Colorado Mesa University students, faculty and staff have a new fundraising program that can help them with their club, organization or project.
MavFunder, started January of this year, is a crowdfunding program that can help people donate to a large variety of CMU related organizations.
Director of Annual Givings for the CMU foundation Tina Kleespies said that any particular department on campus can participate to raise money for their scholarship funds. Kleespies expects more projects will be added to MavFunder by the fall semester.
“As the semester goes on into the fall, we’ll have more campaigns that’ll have options on that page,” Kleespies said.
The application process is simple for anyone wanting the assist with MavFunder.
“Anyone directly associated with CMU can apply, submit their project as to what is their cause, and the funds have to directly relate to CMU,” Kleespies said to KJCT8.
Currently, there are only two projects that are receiving donation funding, the Mesa Motorsports team and the CMU Hardship program.
The Mesa Motorsports team is a part of the CMU Engineering Club. They are raising funds to compete at the formula Society of Automotive Engineers collegiate competition held at the International Speedway in Michigan where they will be competing with teams from all over the world.
They will design and build their own formula style race car to compete in the competition. So far, they have 18 supporters and have raised $1,865. Their goal is to reach $4,500 by March 10.
The CMU Hardship Program is designed to keep students from dropping out when the unexpected happens. Whether it is a sudden death in the family or the loss of a job, this fund was set up to help students stay in school.
So far, the Hardship Fund has 32 supporters and have raised nearly $10,193 through MavFunder. Their goal is to reach $15,000 by June 20.
Lindsey Manning, who works with the recipient board for MavFunder, said that it has become a lifesaver.
“[Students] can stay in school, they can get to and from school, they can feed their families,” Manning said to KJCT8.
MavFunder is free to use and 100 percent of the money raised goes to that specified group or project. To donate to MavFunder, visit the website, www.supportingcmu.com/mavfunder.