The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will hold Giving Day 2021 on Thursday, March 18, to encourage friends of the university, employees, alumni, and students to come together to make a difference at UA Little Rock. 

“Giving Days have become increasingly popular for many colleges and universities,” said Samantha Wiley, director of annual giving. “UA Little Rock’s Giving Day is special because our students are unlike students from any surrounding schools. We know that 72 percent of our students work, and Giving Day provides us an opportunity to produce additional financial assistance to help them acquire their degree. I look forward to seeing our alumni and friends’ generosity as we strive to enhance student success.”

Giving Day 2021 will provide an opportunity for the UA Little Rock community to donate to a wide variety of causes ranging from providing emergency scholarships for students to new equipment for Ottenheimer Library and campus laboratories to supporting programs like the Academy for Teaching and Learning Excellence, which provides excellent training opportunities for faculty members.

“UA Little Rock has a goal of acquiring 100 new, first-time donors during Giving Day,” Wiley said. “We hope that this Giving Day will inspire alumni and friends from all over to come together to support our students and some of the university’s most critical needs in student scholarships, program excellence, and learning environment.”

Your donations will go even further through a variety of dollar-for-dollar matches. An anonymous donor will match up to $1,000 for the Allen Ward Scholarship, which benefits students majoring in speech communication. Julie Brown, a 1998 graduate of UA Little Rock, will also match any gift dollar-for-dollar up to $15,000.

“Every student deserves the chance to go to college and graduate without the burden of a large student loan,” Brown said. “I’m matching donations up to $15,000 in the hope that other Arkansans will help students earn an affordable college degree at UA Little Rock.”

The UA Little Rock Foundation Fund Board members have pledged to donate $16,000 to student scholarships once 50 donors meet the board’s challenge to donate to the UA Little Rock Annual Fund.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, many UA Little Rock students are facing new and overwhelming challenges. Please visit the UA Little Rock Giving Day website to step up in an extraordinary way.

“After I graduate, I plan to teach. I want to be one of the best teachers by building relationships with my students and their parents,” said UA Little Rock student Rikae Gill. “Support from donors means a great deal to me, and I am hopeful for the opportunity to help students achieve their goals just as you have helped me.”