Ending the Year with Generosity
There is a brisk chill in the Davis air as our students scurry around campus preparing for finals. Soon many of our students will be heading home to their loved ones, like you, for winter break. It’s a wonderful time of year that provides a moment to reflect on what’s important in our lives and to help those less fortunate.
If you’re looking to make an end-of-the-year donation, I have a few suggestions on how you and your family can make a big and lasting impact on people’s lives.
Since pediatric patients don’t get holidays off from treatment, why not bring the celebration to them? Now through Dec. 24, you can “shop” from the comfort of your couch, providing gifts for UC Davis Children’s Hospital kids and families through their annual Virtual Holiday Toy Drive.
Another great resource to support this time of year is the Aggie Compass Basic Needs Center and the Student Pantry. Aggie Compass connects students with housing, financial assistance, mental health counseling and more, while The Pantry offers food and toiletries.
Finally, if you’re looking to make a profound impact on campus as a parent, I highly recommend donating to the Parents Fund. This fund is unrestricted, meaning it allows Chancellor May to support areas of greatest need in ways that advance UC Davis research and ensure an outstanding education for all students.
The Parent Fund also provides consistent support for the Chancellor’s Fellows awards, which go to outstanding early career faculty to seed their pioneering work. They also offer undergraduates the chance to participate in groundbreaking research. For many students, it’s the experience of a lifetime and truly shapes career options after graduation.
Another Parents Fund-supported program, the Chancellor’s Achievement Awards, supports high-performing California students from marginalized socioeconomic backgrounds in pursuit of their education. Nearly all recipients are part of the 42 percent of our undergraduates who are first generation to college. These awards are one reason UC Davis is widely recognized for advancing social mobility.
Parent support plays a significant role at UC Davis—benefitting not only your own student, but also contributing to our research, teaching, and the well-being of the entire student body.
I hope you and your families have a peaceful and fulfilling holiday season. And a big congratulations to those of you whose students are graduating this month! Go Ags!
For more information about how parent giving makes a difference in students’ lives, contact Cari DuBois-Wright, associate director of development in Parent Giving, at caduboiswright@ucdavis.edu, 510-388-3605, Cari can help facilitate your giving. You can visit our Parents Fund website here as well as learn more about our Family Fellows.