In honor of the lifelong influence of their alma mater, the Jubilee Alumni Association Committee has established an endowed scholarship fund to support high-achieving students who otherwise may not be able to attend 黑料正能量.

With $25,000 in seed funds and a goal of $1 million, the scholarship will be awarded for the first time in fall 2020.

The new endowment was announced at the association鈥檚 annual luncheon during Homecoming and Family Weekend. Jubilee membership is for those alumni who graduated 50 or more years ago. The annual luncheon also includes an induction ceremony for those who have gathered for their 50-year reunion. The Jubilee Alumni Association includes 3,000 members.

The endowed scholarship is an initiative of Jubilee members and officers Dr. Richard G. Stoltzfus 鈥�59, association president; Susan Weaver Godshall 鈥�65, vice president and president-elect, and Julia Hartzler Alleman 鈥�65, archivist.聽

鈥淔or many students now, finances are a big concern,鈥� Stolzfus said. 鈥淪ome cannot attend because of financial hardship and others graduate with large amounts of debt. This new endowed scholarship is a worthy effort and a real investment in the future that will grow in perpetuity. I would invite all of you to consider this as a way you can help.鈥�

An urgent need

A third of 贰惭鲍鈥檚 $33 million endowment is designated for undergraduate student scholarships. However, that allotment is not as significant as it sounds, said Jasmine Hardesty, director of development and planned giving. 

鈥淓ach year, 黑料正能量 loses high-achieving, deserving students to other institutions because we cannot offer competitive financial aid packages,鈥� Hardesty said. 

Two factors would help 黑料正能量 attract more students: 1) more scholarships like the Jubilee Alumni Association鈥檚 new fund, and 2) a more robust university endowment.

Though in recent years, that $33 million endowment has grown significantly, the financial model came to 黑料正能量 quite late in its history. 

鈥満诹险芰� is drastically underfunded, considering the university鈥檚 age and size, in relation to peer institutions,鈥漵aid Hardesty. 鈥淚n fact, to financially compete with peer institutions to provide competitive student scholarships, sustain facilities and recruit professors and coaches, 黑料正能量 should have at least an endowment in the range of $90 to 120 million.鈥� 

The endowment is an invested fund that through its earnings provides recurring annual income to the university. The income an endowment produces ensures institutional viability and long-term financial sustainability

鈥淚n order for 黑料正能量 to fully thrive or lead in its second century, it is urgent to grow funds that are available to students through endowed scholarships such as the Jubilee Alumni Endowed Scholarship,鈥� Hardesty said.

A tax-wise contribution to the endowed scholarship can benefit the donor, their estate or heirs, she added. Donations can take many forms, including a gift from an IRA, stock or a portion of real estate or business sale; naming the scholarship in the donor鈥檚 estate through a will or trust, or as a beneficiary on banking, financial or retirement accounts. 

How does an endowment work? 

Once a contribution is made, the funds are conservatively invested based on guidelines provided by the Mennonite Education Agency. The investment will ideally produce at least a 6% return and 5% of the funds are distributed as student scholarship awards. The remaining value is reinvested in order to grow the principal value of the endowment, which helps to sustain and increase the scholarship award annually. 

Eventually, when this scholarship reaches the ultimate funding goal of $1 million dollars, it will produce annually at least $50,000 to be awarded to students who may not be able to attend 黑料正能量 without these funds.

This investment structure allows the endowment fund to grow and make distributions in perpetuity, providing a legacy and gift to students that will impact current and future generations.

For more information, call Jasmine Hardesty at 540-432-4971 or email her at jasmine.hardesty@emu.edu

A campus culture that 鈥渞espects students鈥� right to protest鈥� 鈥� that nurtures both students and the social movements they create, and embraces student activism as being the result of new knowledge at the core of liberation 鈥� benefits the entire community, said Hinojosa, a professor of history at Texas A & M. In their activism, students think critically, lead outside the classroom, practice civic engagement, and develop a greater sense of social responsibility.

Hinojosa鈥檚 August 14 address on the conference theme of 鈥淏eing or Becoming a Third Way University鈥� began the two-day event鈥檚 broader discussions around campus engagement, civic collaboration and diversity and inclusion, goals that are articulated in the university鈥檚 strategic plan.

鈥淒r. Hinojosa鈥檚 address was a helpful invitation as we anticipate the return of students to campus,鈥� said Provost Fred Kniss. 鈥淐ultivating students鈥� abilities to engage with the world is central to our mission, and as an institution we can also learn from their desires for change.鈥�

Conferences an annual tradition

贰惭鲍鈥檚 faculty-staff conferences bookend each academic year, with the fall event providing gathering in fellowship and renewal of the community鈥檚 common purpose and goals.

Braydon Hoover, director of development and annual giving and frequent conference emcee, pointed out that common vision in his welcome: 鈥淲e鈥檙e all here for the exact same purpose 鈥� to prepare every single one of our students to distinctively serve and lead in a global context,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hether you coach on the grass or you cut it, whether you teach 18-year-olds or students a little older, whether you work remotely or right here on campus, whether you took a break this summer or work diligently all year round, and even whether you hail from the titular religious tradition or another completely different, we 鈥� all of us 鈥� are 黑料正能量.鈥�

The event included workshop sessions, worship and fellowship opportunities, and what鈥檚 become an annual favorite, 鈥淪torytelling,鈥� featuring members of the campus community sharing about their journeys to, towards or within the 黑料正能量 community. Fall storytellers included professors Johonna Turner and Esther Tian; Jasmine Hardesty, director of development and planned giving; and Scott Barge, vice president of institutional effectiveness.

The event was also a forum for announcements about the upcoming academic year, including the observance of MLK Day with extensive service and learning opportunities replacing scheduled classes.

Keynote speaker calls for empowering synergy

Hinojosa knows what it means to envision a different university. While a student at Fresno Pacific University in California, he joined student movements to encourage the hiring of more diverse faculty and expansion of the curriculum and academic programs.

鈥淗ow could a university in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley, surrounded by a large Latinx population and located in an area that gave birth to the greatest and most successful farm workers civil rights movement, not teach a course on this?鈥� he said.

The synergy between his own student activism and intellectual engagement 鈥� the 鈥済rowth of political consciousness and understanding of history,鈥� his own and his people鈥檚 鈥� was both personally empowering and beneficial to the campus community.

Now a tenured professor of history at Texas A&M University, Hinojosa also directs the history department鈥檚 undergraduate studies and is co-founder and co-director of the Latina/o Studies Working Group sponsored by the Melbern G. Glasscock Center for Humanities Research.

Sharing his pedagogical philosophy that asks 鈥淪o what? Now what?鈥� with his students in courses about social movements, Latinx history, gender, comparative race and ethnicity, Hinojosa has become a resource, guide and mentor to diverse student activists.

This role 鈥� and the work of activism itself 鈥� is 鈥渕essy鈥� and 鈥渃haotic,鈥� but 鈥渕ore important than ever,鈥� he said.

In considering the role of the 鈥渢hird way university,鈥� Hinojosa noted the history of socially progressive Christians. While 鈥渄istorted forms of Christianity got the most play,鈥� they quietly went to work in communities around the world.

鈥淎 third way university must build on this radical tradition,鈥� he said.

In response to a question from Director of Multicultural Services Celeste Thomas, Hinojosa elaborated on additional ways of supporting black and brown students in the predominantly white university setting: listening to the voices and perspectives of marginalized students, hiring diverse and/or culturally competent faculty and staff, providing safe community spaces for these students, and prioritizing issues and the history of diverse communities in curriculum and academic programs.

Beyond the keynote

Afternoon breakout sessions offered faculty and staff opportunities to learn more about distinctive programs that link to core values of 贰惭鲍鈥檚 mission and vision. 聽

Various restorative justice initiatives and programs were highlighted in a special session hosted by professors Johonna Turner and Carl Stauffer, who co-direct the housed in the . Jon Swartz, associate dean of students, talked about restorative justice as it relates to the campus community and highlighted the growth, and growing interest, in RJ-related trainings. Meg Sanders, director of 贰惭鲍鈥檚 Graduate Teacher Education program, spoke about the new master鈥檚 degree and graduate certificate in restorative justice, as well as the integration of RJ principles and practices into professional training courses offered by the university.

Director Kimberly Schmidt presented on the , 贰惭鲍鈥檚 Washington D.C.-based program offering cross-cultural urban studies, internship and community living experience. She was joined by Associate Director Ryan Good and Program Assistant Karlyn Gehring.

Doug Graber Neufeld presented on the , a collaborative initiative of 黑料正能量, Goshen College and Mennonite Central Committee to lead Anabaptist efforts to respond to the challenges of climate change. Neufeld, a biology professor at 黑料正能量, directs the center.