By Jeff Wilson
The Saluki Takeover Tour had a record-breaking run through Southern Illinois this April.
Beginning on Thursday, April 3, with a packed house at Apple Creek Golf Club in Makanda and continued through late-April, the takeover tour will make its way to 50 high schools across all 17 Southern Illinois counties.
More than 200 people joined Chancellor Austin Lane, the SIU Foundation, and university leaders at the kickoff event at Apple Creek. Guests enjoyed complimentary hors d’oeuvres and drinks while engaging with their alma mater in an intimate setting.
More than 115 Salukis came together for the second reception at TJ’s Diamond Club in Mtn Dew Park in Marion on Tuesday, April 8. On Thursday, April 10, the takeover tour stopped at Café Bloom in Benton, hosting a crowd of about 50. The fourth Chancellor’s Reception hosted 60 Salukis at St. Nicholas Landmark in Chester. Then, on Thursday, April 17, SIU hosted more than 80 guests at Pizza Villa in Anna. The takeover tour wrapped up Tuesday, April 22, with nearly 100 people coming to Faye in Murphysboro.
“We are going to be all over this region. We are recruiting like we are coaches giving offers to students, telling them there is nowhere else you need to go other than Southern Illinois University Carbondale,” Lane said.
The Office of Innovation and Economic Development also hosted Business Resource Meetups before every Chancellor’s Reception.
Lane and admissions staff promoted programs such as the Saluki Commitment, which guarantees that tuition and mandatory fees are fully covered for four (transfer students) or eight (freshman students) consecutive semesters at no cost to students or families.
Recipients must meet all of the following criteria:
- Be a first-time incoming freshman enrolling full-time on-campus in the fall 2021 semester or later.
- Have a cumulative high school GPA of 2.75 or higher.Have an annual family income less than $103,040 with assets less than $50,000 based on your FAFSA.
- Be an Illinois resident who attended an Illinois high school.
- Be a dependent student under age 24.
- Be eligible for federal financial aid.
SIU also recently joined the ranks of the Ivy League, being named a Research 1 (R1) university by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Southern is one of only three public universities in Illinois with that designation, and it is the only one within 100 miles of Carbondale.
“As we go out and recruit, you will be surprised how many students are interested in research. Students that are thinking about their future, when they’re thinking about what school to select, we go right to the top,” Lane said. “We have incredible faculty. I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank our faculty for getting us there.”
For the SIU Foundation, the takeover tours are an opportunity to connect with donors as it progresses through the record-breaking Imagine SIU 2030 fundraising campaign. With a goal of raising $500 million by June 2028, it is the fifth largest such campaign in the history of Illinois higher education. More than $390 million has already been raised, and the Saluki Takeover Tour helps spread the excitement.
“We have 270,000 alumni. There are only 50 universities with more. I think you all agree that there’s something in the sauce about being a Saluki,” said Matt Kupec, vice chancellor for development and alumni relations and CEO of the SIU Foundation.
School Visit Photos
