Student Legacy Endowment at BYU-Idaho to start new campaign

With the welfare of Brigham Young University-Idaho students in mind, LDS Philanthropies has initiated a new campaign to bring a fresh look to the Student Legacy Endowment. 

The new campaign remembers student sacrifices from six specific events, including student efforts during World War II, the 1998 creation of the Perpetual Education Fund, and the overwhelming student response to the 1976 Teton Dam Flood.

This fall semester the new campaign will invite students to "be a part of the legacy," and donate to the Student Legacy Endowment (SLE), continuing the tradition of peer financial assistance. 

SLE is an emergency fund set up to assist students who come into financial distress. "It's a program for students to help other students in need," said Alton Hansen, Director of Annual Giving.

Although most students live on a tight budget, some don't even have enough to get by and would be forced to drop out.  With the financial assistance of SLE, many students have felt the burdens of financial and emotional stress lifted from their shoulders, allowing them to remain in school where before there was no way to continue.

During Winter Semester 2007, 20.7 percent of the student body participated in SLE, pledging $22,757.  Since that time, over $18,000 of the pledges have been received and put to use. 

As in past semesters, donors will continue to match all student pledges 1 to 1 in the upcoming campaign, realizing the importance of student sacrifice. 

There are many ways to give to SLE, including contacting LDS Philanthropies, responding to student pledge calls and postcards or by dropping a donation in the SLE Boxes found throughout campus.

To contact LDS Philanthropies with any questions or to donate, visit www.byui.edu/sle or contact Annual Giving, 16 East Main, Suite B, Rexburg, ID, 83460-0057. Annual Giving can also be reached at 496-3301.