News Release

UNC-Chapel Hill employees establish
family scholarship fund, solicit donations

CHAPEL HILL — Roberta Massey’s son, Joshua, is only two years old, but already his mom is wondering how she will pay for his college education.

To help Massey, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill housekeeper, and other Carolina parents ease that financial worry, a group of university employees has established the UNC-Chapel Hill Family Scholarship Fund. To date, UNC-Chapel Hill employees have donated almost $4,000 to the fund. In his State of the University Address on Sept. 29, 2004, Chancellor James Moeser announced that he had directed $200,000 from a recent estate gift to support the scholarship program.

"This is an excellent idea," Massey said. "It provides incentive for parents to pass onto their kids that if they work hard and keep up their grades, they can get a college education."

The scholarship fund has two goals. The first is to provide need-based scholarships for Carolina employees’ children to attend any of the state’s 16 UNC system campuses or community colleges. Bruce Egan, one of the employees involved in creating the fund, said, "This goal reflects Carolina’s commitment to support higher education throughout North Carolina, not just within the stone walls of the Chapel Hill campus."

The second goal is to further the sense of community among UNC-Chapel Hill faculty, staff and administration by supporting and working toward a common goal— the education of university employees’ children. "This fund is a wonderful example of Carolina employees coming together to support higher education and, most important, each other," Moeser said. "I support this effort wholeheartedly and salute our employees for taking the initiative."

Employees can contribute to the fund through direct donations or payroll deductions of as little as $2 a month—making it possible for employees at all income levels to support the fund. "The intent is to garner support throughout the rank-and-file employees at Carolina in a coordinated fund-raising effort," Egan said. "Even if employees don’t have children who could benefit from the scholarship, I hope that in the spirit of helping their colleagues, they will consider contributing to the fund. Education is what Carolina is all about, and the more people supporting the effort, the more our employees’ children will benefit."

Contributions will fund yearly scholarships, as well as an endowment to generate future scholarship awards. Scholarships will be renewable for two to four years of undergraduate studies. A board composed of faculty and staff will work with the University’s Office of Scholarships and Student Aid to determine the number and amount of scholarships that will be awarded each year. The board will award the first scholarships this spring for students entering college in fall 2005.

Gifts to the UNC-Chapel Hill Family Scholarship Fund can be made in care of UNC-Chapel Hill’s Office of University Development, P.O. Box 309, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, and should be earmarked "Family Scholarship Fund, #6797." Gifts by payroll deduction or credit card can be made online at carolinafirst.unc.edu/gift.

Gifts count toward the Carolina First Campaign goal of $1.8 billion. Carolina First is a multi-year, private fund-raising campaign to support Carolina’s vision of becoming the nation’s leading public university.
For more information on the fund, visit www.unc.edu/familyfund.

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Contacts: Bruce Egan, (919) 843-7777 or bruce_egan@unc.edu; or Andi Sobbe, (919) 962-2546 or andi_sobbe@unc.edu

News Services: Lisa Katz, (919) 962-2093