SUPPORTING THE WHOLE STUDENT

PHILANTHROPY SPOTLIGHT

The Disability and Learning Resource Center

“Our students make art that explores, challenges, and evolves our shared society. This work is vitally important and rewarding, but it is also hard and ongoing. Through their care of our students, my team shows compassion. I believe that philanthropy is an act of compassion, too.”

JOSEPH M. BEHEN, DEAN, WELLNESS CENTER

In 2021–22, through support from the government and gifts from individuals, SAIC’s Wellness Center continued to serve 55 percent of our undergraduate and graduate student body.

Our nationally recognized student wellness program is powered by philanthropy. Through our partnership with donors, we are able to provide comprehensive health and counseling services for all SAIC students who need them. With each gift, loyal supporters increase our capacity to provide integrative, holistic care.

55% Undergraduate and graduate students who use Wellness Center resources

The Disability and Learning Resource Center (DLRC) supports a universally accessible educational community that fosters the full participation and contribution of every member. The DLRC carries out its mission by delivering innovative and high-quality services to students who identify as having a disability —approximately 25 percent of our student body. DLRC staff ensure that all students have equal access to all programs, activities, and services of the institution.

Classes like Lecturer Megan Euker’s Intro to Designed Objects and exhibitions such as Come/Back encourage all students to create, reflect, and be compassionate toward people of all backgrounds and abilities. Euker’s class used the collections at Chicago’s International Museum of Surgical Science to identify medical or bodily constraints that could be alleviated through a thoughtfully designed assistive device. Come/Back encouraged viewers to think about what it means to “come back” in a time of profound loss, inequity, and uncertainty. With $2,000,000 in philanthropic funding gifted between 2020 and 2021, the DLRC was able to invest in an additional disability specialist to continue providing expert student support while also pursuing expanded programming opportunities.