The 2nd annual “Boost the ‘Cuse” day of giving was held on Thursday, October 25, and generated nearly $1.6 million in donations to Syracuse University from alumni, parents, faculty, staff, students and friends.
The Dean’s Fund at the School of Information Studies (iSchool) received $42,165 from 138 generous donors.
An online, crowd-funding-style program, Boost the ‘Cuse allowed donors to choose from a range of schools, colleges, and initiatives at Syracuse to support. Scholarships, programs, research, facilities, technology, and athletics were all represented on platform.
At the iSchool, the Dean’s Fund helps to support many parts of the student experience, including:
• Student immersion programs, the iSchool’s credit-bearing experiential learning offerings that study the intersection of business, technology, and creativity in industries such as startups, finance, consulting, and more;
• Undergraduate and graduate scholarships and awards;
• Student clubs, STEM networking, and student-based research in labs like NEXIS (New Explorations in Information Science);
• Selected faculty research projects.
“I am so proud and grateful for the support of our alumni, students, parents, faculty, staff, and friends yesterday during Boost the ‘Cuse,” said Julie Walas, the iSchool’s Director of Student and Alumni Engagement. “We have a very committed and involved campus and alumni network that helped to amplify the campaign and share our call for donations, and I was thrilled to see them come together and promote this fundraising opportunity for the iSchool.”
Participation this year in Boost the ‘Cuse for the iSchool Dean’s Fund surpassed last year, with a nearly 600% increase in the number of gifts made in support of iSchool initiatives. Overall donors for Boost the ‘Cuse also increased, from 3,997 to 4,226.