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What will your SILS annual gift help make possible?

SILS donors support initiatives that most interest them. Here are some areas that donors value and the School needs.

  • Graduate Student Support 
  • Undergraduate Student Support 
  • Research Awards 
  • Travel Awards 
  • Study Abroad 
  • Software and Equipment
  • Community Outreach 
  • Capital Enhancement 

What will your SILS annual gift make possible? Here are some examples:  

Graduate Student Support: Forty-one SILS students received fellowships, assistantships or other types of philanthropically funded student support in fy11. Some could not afford a SILS education without student support.

Undergraduate Student Support:  In addition to preeminent graduate programs, SILS has a burgeoning and strategically important undergraduate program leading to the bachelor’s in information science (BSIS). We used gift funds in fy11 to fund two $1,000 undergraduate scholarships. Besides assisting the recipients themselves, these scholarships were a highly effective recruiting tool for the BSIS program. 

Research Awards: Seventeen SILS students received research awards in fy11. Small sums of monies to be sure, but they helped ensure our students could conduct their research and complete their masters’ papers. 

Travel Awards: Ten SILS students received travel awards in fy11, for purposes of attending academic conferences and professional meetings to present research and other scholarly work. Again, the sums involved are relatively small, but imperative, In fy11, we increased the award limit (for ph.d. students only) from $200 to $400 and were able to do this because our investments are such that over time we can increase this support. 

Study Abroad: We funded two study-abroad travel awards in fy11. This program will enable four additional SILS students to study abroad over the next two fiscal years. 

Software: We use gift funds to purchase critically important computer applications that students need to carry out their research and successfully complete class projects.  Software such as specialized statistical applications, document management tools and data collection applications help our students develop their own skills and advance the field with their research.  

Community outreach/programs: Dean Gary Marchionini, who celebrated his first anniversary as dean in April 2011, created a series of summits entitled “Academy Meets the Real World,” designed to ensure SILS is meeting the needs of employers and other industry leaders. Gift funds help make possible these summits, which attracted key thought leaders, across North Carolina, in the library sciences, financial services and information technology. The contacts made at these highly effective engagements have resulted, among other things, in more robust career services for our students. 

Attractions: The School hosts two preeminent lectures annually, and both are completely philanthropically funded. These are the OCLC/Kilgour Lecture and the Henderson Lecture. Scholarly work, particularly “new frontier” work, is the focus of them. Thanks to 100 percent gift funding, the School also hosts a third major lecture, the Steinfirst Lecture, the focus of which is children’s literature. The Steinfirst Lecture occurs every other year. 

Capital Enhancement  

 

SILS wants and needs the support of our all alumni and friends to accomplish our mission. A gift to SILS has extraordinary impact. Here are some examples. And please note the School uses smaller gifts, in aggregate, to achieve these important following activities. 

  • A gift of $100-$400 will provide research funding for faculty and students. 
  • A gift of $100 will provide faculty and students with funding to illustrate those findings through the creation of posters and other media. 
  • A gift of $200-$1000 will enable faculty and  students to travel to academic meetings and conferences to present research findings. 
  • A gift of $1,000 will provide a SILS student with tuition support, a stipend for books/supplies, or a study-abroad award. 
  • A gift of $50 will fund SILS recruitment activities and advertising, both for students and faculty. A gift of $50-$200 will help make possible a guest lecture. 
  • A gift of $100-$200 will fund a SILS student association professional-development activity or event. 
  • A gift of $50-$500 will enhance special collections in the SILS Library.
  • A gift of $100-$200 will enable special exhibits in the SILS Library and Manning Hall lobby.
  • A gift of $200-$500 will fund special awards such as our SILS awards for volunteerism, best essay, outstanding Web design and “good of the order.”