Priorities + Impact

Development Priorities

The state of Tennessee provides only a small percentage of UT’s budget, so private gifts are essential to create momentum to improve our programs for students. With this support, our students and faculty continue to make valuable contributions to our communities, cities and the world.

 

Your generosity supports our development priorities:

  • Increase scholarships and travel awards to improve undergraduate and graduate recruitment and retention and reduce student debt.
    When we can offer more scholarships and travel awards, we can compete with other leading colleges for the best students. Our students could graduate debt-free, a game-changer for many.
  • Create a design/build fund to prepare for future opportunities. The design/build program is a differentiator for us and helps us recruit the best students.
    Bright and curious students want to attend a college that is active in contributing to the public good, where they will get experience that will shape their futures. Our successful design/build program needs long-term funding, so we can continually be researching, designing, building and making an impact in the world.

 

We can’t do what we do without the support of firms, industry partners, alumni and friends just like you.

 

Give Now

 

Whether big or small, your support makes a difference.

Whether it’s Planned Estate, a Gift Endowment, the College Fund for Architecture and Design, School Funds (Architecture, Design, Interior Architecture, or Landscape Architecture), an Annual Gift for Scholarship/Travel Awards, or something else, choose what’s right for you.  That might be including the college in your will, adding us as a beneficiary to a life insurance policy or a 401K, supporting student travel, contributing to one of our schools or supporting students in another way.  We can help you find the right option that is meaningful to you.

 

Contact Us to Explore Giving Options

Giving Makes a Difference

Support from firms, industry partners, alumni and friends helps our students and faculty transform the world through research, public service and design. Your support has helped us

  • Provide almost $310,000 in private scholarships to 156 of our 600+ students in 2019, reducing student debt and attracting the brightest students
  • Provide more off-campus and study abroad opportunities for students with financial need, giving them the chance to broaden their perspective and enrich their design skills
  • Host our summer high school immersion program, UT Summer Design Camp, and open the world of design to more students through scholarships
  • Design and build national award-winning projects, like A New Norris House, Living Light House, Red Bird Water Kiosk and Beardsley Farm Education Center, that make a difference in the lives of our students and community members
  • Explore with professional designers and scientists through our unprecedented Governor’s Chair for Energy + Urbanism and together, design and 3D-print AMIE, the revolutionary energy-harvesting system and structure, named a 2017 R+D Award winner by Architect magazine
  • Provide faculty support grants for creative activity and research that enrich our faculty’s expertise and translate to more innovation in the studio
  • Host world-renowned lecturers for students, faculty, staff and area designers that connect the college with the international design community
  • Hold Career Day for our students, when more than 70 firms from across the country pay to have the opportunity to interview soon-to-be-graduates for jobs, search for students to fill internships, externships and “exposure-ships,” review portfolios and give students invaluable feedback
  • Bring alumni together to network and reminisce
  • And much more
Community Members holding water jugs

Ways to Give

Whether big or small, your support makes a difference. Here are some of our giving options; choose what’s right for you:

  • Planned Estate Gift: A giving option that allows you to make a bequest in your will, life insurance policy or 401K to benefit the college. Your gift can be designated according to your preferences
  • Endowment: Endowed gifts are long term and make the biggest impact. An endowed gift is made up of a donation that is invested, and the interest from the investment provides recurring scholarships, travel awards or other long-term support for students and faculty
  • College Fund for Architecture and Design: This opportunistic fund gives our students and faculty the tools and experiences they need to achieve the next big idea
  • School Funds: These funds give our schools leverage to enhance technology, support research and provide programs for students:
    Architecture Development Fund
    Interior Architecture Development Fund
    Landscape Architecture Development Fund                                                                                                        School of (Graphic) Design Development Fund
  • Annual Gift for Scholarship/Travel Awards: Off-campus study is required for undergraduate Architecture students and highly encouraged by the schools of Interior Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Students also sometimes need support to attend conferences and other learning opportunities. An annual gift can open these possibilities for students
  • Your Choice: We will work with you to create the best way to help you make a difference.  All gifts matter.  Make a commitment to one gift, any amount, every year.

 

On behalf of our students and faculty, thank you!