeman is the incoming chair of the Department of Mathematics and Applied Sciences and the Chairperson of the CAS Student Support Committee charged with raising funds for the project. Dr. McLeman is excited about the progress and hopes the goal might be reached by the end of June. When asked about the fund, he said, “This year we made the fund a priority for Giving Blueday and the community responded. This progress represents the coming together of students, faculty, staff, and the community to dedicate funds to support our students’ academic experience at UM-Flint. Closing the fiscal year by reaching our goal would show such a strong commitment to our faculty and students.”
At the College of Arts & Sciences, we pride ourselves on creating lifelong learners whose college experience outfits them with the skills necessary to succeed in their personal and professional lives. The skills gained by involvement in the types of projects supported by the Opportunity Fund are critical to that effort.