Students step up to donate class gift
It took less than two minutes for most students to take part in a fundraiser for the first-ever College of Nursing class gift.
But those two minutes were pretty grueling.
Through the "Hustle Up Nursing" fundraiser, about 40 UIC Nursing students climbed to the top of the Chicago campus building at 845 S. Damen: 11 stories and 187 steps.
Named as a nod to "Hustle Up the Hancock," an annual fundraiser of the Respiratory Health Association held at Chicago's (formerly-named) John Hancock Center, the Apr. 17 event allowed the class to raise about $350 for a gift to the college's expanded simulation lab, opening in 2019.
"For those of us who are graduating, it's our way of showing how much we appreciate our time here and paying it forward to the next classes of students," said Celine Dalde, president of the Student Nurses' Association. "I'm so grateful to all the students who participated. We hope this is the start of a new tradition for future graduating classes."
Each student and faculty participant made a philanthropic donation toward the Class of 2018 gift, then pinned on a numbered bib and climbed the stairs. Faculty and staff cheered the students as they rounded each landing. Several faculty members made donations to further enhance the class gift.
Students reached the top triumphantly—if not a little short of breath—as they passed through a finish line of streamers.
Once finished with the climb, students got to take photos in a photo booth, see their individual time to complete the climb, enjoy light refreshments and hear a message of gratitude from Dean Terri E. Weaver. It wasn't the size of the gift that mattered, but the gesture of school support, she said.
"I want to thank the students for investing in us," Weaver said. "I feel such pride when I'm out and about, speaking as dean, that I can say that our students are taking an active role in supporting all we strive to do as a college."