2023 Reflections: A heartfelt thank you to our alumni, donors and friends

Dear Nipissing University alumni, donors, and friends,

As 2023 comes to a close, I wanted to share a moment of gratitude and a humble thank you for your continued engagement with the University. Here at Nipissing, we have a lot to be proud of, and we couldn’t do the work we do without the engagement of our incredible community. 2023 presented us with many reasons to connect, and we look forward to continuing the conversation in 2024 and beyond.

As we reflect on the year, I am humbled to be able to share some of the highlights from the past year:

Building off the success of its inaugural year, Nipissing University collaborated with the Nipissing University Black Association for Student Expression (NUBASE) on the 2nd annual With1VoiceNight: Shoot for Change Charity Basketball Game. The proceeds from this game were used to establish the Warren Lindsay Bursary, which currently has over $60,000 endowed in support of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) Students at Nipissing University. We are excited to collaborate on the 3rd annual game, scheduled to take place on January 20th, 2024.

In March, we returned to an in-person Donor Social format, where we celebrated all the wonderful ways philanthropy impacts our campus community. We heard inspiring words from Rare Dementia Support (RDS) Canada and the Office of Indigenous Initiatives about how donations impact their work. This event also serves as a key connection point for award donors to meet their students, and we were so thrilled to see the Nipissing University Student Union (NUSU) Student Centre filled to capacity in the spirit of celebrating philanthropy.

Throughout the year, there was a focus on engaging with the community around Nipissing University’s strategic planning process. In September, the University officially launched the strategic plan entitled “Pathways: Our Commitments to Water, Land, and People for the Next Seven Generations at Nipissing University”. In the process of creating this document, we were honoured to have been able to engage with so many alumni and donors to assist us in charting our path forward. We look forward to continuing to engage with the University’s rightsholders and stakeholders as the plan is operationalized.

Our focus towards the end of the year has been to rally support for the Student Support Fund. This fund is a critical support for Nipissing students, providing direct financial support to help students through unforeseen financial challenges. To date, we have raised $22,000 and our efforts continue until the end of the year. In addition to the Student Support Fund, this year we have established 8 new named scholarships, awards, and bursaries thanks to the incredible generosity of Nipissing’s donors.

2024 is shaping out to be a wonderful year. There are many exciting plans afoot at the University in response to the Strategic Plan, and we look forward to continuing that momentum through ongoing engagements with Nipissing’s community. The invitation is always open for you to reach out to our advancement team if you have any questions around what is happening at the University, or if you’d like to get a behind the scenes look at an area of interest.

We are so grateful for the wonderful connections we’ve formed this year, and look forward to continued engagement in the new year. Philanthropy at Nipissing isn’t just about money. We have seen our community donate their time, resources, and knowledge in support of our students, and for that we are extremely grateful.

We are wishing everyone a happy and healthy holiday season, and a fantastic end to 2023.

Warmest,

Cristin Talentino, CFRE
Director, External Relations & Advancement