Supporting students in the classroom and beyond

This SMU Giving Day, help students achieve academic success by giving to the Opportunity SMU fund.

One of the most impactful ways you can make a difference on the Hilltop is by helping students attend SMU who otherwise may not have considered it a possibility.

“The Opportunity SMU fund is a way for us to attract a wider variety of students to SMU and to make sure that there’s sufficient support for them to choose us,” says Associate Provost of Student Academic Engagement and Success Sheri Kunovich. 

Through this fund, donors support scholarships, financial aid and support programs that support scholars like Nicholas Simpson ’23, who now works as a research specialist at Gartner.

“Investing in scholarship programs like the one I [was] involved with is an investment into the future of the whole world,” says Simpson. 

But donating to funds through the Opportunity SMU fund doesn’t just help attract top-tier undergraduate students – it helps with retention and graduation rates, as well.

“Funds like Opportunity SMU give us that chance to entice students in the beginning but also keep them engaged while they’re here,” says Assistant Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Admission Elena Hicks. “Making sure that students have a chance to be successful in graduating on time makes a huge impact on us. That’s what top-tier universities do.”

For the 2023–2024 academic year alone, more than 226 undergraduates from Texas families with exceptional financial need received new scholarships for tuition, housing, dining and fees. That, in turn, helps students like Rachel Mannon ’24 succeed academically and beyond.

“For me, the scholarships I was offered by SMU were key in my decision to come here,” says Mannon. “It takes away financial stress from students who think that otherwise they can’t be at SMU or even go to university.”

Gifts of all sizes and types help these students succeed – and current-use gifts are used immediately to support recruitment, retention and graduation.

“Financial aid is a crucial aspect of student success,” says Arath Dominguez ’25. “Without the support of donors, I wouldn’t have been able to attend SMU and accomplish all I’ve learned and done so far.”

Endowments and planned gifts also strengthen efforts to recruit and support the best and brightest.

“I was one of those applicants that applied to ten schools, but it’s a big financial commitment, and so my scholarship allowed me to come here to SMU and get that academic program that I wanted,” says Sofia Goff ’24.

The Opportunity SMU fund supports programs that impact students across the campus.

“I’m really thankful for the opportunities that I was provided, and I’m honestly ready to change the world,” says Reece Smith ’26, who participated in a program that helps first-year students from historically underrepresented communities achieve early success at SMU. 

One day. One SMU.

Together, we can shape a brighter future. Let’s show the world what Mustangs can do.

Make an impact