You can still make your gift count for Birds Give Back by making a gift at this link.
Birds Give Back 2021

It's Birds Give Back—the day to show Redbirds that you’ve got their back and celebrate all things Illinois State!

This year there are three ways that you can be involved: make your gift, write a note of encouragement to current students, and register for tonight’s webinar to hear what it’s like to be a Redbird today. 

First things first—make a gift to help move Illinois State forward and unlock challenge gifts! Redbird John Jaburek ’87 wants to get Birds Give Back off to a soaring start. He will unlock $25,000 for student scholarships when we receive 500 gifts today during Birds Give Back!

Next, spread a little extra Redbird love this year! Click here to share a message of hope, inspiration, or encouragement to current students. Your message of hope will be shared with students during this challenging time. Mennonite College of Nursing alum, Donny Bounds, ’97 wants to see us spread a little Redbird love today.  We will unlock a $10,000 challenge when we receive 1,000 messages of hope today during Birds Give Back.  Make your gift, leave a message, and we will spread the love!

Finally, learn what it's like to be a Redbird today! Check out this webinar that will be airing live on February 25 at 7 PM CST. An anonymous donor challenges us to learn about life in a college pandemic straight from our Redbirds. They will add $500 to our giving day totals when 50 or more participants attend the virtual event tonight! Space is limited, so register in advance!

Can’t find the fund you’re looking to support? You can select “other” when making a gift to write in your designation, or search for the fund and give through Giving.IllinoisState.edu (your gift will still count toward Birds Give Back). If you have questions, contact the Office of Annual Giving at 309-438-4483.

2
Match
Will to Succeed Momentum Challenge
Larry Brown, Associate Director of Student Access and Accommodation Services, wishes to expand the scholarships to students with disabilities and/or medical/mental health conditions at Illinois State University. Today he is matching dollar-for-dollar, up to $500, all gifts to the Will to Succeed Scholarship.
$500 MATCHED
Completed
$5,000
LGBTQ+ Support Fund Challenge
Abe and Isaac Lopez-Bowen have been so moved by the support shown for the LGBTQ+ Support Fund. They will be giving an additional $5,000 if we are able to make it to 225 donors to the fund.
225 / 225 Gifts
Completed
$250,000
Record-Breaker Challenge
This just in, Craig Reeser '75 wants to issue one final challenge. We will unlock a $250,000 planned commitment when we surpass 2,500 gifts before midnight tonight! Let’s do this 'Birds!
479 / 479 Gifts
Completed
$25,000
Launch Challenge
Thank you to the first 500 donors who unlocked $25,000 to kick off Birds Give Back! Don’t forget to check with your employer to see if they match your gift!
500 / 500 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Milner's Vidette Digitization Matching Challenge
Let’s keep up the support for Milner Library and the Vidette digitization project. An anonymous donor will match all gifts to the Milner Library fund up to a total of $3,000 before midnight tonight!
$1,330 MATCHED
Ended
$25,000
College of Education Challenge
125 gifts to the College of Education (COE) has unlocked an additional $25,000 to COE from Dr. Janet ’85 and Professor Russell Bedford!
125 / 125 Gifts
Completed
$30,000
CAST Challenge
200 gifts to CAST department funds unlocked $30,000 for CAST Connections!
200 / 200 Gifts
Completed
$10,000
Campus Community Challenge
Thanks to 250 faculty, staff, retiree donors for unlocking $10,000 during Birds Give Back!
250 / 250 Donors
Completed
$5,000
Student Engagement Challenge
Katie Pratt ’10 will unlock a $5,000 gift to support students’ well-being with 50 gifts to the Student Engagement Fund.
50 / 50 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Will to Succeed Match
Tammie Keney, Director of Student Access and Accommodation Services, wishes to expand the scholarships to students with disabilities and/or medical/mental health conditions at Illinois State University. Today she is matching dollar-for-dollar, up to $500, all gifts to the Will to Succeed Scholarship.
$500 MATCHED
Completed
2
Match
Redbird Performance Lab Momentum Match
Redbird Hall of Fame football player and NFL draft pick Estus Hood and his wife Diane want to continue the momentum. They will match gifts dollar-for-dollar up to $5,000 total during Birds Give Back! Let’s do this ‘Birds!
$5,000 MATCHED
Completed
$25,000
Momentum Challenge
Thank you to the 1000 donors who unlocked $25,000 to keep momentum strong during Birds Give Back!
1,000 / 1,000 Gifts
Completed
$20,000
CAST College Funds Challenge
20 donors unlocked $20,000 for CAST Connections!
20 / 20 Gifts
Completed
$10,000
Forensics Challenge
30 gifts unlocked $10,000 for the Endowment for Forensics!
30 / 30 Gifts
Completed
$10,000
LGBTQ+ Student Support Fund
100 donors unlocked $10,000 for the LGBTQ+ Student Support Fund!
100 / 100 Gifts
Completed
$500
Redbird Battalion Challenge
An anonymous donor wants to see Redbird Battalion reach higher this year and will contribute $500 when fifteen gifts have been made to Military Science - ROTC.
15 / 15 Donors
Completed
$3,500
Redbird Performance Lab Momentum Challenge
Fred ’61, ’64 and Mary ’62, ’77 Dornback will contribute $3,500 when we receive 150 more gifts to the Redbird Performance Lab today during Birds Give Back.
150 / 150 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Finance, Insurance, and Law Match
Larry Gustafson ’83 ISU alum would like to challenge you to support the Finance, Insurance and Law Department and will match up to $1,000 in gifts!
$1,000 MATCHED
Completed
$25,000
College of Arts and Sciences Challenge
An anonymous alumna wants us to show our support for the College of Arts and Sciences. She will unlock $25,000 for student scholarships when we receive 150 gifts to the College or its departments today during Birds Give Back.
150 / 150 Gifts
Completed
$20,000
U-High Challenge
An anonymous Pioneer challenges us to support U-High. We will unlock $20,000 for our Birds Give Back totals when we receive 50 gifts for U-High today!
50 / 50 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Center for Civic Engagement's Second Match
Dr. Katy Strzepek ’18 wants us to do twice the good for our community partners and students at Illinois State. She’ll be matching dollar-for-dollar, the next $750, made to benefit the Center’s programs.
$750 MATCHED
Completed
$30,000
Dr. Charles and Dr. Jeanne Morris Multicultural Center Challenge
Dr. Charles and Dr. Jeanne Morris, former Faculty and Administrators at ISU have challenged the community to get to 300 gifts for the Multicultural Center. They will give $30,000 if we are able to make this goal.
300 / 300 Gifts
Completed
$1,500
Student Engagement Fund Momentum Challenge
Kate Piper M.S. ‘12 is passionate about providing students a sense of belonging and connection on campus. She will unlock another $1,500 to our Birds Give Back totals when we reach 65 gifts to the Student Engagement Fund.
15 / 15 Gifts
Completed
Leaderboard
Participation by area
Which participating group will receive the most gifts during Birds Give Back? Support your passion and help your area climb the leaderboard!
Rank Area of Support Gifts
1 Multicultural Center 390
2 Athletics 355
3 LGBTQ+ Student Support 284
4 Communication 215
5 Redbird Esports 117
6 Accounting 79
7 Student Engagement 77
8 WGLT 73
9 Student Affairs Scholarships 72
10 Center for Civic Engagement 66
11 Support MCN priorities 60
12 Family and Consumer Sciences 59
13 Illinois Shakespeare Festival 59
14 School of Teaching and Learning 59
15 U-High 52
16 Student Scholarships 51
17 Alumni Association Scholarship 50
18 ISUPD Community Engagement Unit 50
19 College of Business Excellence Fund 47
20 Special Education 47
21 Ewing Cultural Center 44
22 School of Music 42
23 Black Colleagues Association Scholarship 39
24 Gamma Phi Circus 38
25 School of Theatre and Dance 38
26 Kinesiology and Recreation 35
27 CAST Student Persistence Fund 34
28 Vidette Digitization Project 34
29 Chemistry 32
30 Criminal Justice Sciences 30
31 Politics and Government 28
32 Finance, Insurance, and Law 28
33 Horticulture Center 27
34 Agriculture 25
35 Wonsook Kim CFA General Fund 25
36 Metcalf 24
37 Friends of the Arts 24
38 Educational Administration & Foundations 23
39 Technology 22
40 Information Technology 22
41 Marketing 21
42 Health Sciences 21
43 College of Arts and Sciences Funds 20
44 Biological Sciences 19
45 Wonsook Kim School of Art 18
46 Military Science - ROTC 18
47 International House 18
48 Pay it Forward Business Scholarship 17
49 History 17
50 More ways to support Milner Library 17
51 College of Education Persistence Awards 16
52 Creative Technologies Program 16
53 Mathematics 14
54 Sociology and Anthropology 13
55 CAST additional priorities 12
56 Communication Sciences and Disorders 12
57 Geography, Geology and the Environment 11
58 Latinx Alumni Network Scholarship 11
59 Physics 9
60 Social Work 9
61 Psychology 9
62 Management and Quantitative Methods 9
63 Languages, Literatures, and Cultures 8
64 English 8
65 The Graduate School 8
66 University Galleries 6
67 Economics 4
68 International Business 3
69 Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies 2
70 Latin American and Latino/a Studies 1
71 Marian H. Dean Legacy Scholarship 0
72 Philosophy 0
Ended
$2,500
Redbird Performance Lab Challenge
Anonymous Redbird fans will add $2,500 to our Birds Give Back project when we receive our first 100 gifts to support the Redbird Performance Lab today!
100 / 100 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Remembering Your Redbird Roommate Challenge
Patrick Ryan (’05) is matching dollar-for-dollar, up to $500, all gifts made to the University Housing Services Student Scholarships. Today he is challenging YOU to make a $5 contribution to University Housing, in honor of your Redbird roommate(s).
$500 MATCHED
Completed
$1,000
College of Business Challenge
Friend of the University, Jim Hayes, will add $1,000 to our Birds Give Back totals when we receive our first 25 gifts for the College of Business today!
25 / 25 Gifts
Completed
$7,500
Mennonite College of Nursing Challenge
50 gifts unlocked $7,500 for the Mennonite College of Nursing from Mary Ko '06!
50 / 50 Gifts
Completed
$25,000
Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts Challenge
200 gifts unlocked an additional $25,000 for the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts from Professor Russell and Dr. Janet ’85 Bedford!
200 / 200 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Center for Civic Engagement Match
Brandon Thornton '11 is matching, dollar-for-dollar, the first $750 in gifts made to the Center for Civic Engagement.
$750 MATCHED
Completed
2
Match
Redbird Performance Lab Match
Redbird fans, Scott Henrichs and Mary Bennett-Henrichs, will match gifts to the strength and conditioning project dollar-for-dollar (up to $7,500) during Birds Give Back. Make your gift now and double your impact!
$7,500 MATCHED
Completed
$2,021
Illinois Shakespeare Festival Challenge
When 50 donors give to the Illinois Shakespeare Festival, a secret challenger will donate an additional $2,021 to celebrate the Festival’s 2021 Season.
50 / 50 Gifts
Completed
2
Match
Pawfficer Sage Matching Gift
Support Pawfficer Sage today and your gift will have twice the impact! When you make a gift to the ISUPD Enhancement Fund today, Susan Cameron ’79 will match your gift amount with a contribution to the Cameron Community Engagement Endowment (up to $5,000 total). Your gift will be put to immediate use to support Pawfficer Sage and her community engagement team and the match will help fund her team into the future.
$1,365 MATCHED
Ended
$3,000
Milner's Vidette Digitization Participation Challenge
20 gifts unlocked $3,000 to help digitize the Vidette!
20 / 20 Gifts
Completed
$25,000
Multicultural Center Challenge
150 donors unlocked $25,000 for the Multicultural Center!
150 / 150 Gifts
Completed
$10,000
Inclusivity in Gaming Challenge
Charley and Preethy Edamala are excited to support pathways for ALL students to be a part of gaming at Illinois State. They will unlock $10,000 with 100 gifts to Redbird Esports today.
100 / 100 Gifts
Completed
$25,000
Redbird Romance Challenge
Rod Sargeant '65, '67 wants to celebrate his Redbird romance and challenge us to reach our goal of 2,021 gifts to show Redbirds we’ve got their backs in 2021. He will unlock $25,000 to establish a scholarship in memory of his wife, Darlene Ann Sargeant '66 when we reach our goal today. Rod encourages you to make your gift in honor of, or in memory of, a Redbird you love.
521 / 521 Gifts
Completed
$2,000
School of Communication Challenge
The School of Communication Advisory board will give $2,000 to support the School when we receive our first 25 gifts during Birds Give Back.
25 / 25 Gifts
Completed
$5,300
Keep the Momentum School of Communication Challenge
We did it Redbirds! For the School of Communication board’s final challenge, they will add $5,300 more to the School when we receive 75 more gifts before the day ends!
75 / 75 Gifts
Completed
$3,000
School of Communication Momentum Challenge
The School of Communication has unlocked the first challenge! The board will add $3,000 more to our totals when we receive another 50 gifts.
50 / 50 Gifts
Completed
Success!
Football Alumni Challenge
Redbird football alumni Hank (’70, ’71) and Joan Guenther '69 will add $5,000 to support our strength and conditioning project when 5 other football alumni give $1,000 each to the effort today during Birds Give Back.
Completed
$55,000
School of Communication Record-Breaker Challenge
Eric ’87, ’90 and Theresa ‘88, ’90 Hoss and Frank ’80, ’81 and Kelley ’80 DiLeonardi want to see us set a Birds Give Back School of Com record. They will add another $55,000 to our totals when we reach 179 gifts before midnight tonight!
29 / 29 Gifts
Completed
Participating Groups
Alumni Association Athletics Center for Civic Engagement Ewing Cultural Center The Graduate School International House College of Applied Science and Technology College of Arts and Sciences College of Business College of Education Mennonite College of Nursing Milner Library Multicultural Center Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts Lab Schools Student Affairs WGLT
Rank State Gifts
1 IL 2257
2 TX 47
3 CA 45
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