The senior gift challenge committee is raising funds for the Students Assisting Students Endowed Scholarship at Wayne State College. The scholarship committee’s goal is for the graduating senior class to pledge the amount of their graduation year, $20.19, or another amount to the Students Assisting Students Endowed Scholarship.

Director of Alumni Relations Laura Robinett is the advisor in charge of the senior gift challenge.

“This campaign is something we started last fall with some encouragement and ideas from our Student Senate and Philomathean Honors Society,” Robinett said. “What we did last year is we created a challenge to seniors to help encourage giving back. It’s called the senior gift challenge; this challenge aims to create a culture of giving to Wayne State among each graduating class by asking students to pledge the amount of their graduation year to the Students Assisting Students Endowed Scholarship.”

To meet the senior gift challenge, graduating students will fill out a card pledging to donate $20.19. After graduation, the students will receive a letter with information regarding alumni involvement.

The criteria for the scholarship is flexible; any WSC student with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher is eligible to apply.

Last semester, everyone who participated or signed to make a pledge to the scholarship was invited to a reception dinner.

“Last year it [the reception] was held at Johnny Bird Brewery, we just want to thank them for their support and for helping us do this,” Robinett said. “So, the end of study week before finals we will have a reception to say thank you and celebrate the end of the campaign.”

The senior gift challenge committee will be at the Grad Finale to talk about the campaign to graduating seniors. They will also have pledge cards that students can fill out.

“You also become a donor to Wayne State,” Robinett said. “What that does is that increases our alumni giving percentage, so they’re considered an alumn who gave back and that shows great support in Wayne State.”

Student donors will be acknowledged at graduation as well. Last semester President Rames thanked everyone for their participation in the senior challenge.

Emails regarding the Students Assisting Students Endowed Scholarship will be sent out this semester to graduating seniors with the intention of giving every student, on or off campus, the chance to help a fellow student.