It was a great year for the Libraries’ 40 Hours for the Forty Acres giving campaign. This year’s efforts centered around sustaining the Map & Geospatial Collections Explorer Fellowship – a vital initiative aimed at fostering innovative scholarship and leveraging the rich resources housed within the UT Libraries’ map and geospatial collections – and an endowment for the Digital Scholarship Program administered by the Benson Latin American Collection and the Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies.
The 40 Hours for the Forty Acres serves as a rallying point for the university community, bringing together alumni, students, faculty, staff, parents, and friends in a collective effort to bolster initiatives that resonate with their interests and goals for UT.
This year’s campaign resulted in nearly $30,000 raised in support of the Map & Geospatial Collections Explorer Fellowship, which has been instrumental in advancing research and facilitating academic exploration. These funds will play a pivotal role in sustaining and expanding the scope of the award, ensuring that it continues to serve as a catalyst for groundbreaking research and scholarly inquiry.
Since its inception, the Map & Geospatial Collections Explorer Fellowship has provided invaluable support to UT scholars, offering financial assistance and resources to support their explorations into diverse fields. Through the Fellowship, recipients have been empowered to delve into projects ranging from mapping rising sea levels on the Texas coast to creating artistic spatial visualizations of biodiversity in Hawaii. The impact of these projects extends far beyond the university campus, contributing to advancements in various disciplines and enriching our collective understanding of the world.
The second campaign raised just over $20,000 towards the creation of an endowment for the Digital Scholarship Program administered by the Benson Latin American Collection and the Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. The LLILAS Benson Digital Scholarship Program aims to advance Latin American Studies through the ethical application of digital tools in the realm of translation, accessibility, language preservation, and more. The funds raised during this campaign get LLILAS Benson one giant step closer to funding their Digital Scholarship Program in perpetuity, through the creation of an endowed fund.
The Libraries extends its sincerest thanks to all who contributed to the success of this year’s campaign. Your generosity has not only provided vital support for the Map & Geospatial Collections Explorer Fellowship and the Digital Scholarship Program, but has also reaffirmed the importance of investing in initiatives that advance knowledge and scholarship.
These annual campaigns continue to bring exciting, crowd-funded support to the UT Libraries and its various endeavors, collections, and programs. We look forward to sharing the successes of the programs supported during this year’s 40 Hours for the Forty Acres.
To make an additional contribution to either of the campaign efforts, visit:
MGCE Fellowship – https://give.utexas.edu?menu=OGPLCMP&solicit=TA1
LLILAS Benson Digital Scholarship – https://give.utexas.edu?menu=OGPLLBDS&solicit=TA1