President's Club is now the 1889 Society
The 1889 Society is focused on providing a dependable source of flexible annual support to the University president by maximizing unrestricted giving to a broad selection of areas across campus. The 1889 Society supports the core priorities of the University – Student Success, Systemic Excellence, Healthy Communities, and Economic and Community Development - and the ability to seize important opportunities as they arise. Gifts toward the 1889 Society directly support student success and opportunity, a major theme in Changing Worlds: The Campaign for UNM, an eight-year, $675 million fundraising effort.
Like the President’s Club before it, the 1889 Society is comprised of influential donors intent on making a difference at the University. These donors are integral to helping students seize great opportunities. Some of the programs previously supported by these funds are as follows:
The Freshman Learning Communities has led to dramatic improvements in the success rates of first-year students and is now aself-sufficient program thanks to early support. In the Congressional Internship Program, students intern in the Washington, D.C. offices of New Mexico’s five-member congressional delegation for a whole semester. International study programs are widely known to be among the most effective and transformative of educational experiences. The UNM Study Abroad Program is strongly associated with academic success and career development in today’s global environment. The Research Service Learning Program pulls together members of the community and UNM faculty, staff and students to design and implement community-based research and provides undergraduates an opportunity to learn in a “hands-on” environment. In 2009, five students worked in Washington, D.C. as the initial group of University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service interns, working alongside professional journalists from around the world. The Conexiones Veracruz program immerses students into the mysteries of Olmec culture through a brief but intense study abroad program over the summer.
The flexibility to focus funds on the most prevailing student needs as they arise is the greatest distinction of the 1889 Society. Over the years, these funds have supported important initiatives that require a flexible and timely response. The Stay a Lobo program is a perfect example of this responsiveness. The Stay a Lobo fund provides emergency grants to keep students from dropping out, and was born as a result of the current economic climate.
As the University strives to fulfill its role as a leader in education and economic development in New Mexico, additional opportunities will arise. Support of 1889 Society members is vital to that process, and they are part of an influential community team that changes worlds.
For more information, please contact Willie Romero, (505) 277-2951, Willie.Romero@unmfund.org.
