This text is part of the special Philanthropy section
From the start of the pandemic, the University of Montreal’s office of philanthropy launched a fundraising campaign to support students and invest in research on COVID-19. In addition to this exceptional mobilization, donations make it possible to continuously invest in various projects that have a direct impact on the lives of many people and in society. Three examples.
Support students and research in times of pandemic
“The Faculty of Music was the first to raise its hand to say that their students could no longer perform musical performances. [en raison de la pandémie], that their income has fallen to zero and that they are in financial precariousness, ”recalls Hélène Véronneau, director general of philanthropic development at the University of Montreal (UdeM), regarding the difficult conditions experienced by students in the spring of 2020. Evidence then emerged, when several students found themselves in a similar situation. An emergency campaign was therefore quickly deployed to come to their aid, and the community’s response was not long in coming.
In 2020, a fundraising campaign to raise $ 5 million was also launched to support research and scientists propelled to the front line in the fight against COVID-19. The funds collected were transferred to projects aimed at accelerating the discovery of solutions to curb the pandemic, as well as to draw lessons from this health, economic and social crisis. “Beyond health, the pandemic has effects on different spheres of society; the funds were also used for studies in psychology, how to support people in times of mourning ”, observes Mme Véronneau.
More than a hundred research projects have thus been developed to meet this demand. The projects aim in particular to fill the lack of fundamental knowledge about the virus, to develop treatments and a vaccine, to develop approaches to prevent infections, to integrate artificial intelligence in various research sectors. The projects are funded by the philanthropic fund created to fight COVID, as well as investments from the federal government.
Student success scholarships
“My situation is not easy, I have a son, I have to meet the deadlines, hand in the homework on time. To get there, you need determination, ”says Rebecca Charles, a young graduate in international studies and recipient of an undergraduate student success grant, in a video on the UdeM website. “Receiving a scholarship changes a session, it changes a life. As in this specific case, philanthropic donations also make it possible to award scholarships for student success to undergraduate students who stand out for their studies, their perseverance or their commitment throughout their career.
The university anchored in the community fabric
In the Montreal district of Parc-Extension, an organization supported by the Marcelle and Jean Coutu Foundation has been bringing together families and schools in the district, as well as teachers and students from UdeM for about 15 years. Members of the university provide services in remedial education, optometry and dentistry to neighborhood children. One of the goals of the project is to help students gain experience in multicultural and more disadvantaged backgrounds.
“The Extension helps ensure the well-being of students, who will then be better prepared to learn,” said Laila Tamda, deputy director of the Barclay school, in a UdeM article published in October 2020. For several years, the organization lived in the classrooms of Barclay School, in the neighborhood. As the school welcomes more and more students, the Extension had to move to new premises in 2020. The inauguration of new premises near the Acadie metro station was made possible by a philanthropic mobilization of more than 350 donors, as well as by a donation from the Marcelle and Jean Coutu Foundation. The organization’s expansion will broaden the involvement of students from other university faculties and offer services to high school youth.
The chancellor of UdeM, Frantz Saintellemy, underlines the importance for the university to be anchored in the community. “If we look at the new MIL campus, its layout has been designed to give the local community access to the university infrastructure,” he observes. Between the districts of Mont-Royal, Outremont and Parc-Extension, there is a physical separation, and the university connects, like a bridge, these three districts. “
The construction of the MIL campus also benefited from the contribution of patrons, such as the couple of former graduates, Michel Saucier and Gisèle Beaulieu. “We want to be a university that is closer to its environment, both locally and internationally,” says the Chancellor. And eventually, [on veut] to be a local university which is an important player in its locality. “