Giving Blueday, the university’s 24-hour celebration of giving, will take place in the spring this year. On March 10, the university will encourage donors around the world to give to the programs and causes they care most about at U-M.
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Donors can visit the Giving Blueday website to find causes and make donations, view real-time progress, read about the impact of Giving Blueday, and more.
This year, the university hopes to increase donor participation on Giving Blueday.
During the last year, the COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for students, families and the university programs they rely on, and philanthropic support has helped U-M address them.
Donations made on Giving Blueday can help support COVID-19 relief efforts, libraries, museums, performing arts, student organizations, research and more.
“This year challenged us all like never before. Thanks to the generosity of the Michigan community, we’ve been able to serve our important public missions of education, research, and patient care through strength and resilience,” said Tom Baird, vice president for development.
“On Giving Blueday, the extended Michigan community can demonstrate the incredible impact we can have when we unite in support of the programs and causes we care about most.”
Each Giving Blueday, donors make gifts in support of students, organizations and programs across all three U-M campuses and Michigan Medicine. During Giving Blueday 2019, donors made more than 15,000 gifts in 24 hours, raising more than $4.2 million and providing key funding across the university, including support for more than 160 student organizations.
Challenges and matching funds encourage participation. People who share the Giving Blueday video and use the hashtag #GivingBlueday between now and March 10 will be entered into a drawing, with one person randomly selected to receive $1,000 for the fund of their choice. During Giving Blueday, daylong and hourly challenges and matching funds will be available for students, first-time donors, faculty and staff, and more.
Donors can give to the highest priorities of the Ann Arbor, Dearborn or Flint campuses. For example, donors to the Maize and Blue Cupboard can help support Ann Arbor’s on-campus food pantry that serves students experiencing food insecurity, which has increased since the start of the pandemic.
Since it began in 2014, Giving Blueday has evolved into an important vehicle for developing fundraising skills and instilling a culture of philanthropy in students, with student participation growing every year.
This year, hundreds of student organizations — from the Michigan Aeronautical Science Association and the Club Cycling team, to The Detroit Partnership — will be raising funds for their causes.
