Giving Tuesday continues to grow student financial aid supports at Lakehead University

November 24, 2023 – Thunder Bay and Orillia, Ont.

Tuesday, Nov. 28 marks the eighth annual Giving Tuesday at Lakehead University. 

This year’s goal is to raise $147,000.

For the past seven years, Giving Tuesday has grown to become a popular fundraising initiative for alumni and friends of Lakehead University.

Seen as the opening day of the giving season, Giving Tuesday is when charities, companies, and individuals come together to share their commitment, rally for their favourite causes, and think about others.

“It is a day when the entire Lakehead community celebrates the way that philanthropy supports students, especially students who otherwise couldn’t access a Lakehead education,” said Michael den Haan, Vice-President, External Relations at Lakehead University.

“Many people make this a day for their own giving-commitment to Lakehead University.”

Each year, approximately seven to 10 new student scholarships, bursaries, or awards are created because of community generosity. Building a robust set of supports helps address the critical need for student financial aid at Lakehead.

“Alumni living and working all over the globe contribute to the success of Giving Tuesday at Lakehead University,” said Mark Tilbury, Alumni and Annual Giving Director at Lakehead University. 

“They recognize the need because they were once students themselves. Their response to Giving Tuesday is their way of sharing it forward.” 

Giving Tuesday is one of the largest days of giving on the University’s calendar, with an incredible $810,000 in donations to Lakehead since 2016.

Once again, the Lakehead Annual Fund will match all new gifts towards scholarships, bursaries, and awards 1:1, up to $55,000.

Alumni and friends all over the globe are encouraged to give what they can on Giving Tuesday.

You may visit the Giving Tuesday portal (donate.lakeheadu.ca) beginning at 12:01 am on Tuesday, Nov. 28 until midnight. 

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8110 ext. 8372 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.

Lakehead University is a fully comprehensive university with approximately 9,700 full-time equivalent students and over 2,000 faculty and staff at two campuses in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lakehead has nine faculties, including Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Graduate Studies, Health & Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, Science & Environmental Studies, and Social Sciences & Humanities. Lakehead University’s achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally, including being ranked in the top half of Times Higher Education's 2023 World Universities Rankings for the fourth consecutive year, and the number one university in the world with fewer than 9,000 students in THE’s 2023 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.