Every day at the University of Oregon, dedicated faculty and staff help students explore new possibilities, inspire the next generation, and turn bold ideas into solutions that improve lives. Now, a new comprehensive campaign aims to build on that momentum through philanthropy and deeper engagement with alumni and supporters.
On October 30, the UO publicly launched “Unstoppable: The Campaign for Oregon,” a multi-year effort to advance the university’s priorities and expand its impact across Oregon and beyond.
Investing in Oregon’s future
Grounded in Oregon Rising, the campaign focuses on three interconnected priorities:
- Expanding student access and success: Increasing affordability and scholarships, strengthening career preparation, and creating more opportunities for students to gain real-world experience and graduate ready for what comes next.
- Elevating excellence in action: Investing in the faculty, staff, advisers, coaches, mentors, and researchers who inspire students, advance knowledge, and help the university reach new heights.
- Accelerating research and ideas with impact: Supporting early-stage research, encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration, and helping promising ideas become solutions to real-world challenges.
Philanthropic support plays a critical role in advancing these priorities, helping bridge the gap between public funding and the resources needed to support students, faculty, and research. A key campaign goal is to grow unrestricted giving, which provides the university with flexibility to respond to emerging needs, pursue new opportunities, and invest in strategic priorities. The campaign also aims to deepen alumni and community engagement through career mentorship, connecting UO students with alumni, donors, and community members who can help them explore career paths and prepare for life after graduation.
Stories of Oregon’s impact
A new Unstoppable Campaign website brings these priorities to life through stories of the people and programs driving the university forward.
You can meet students like Kit Hungerford, whose donor-funded scholarship and mentorship from Professor Annelise Heinz have opened doors to new academic and career possibilities. You can also explore the work of Philip H. Knight Distinguished Research Chair David Wineland, a Nobel prize–winning physicist whose research is helping advance quantum science.
Other stories highlight the Sustainable City Year Program, which connects UO students and faculty with Oregon communities to address local challenges, and the Ballmer Institute for Children's Behavioral Health, where an innovative approach to workforce development is helping expand access to youth behavioral health services. These are just a few examples of the curiosity, creativity, and determination that define Oregon—and the ways philanthropy makes it possible.
Over the next five years, the Unstoppable Campaign will seek to build on these strengths, creating more opportunities for students, supporting the people who guide and inspire them, and extending the reach of UO research and scholarship. Faculty and staff, who bring Oregon’s mission to life every day, are central to this work.
Visit unstoppable.uoregon.edu to explore the stories and learn more about the campaign.
Have a story to share?
From students finding their paths to faculty pursuing bold ideas, UO employees see firsthand how opportunities take shape across the university. If you know of a person, program, or project that demonstrates what's possible at Oregon—and how philanthropy helps make it happen—submit your story idea for consideration as a future campaign feature.