Feeling grateful for great news

In the last issue I told you about all the good news going on at UNH. So maybe this is going to sound unoriginal when I say, well … we’ve got more. A lot more. But I’d bet my favorite editing pen you’ll be glad to hear it; news for higher education this year has been tough, especially in New Hampshire, where headwinds of funding and demographics seem to be blowing against us.

But chin up, dear readers, and take heart — amazing things are happening here, made possible by amazingly generous people. During the last seven years of fundraising, donors have made gifts of every dollar amount imaginable, to every nook and cranny of the UNH experience — from lab equipment to internship support, basic needs like money for food and clothing to scholarships and research support.

Just look at some of the numbers: roughly $128 million given in that timeframe for scholarships and financial aid, and just about that amount given for research — which we know at UNH doesn’t just mean faculty and doctoral students, but also students as young as freshmen getting involved. And hundreds of new scholarships were created (consider that with another statistic: roughly 88% of the incoming class receive some form of financial aid).

Leading the charge on this most recent fundraising campaign, which officially ran from July 1, 2018, to July 1, 2025, were three people who know what kind of impact philanthropy can have first-hand: Brian McCabe ’91, Jude Blake ’77 and Peter Paul ’67. Each of them has given back to UNH in transformational ways: through support for programs, faculty and student scholarships, and with their mentorship of students, expertise on university boards and capabilities to rally their fellow Wildcats around a cause. Their tireless work on behalf of their alma mater is part of this good news, too.

Next, I’ll draw your attention to military- and veteran-related package on pages 10-13. This year marks the anniversary of the end of World War II, as well as the last Americans leaving Vietnam, so we wanted to mark these milestones in our military history with some highlights from our own past and present. In addition, I’ve been talking with veterans and military members throughout this milestone year to gain their perspective on service and their UNH reflections. We’ll feature their stories in our next issue.

I got to chat with Andy DeMeo ’17, founder of the Granite Goodness newsletter and podcast, whose mission is to highlight the good things going on in the Granite State via a storytelling genre called progress journalism. Check out my profile of President Elizabeth Chilton, page 16, and then give a listen to Andy’s podcast episode featuring her. I hope there are some Granite Goodness/UNH Magazine collaborations in our future — stay tuned on that! Enjoy this issue and, as always, be in touch with your good news whenever you can!

MICHELLE MORRISSEY ’97
Editor-in-Chief, UNH Magazine
Alumni.editor@unh.edu