Alumni and friends funds
Most commonly based at school or faculty levels, donations via these funds directly benefit the specific school or faculty and are mostly allocated towards providing more opportunities and assistance to our students. Here are just a few of the projects alumni and friends are supporting.
A School for Malagiri
The School of Education is raising funds to build and run a school in a remote village in Nepal for children aged three to eight. Although the school has now been completed and was opened in the spring 2011 the university is fundraising to support the ongoing running and maintenance costs. In time the school will become a partner and provide opportunities for students to undertake teaching placements and research projects.
In their latest reports to the Alumni and Friends Fund, School of Education, senior lecturer, Kevin Fossey and educationalist Pema Dorjee updated us on activities since the school opened. The school now has six staff and 41 pupils from Malagiri village in the two-classroom school. Pema reports that the children are building their confidence and are very serious in class – and there are lots of smiles! The school’s influence reaches beyond educating the children. The head teacher has started knitting classes for the villagers, as well as a reading and writing class for parents. The next stage of the project is to build a third class room and a multipurpose room which can be used for teaching handicrafts and serve as accommodation for guests.
In 2012, 12 University of Brighton students visited the school and were very impressed by the standard of teaching and the enthusiasm of the children. The students love the experience and returned to the UK with stronger personal skills and greater cultural awareness. The school is used in teaching international education and global citizenship and this role will be strengthened as more staff visit the school in early 2013.
You can read more a on the School for Malagiri website here.
End of year prizes and nursing bursaries
A wide variety of prizes was awarded to students across the university's different schools and faculties at the end of the last academic year. These prizes were established by the generosity of alumni and friends of the university to support, encourage and recognise the best students and/or final year projects across a range of courses.
Chelsea School alumna, Pearl Holt, set up a yearly prize worth £300 which is awarded to the best student in Physical Education. Teaching staff of Chelsea School had the opportunity to nominate individuals whom they felt worthy of recognition. The criteria for selection were a combination of excellence in teaching, academic achievement, professional attributes and impact on others and the course. The first recipient of this prize was Nina Sandalls who used the prize money to buy a range of resources to support her teaching career.
An anonymous benefactor donated funds which allowed the School of Nursing and Midwifery to create two new £1,000 bursaries to support nurses’ learning and improve care for patients.
The University of Brighton’s new Barleycorn Award for Professional Development is named after Donna Barleycorn, one of its recent graduates who is now a practising nurse. Last year Donna was awarded a prestigious Florence Nightingale Scholarship to research nurse trauma care in England and South Africa. She will be offering personal mentorship for award winners to support them in their studies. Professor Shirley Bach, head of school, thanked Donna and the benefactor for supporting nursing education and added that: "These awards will not simply be given to the best students, but to those with a personal ambition and drive to improve care and who can maximise the benefits that the award can provide." You can find out more about these awards here.
Rebuilding the House that Kevin Built
In 2008, the presenter of Channel 4’s Grand Designs, Kevin McCloud, built an ‘eco-house’ live on TV over the course of six consecutive days which became known as ‘The House That Kevin Built’. This was the UK’s first contemporary low-energy prefabricated house built using entirely ecologically friendly materials. The architect behind the project was Duncan Baker-Brown who is a graduate of the university and a member of staff in the university’s School of Architecture and Design. The university now plans to rebuild the house as an educational and community project on the Faculty of Arts campus at Grand Parade. The university is committed to raising the necessary funds through philanthropic donations and sponsorship. Find out more…
Hastings Aspiration Awards
We are raising funds to increase the number of Hastings Aspirations Awards that we are able to offer for students from the Hastings and Rother area. The awards provide financial and additional study support for students who face additional challenges as well as carrying out their studies. They are designed as part of our widening participation activities in Hastings, to offer support and encouragement to help our students to achieve their goals.
To find out more about our activities and how to make a donation, please get in touch
