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Donating to MechSE
Why Give to MechSE?
The Mechanical Engineering Laboratory
The Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering is taking a bold, new approach to research and education that will enable the department to address some of the most pressing problems facing the nation and the world. A new paradigm has been created, one that integrates biology, chemistry, applied mathematics and applied physics with mechanical engineering and engineering mechanics disciplines. The result is leading-edge research that addresses some of society's greatest needs: for clean, affordable and reliable sources of energy; for better methods of disease detection; for more effective identification of threats to national security; for cost-effective and non-polluting modes of transportation; for manufacturing solutions that will facilitate the transition of nanoscale discoveries from the laboratory to the public; and more. Accomplishing our mission requires the support of our many alumni and friends, and this rings true now, more than ever.
The University of Illinois has become a state-assisted, rather than a state-supported educational institution. During the past 50 years, the percentage of the University of Illinois's budget funded via State dollars has fallen from approximately 77% to 19%, and that trend continues. Without the generous financial support of our alumni and friends, we simply couldn't meet our mission and maintain our status as a leader in mechanical engineering education and research.
Your gift can create opportunities... Gifts to student scholarships and fellowships to deserving individuals help create opportunities for students who may not otherwise be able to afford a college education. Due to the rise in the costs of tuition and attendance, these gifts are more important than ever to our students to allow them to pursue their dreams.
Your gift can be directed for your designated use... You may designate your gift to benefit a specific program, support group, or priority within the department, such as student scholarships and fellowships. When you make a directed gift, you can rest assured that your gift is utilized in accordance with your intent.
Your gift can have lasting value... Gifts to establish or add to existing endowments are invested in perpetuity, and only the investment income is used for the specified purpose(s). In addition, some of the investment return is added to the principal so that the fund balance increases in value over time, thus providing additional investment income over time to further increase the funds available to meet the donor's specified objectives.
Your gift can honor someone... Commemorative gifts are a thoughtful way to honor or memorialize a loved one, carry on their name, and help them leave a legacy within the department. Named endowments fund student scholarships, fellowships, and awards, faculty chairs and professorships, lectureships, and other activities within the department.
Your gift can allow you to "pay it back" or "pay it forward"... Few students realize the extent to which their college education is subsidized by gifts, including gifts from prior generations of MechSE alumni and friends. Students may benefit directly from gifts that support scholarships, fellowships, awards, and other student activities, but they also benefit indirectly from gifts to support faculty, lectureships, laboratories, research, and facilities. For many MechSE alumni, giving to MechSE is their way of "paying it back" to the department that played a significant role in their success, or "paying it forward" to help the next generation of our students.
Your gift can help preserve and enhance the value of your degree... The support of our alumni and friends is paramount to keeping MechSE at the forefront of mechanical engineering education and research and making us the preeminent mechanical science and engineering department. Gift funding helps us maintain the high quality of our facilities, faculty, and students, which in turn, maintains the value of our degrees for our alumni. In addition, alumni support is considered to be a key measure of the strength of academic programs at any educational institution, and is also a key factor in the annual rankings of collegiate academic programs. Thus, by giving to MechSE, you can help maintain and enhance the value of your degree.
Your gift can change the world... To have the greatest impact on the world around us, MechSE faculty have recently aligned their research efforts with societal needs. Now, more than ever, MechSE's research initiatives have the potential to significantly change and improve our world. MechSe is currently working on research to address societies needs for clean, affordable and reliable sources of energy; for better methods of disease detection; for more effective identification of threats to national security; for cost-effective and non-polluting modes of transportation; for manufacturing solutions that will facilitate the transition of nanoscale discoveries from the laboratory to the public; for safely and economically purifying water for human use; and more.