Dear Friends of Northeastern,
It has been three years of hard work to build momentum in our quiet phase and to have reached the point at which we have arrived — the public launch of Northeastern Illinois University’s $10 million, first-ever fundraising campaign. Now, Northeastern has less than two years — and $4 million — to go. As honorary chairs of this pioneering effort, we are delighted to greet you.
We have begun new traditions in the process, including Golden Eagle Welcome Day, in which new students are greeted by faculty and staff in ceremony and celebration, and NEIU Weekend, in which students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the entire Golden Eagle family are invited to celebrate homecoming and to recognize the accomplishments of our remarkable alumni.
We have effectively doubled the charitable support the NEIU Foundation has provided to the University, from $615,000 in Fiscal Year 2014 to $1.3 million in Fiscal Year 2016. We have increased the average scholarship from $990 in Fiscal Year 2014 to $1,065 in Fiscal Year 2016, and we have increased the number of endowed scholarships and awards from 103 to 136. Yet, there is good work ahead, and we are asking for your help.
Honorary Chair Daniel L. Goodwin has made a historic commitment of $2.5 million, including the Goodwin Gift Challenge to our alumni and friends, which concludes in 2018, the final year of our campaign. His gifts are divided between campaign initiatives – outright scholarship support, a dean’s program fund for the Goodwin College of Education, and a Distinguished Lecture Series to bring well-respected individuals to present a range of perspectives to the University community.
We have watched Northeastern grow and develop over decades. We are so proud of the Golden Eagle family that has come together in advocacy, philanthropy, and in support of who we are as a university and an understanding of what makes Northeastern so special.
The success of this inaugural campaign effort has broad and bold implications. It affirms that Northeastern has arrived. Northeastern is ready, it is worthy, and the time is now. Your generosity will provide scholarship support to many deserving students and will provide faculty with the resources they need to create exceptional learning environments. This campaign is a beginning as we enter our next 150 years. Let us work together to transform lives.
Sharon K. Hahs
President Emerita
2007 – 2016
Salme Harju Steinberg
President Emerita
1996 – 2007
Daniel L. Goodwin
B.A. 1966, Psychology and Education
Chairman Emeritus, NEIU Board of Trustees 1996 - 2006
