Trent U launches $100 million campaign to “vitalize” campuses in Peterborough and Oshawa
Published March 27, 2023 at 12:28 pm
Trent University launched a bold $100-million campaign for Momentous Change on Friday – the largest in school history – to empower students, enable world-changing research, steward the preservation of the university’s iconic architecture, and vitalize campuses in both Peterborough and Oshawa.
The school has already raised $42 million towards its goal, including $6.6 million for new facilities in Oshawa.
“As the world around us changes, we face complex challenges that require decisive action and new ways of thinking. This makes Trent University more important than ever,” says Dr. Leo Groarke, the university’s president and vice-chancellor. “Our Momentous campaign will provide donors with an opportunity to expand the work of brilliant researchers, remove barriers that might prevent students from achieving their full potential, and take ideas from our classrooms and laboratories to communities and the world.”
The event was hosted simultaneously at the Peterborough and Durham Greater Toronto Area (GTA) campus in Oshawa and featured the unveiling of the campaign set to an energetic drumbeat performed by the audience of special guests, donors, staff, faculty, students, and board members.
The launch also celebrated the $42 million raised to date, including $6.6 million toward a new residence and academic building as well as student supports at Trent Durham GTA; a $2.5M gift from the Joyce Family Foundation to increase access to education for disadvantaged students; nearly $2.4M to launch and support the inaugural Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership; and a $1M gift from David and Joan Moore to support students from across the world through international scholarships. The University also announced a new $1.2M gift that supports community-based research.
Co-campaign leader Gavin Marshall, a Trent alumnus (’76) and the founder and CEO of mortgage investment giant Magenta Capital Corporation, said the campaign is about “building a better world” for tomorrow’s leaders. “To do so is how we transcend today and touch the tomorrows we shall never see. An investment in Trent – an investment in the leaders and pioneers of tomorrow – is the most impactful, and at this moment in human history, the most essential legacy any of us could ever leave.”
Videos
Marshall is sharing leadership responsibilities with Linda Schuyler, a member of the Order of Canada, co-creator of the multi-award winning Degrassi television franchise, and honorary Trent alumna.
Through the campaign, the university is fundraising for areas such as the Trent Fund to support Student Wellness, the Trent Lands and Nature Areas, the schools of Education, Nursing, Faculty of Science, the Colleges of Trent and the School of Graduate Studies.
To assist in raising the ambitious $100M goal, the school also aims to recruit 500 new monthly donors to provide sustainable and reliable support for students, research and learning spaces.
“The campaign for Momentous Change is for everyone and all gifts are important – from $100 to $100,000 to $10 million,” says Sherry Booth, associate vice-president of Philanthropy & Alumni Engagement at Trent. “We invite contributors to engage in momentous ways – big, small, public, private. No matter the size of the gift, the outcomes of this campaign will be momentous and consequential.”
Friday’s launch was the first in a series of cross-Canada events to gain momentum for the campaign. Launch events will also be held this spring and fall in Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax.
To learn more on the campaign, visit trentu.ca/momentous.
insauga's Editorial Standards and Policies advertising