Faculty & Staff Celebrate Success of Third Annual Red, White & True Effort

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Margaret Clark; Elizabeth Jordan, Red, White & True captain for the College of Education and Health Professions; and Fern Jones pose with their ice cream during the recent celebration event.

Faculty and staff members give their time and energy every single day to make the University of Arkansas the best it can be.  They mentor and prepare our students to make a difference in the world, coordinate programs that impact our campus and community and build and maintain our facilities to literally keep the university running.  So, it's not surprising that a record number of staff and faculty members also gave of their financial resources during the third annual Red, White & True campus philanthropy program, which ended June 30.

In the 2013 fiscal year, 1,494 current and retired employees made a gift to the university, for an overall participation rate of 31 percent.  That's 111 more donors than last year, and a notable 141 employees — nearly 10 percent of all donors — who made their very first gift to the YOU of A this year. Thirty-one percent is a new participation record for Red, White & True, which is even more impressive as the number of faculty and staff on campus continues to increase each year to keep up with enrollment growth.

Together, the group contributed $403,000 in 2013 with an additional $47,000 pledged to the university through payroll deductions.  Their gifts were designated to 233 different funds across campus, directly supporting the students, programs and research that faculty and staff work with every day. And, once again, small gifts really added up to make a big difference. This past year alone, gifts under $100 totaled more than $111,000!

Red, White & True co-chairs Cyndi Nance and Mike Johnson revealed these record-breaking results Aug. 15 during a celebration sponsored by the UARK Federal Credit Union. U of A employees past and present gathered at University House to hear the results of the 2013 effort, enjoy ice cream sundaes and take pictures with Razorback mascot Sue E.

"The U of A is a great place to work," said Johnson. "And the fact that you're willing to give part of your hard-earned salary back to the university speaks volumes about your pride in this institution and your passion for making a difference in the lives of others."

Angela Oxford, director of the Center for Community Engagement, joined the co-chairs in thanking faculty and staff members for their participation in the 2013 Red, White & True effort.

"I'm overwhelmed again and again with the support and generosity of our university community," said Angela. "The gifts through the Red, White and True program will help us continue to meet the needs of students and staff through the work of the Full Circle Campus Food Pantry and bring mentoring to the girls of the Arkansas Delta through Dream B.I.G.  We want to thank our university community for supporting the programming of the Volunteer Action Center!"

"I want to add my thanks to you all for investing your time and resources in the University of Arkansas and in the lives of all those it touches and transforms," said Nance. "Whether you chose to support student scholarships, faculty research, campuswide programs like KUAF or the Staff Senate Scholarship or your own college, school or department, your gift is making a difference for our beloved university."

To see pictures from the event or to find out more about the annual Red, White & True faculty and staff giving program, please visit http://annualfund.uark.edu/facultystaff.php.