By Jeff Wilson

Sarah Hollis never planned on coming to SIU, but now, she and SIU are certainly glad she did.

Her parents are SIU alumni, and the Battletown, Ky., native was eventually persuaded to come to Carbondale.

Sarah has spent 3 ½ years as a student caller with the SIU Foundation. During that time, she raised about $65,000 through 750 donations.

“It made me a more social person,” she said about her time as a student caller.

Graduating this spring with a degree in foreign language and international trade punctuated a fulfilling Saluki experience for Sarah.

Active in student government, she served as co-chair of the Internal Affairs Committee for two years, worked with the Naming Committee and serves as a senator for the College of Liberal Arts and West Campus.

She has also spent time studying abroad in Beijing and Taiwan.

While in Beijing, Sarah was a participant in the U.S.-China Student Summit and served as SIU’s student representative at the Beijing International College Fair.

During her time in Taiwan, she gained important work and life experience through an internship with INTAI Technology Corporation and Sun Chun Stainless Co. Ltd.

Locally, Sarah has volunteered at the Local Organic Garden Initiative of Carbondale.

Whether traveling to a foreign country to calling potential donors, Sarah said her experiences have given her a positive outlook.

“I’m a little more fearless,” she said. “Doing something you’re afraid of makes things very rewarding.”

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CARBONDALE, Ill. — A three-year, $75 million fundraising campaign will provide scholarships and other support for the students of Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

“Forever SIU: The Campaign for Students” was launched Jan. 1 by the SIU Foundation, which raises private funds to support the university. It will end in December 2019, the year of the university’s 150th anniversary.

The foundation has already raised $33 million toward the goal, according to campaign co-chair Dan Korte, a 1985 SIU alumnus.

“These funds will have an immediate impact changing the lives of our students,” he said during a May 6 event marking the public launch of the campaign.  “We see the goal as being very achievable given the generosity of SIU’s current and future donors.”

Co-chair Camelle Logan, a 1989 graduate, said a committee of volunteers who share a commitment to SIU and its students is leading the campaign.

“We will encourage alumni, friends, faculty, staff and anyone who is committed to higher education to come forward and make a gift or pledge to this important cause,” she said.

The highest priority of the campaign is to raise more than $48 million for scholarships to help students stay in college and graduate, Logan added.

Other priorities include expanding opportunities through internships, career development and other initiatives; enhancing facilities and resources such as teaching laboratories and library materials; and deepening student and faculty engagement with the region through community-focused research, cultural events and outreach to high school students.

Donors may give to any priority as well as to the priorities of individual colleges and units, Korte said.

Interim SIU Carbondale Chancellor Brad Colwell said scholarships and other resources allow students to focus more of their time on their education.

“SIU students are well known for their determination and hard work,” he said. “They are our greatest asset, and sometimes a helping hand is all they need to succeed.”

More information about the campaign and opportunities to give can be found at foreversiu.org.

(More information: Contact Jim Salmo, SIU Foundation, 618-453-7174.)

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