<font color="#CE1126" $200 Million for Student Quality
As competition for the brightest students intensifies, the campaign will expand scholarship programs, such as SMU President’s Scholars and Leadership Scholars; create innovative scholarships within schools and disciplines; expand opportunities to study abroad through scholarships and additional programs; establish new programs that foster leadership skills and personal development; and increase support for graduate students. For example, for this academic year, quiet phase gifts have added 12 new President’s Scholars for a total of 100 students who are receiving this full-tuition award, and 26 new Hunt Leadership Scholars, for a total of 73 receiving close to full-tuition awards.
$350 Million for Faculty and Academic Excellence
The campaign aspires to increase to 100 the number of endowed academic positions, including department chairs and deanships; increase by 50 percent the amount of annual faculty research grants; endow departments and institutes that provide core academic disciplines as well as those that address emerging issues; increase resources for graduate programs, including graduate student fellowships and equipment; significantly expand opportunities for undergraduate research; and invest in academic facilities and technology to address changing student and faculty needs. SMU now has 71 endowed academic positions, nine of them newly created with quiet phase gifts. Current external grant funding for faculty research and sponsored projects is $20 million, and the campaign goal is to reach $30 million.
$200 Million for the Campus Experience
To help ensure the health and vitality of campus life as a resource for the highest achievement, the campaign seeks to create residential colleges or commons as part of a sophomore housing requirement; expand student services in health care, wellness and career placement, among others; enhance competitiveness of the athletics program, which teaches leadership skills and builds community spirit; and continue to enrich the campus environment on the main campus in Dallas as well as at SMU-in-Legacy and SMU-in-Taos. For example, the University seeks to add residential facilities to accommodate 1,200 additional students living on its Dallas campus.