Scholarship effort raises more than $1.39 million for students

In just three months, the UW Credit Union and its members gave more than $1.39 million toward need-based undergraduate scholarships at UW-Madison.

In launching its Great People Scholarship drive on Oct. 1, the UW Credit Union made an outright pledge of $215,000 to student support. The credit union also said it would match members’ gifts up to that amount through Dec. 31. The total raised then would be matched by the UW Foundation.

The effort resulted in hundreds of gifts, many from current and emeriti faculty and staff members. The Faculty Senate, Academic Staff Assembly and other faculty and staff members helped initiate the overall Great People scholarship program. In the end, received gifts exceeded the amount of the credit union’s match. Counting a UW Foundation match of more than $697,000 for all UW Credit Union gifts, the total raised for UW-Madison students was $1.394 million.

The UW Credit Union made a similar matching program available to UW System campuses in Milwaukee, Green Bay, Stevens Point and Whitewater, as well as at Madison Area Technical College.