U-M Flint raises money from student donations

With the holidays approaching, giving is on the minds of many people. But officials at the University of Michigan's Flint campus hope students will be especially generous when opening their pocketbooks - generous enough to donate to their school.

The University's Flint campus recently began a student pledge campaign, which involves asking students to donate money to the University while they are still in school.

"What we really wanted to accomplish through this campaign is introduce the idea of giving to our student body," said Dan Haggerty, president of the Student Government Council.

Dino Hernandez, director of annual giving, said the campaign is based on altruistic motives.

"The main purpose of this campaign was to introduce the idea of giving. I was instilled with the idea of giving at a young age," Hernandez said. "We feel that it would be beneficial for our students to be exposed to that same idea.

"Other schools around the nation have similar campaigns like ours that only involves graduating seniors. Our thinking was: Why only graduating seniors? Why not involve the whole student body?"

A low alumni donation rate played a role in starting the campaign.

"Typically only about 18-20 percent of our alumni donate money back to the school. Hopefully, through the introduction of this campaign now, they will learn to give back to the school," said Haggerty, adding that the University's Flint campus also needs to supplement state funds.

Haggerty said the Flint campus hopes to raise a total of $5,000 from its students and has already netted $3,450.

"All the money that we get will go towards buying a 60-inch television," Haggerty said.

Hernandez labeled the fundraising campaign "very successful."

"We only expected about 10 percent of the students to give, but more have given. No one had been upset by us approaching them," Hernandez said.

But students said the reaction is more mixed.

"Many people had donated, while others are upset by it," said Stephanie Hooker, a junior at the School of Management on the Flint campus.

Jenny Prezzato, a sophomore in the School of Arts and Sciences on the Flint campus, said she would back the campaign - if she could. "If I had the money, I would donate because I like the campus."

Both Hooker and Prezzato said the fundraising campaign has not exactly taken the student body by storm. Hooker said the effort is "just another thing that is going on in school."

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