THE WESLEYAN FUND IMPACT REPORT
Giving History: Our Sincere Thanks: A Leadership Message to Wesleyan Fund Donors
At Illinois Wesleyan University, a great source of pride is the strength of our community, one that continues to flourish because of your belief in our mission and your investment in our students. As we have sought to reimagine and redefine the importance of the Wesleyan Fund, we have also purposefully changed how we steward those who selflessly support it. For the first time, you will see firsthand how the Wesleyan Fund plays such a profound part in what makes IWU so distinctive by the way these dollars are strategically allocated on our campus. The Wesleyan Fund is the heart aflame of this collective effort, strengthening every facet of campus and ensuring that all aspects of the IWU entrepreneurial and innovative liberal arts experience continue to thrive.
The Wesleyan Fund support ensures that this vital work continues each year. Through your generosity, talented students can pursue their education with the help of financial aid. These dollars also enable us to maintain a beautiful and inspirational campus that honors the past and shapes the future momentum of this University. Faculty and students are empowered to bring new ideas to life through special projects that enhance learning and discovery. And our community is enriched by events and gatherings that strengthen the bonds that make Illinois Wesleyan such a distinctive place to live, learn, and grow.
Because of gifts to the Wesleyan Fund, Illinois Wesleyan continues to provide an education distinguished by personal attention, academic rigor, and transformative opportunities that prepare students to make meaningful contributions to the world. Support of the Wesleyan Fund ensures that this legacy endures.
On behalf of the entire Illinois Wesleyan community, thank you for your commitment to our mission and for the lasting difference you make by supporting the Wesleyan Fund. Your belief in Illinois Wesleyan University strengthens our foundation and inspires all of us to look to the future with optimism and resolve.
Sheahon Zenger President
Jesse Meyer Vice President for Advancement
By the Numbers
Thanks to your generosity, the Wesleyan Fund continues to drive meaningful change across Illinois Wesleyan University. Here’s a look at the numbers from the last fiscal year - a record-breaking year for the Wesleyan Fund - highlighting how your support fuels scholarships, the Parent Fund, and transformative experiences for our students.
THE
WESLEYAN
FUND TOTAL
DOLLARS: $3,453,268 Key Strategic Initiatives: $1,822,433
TOTAL DONORS
2,219 Parent Fund: $35,434 Annual Scholarship Support: $1,595,401
Giving statistics are calculated from our last fiscal year (Aug. 1, 2024-July 31, 2025).
Scholarship Support
“Scholarship support has lightened the financial burden of my studies, allowing me to focus more on my academic and professional goals. My passion for literature and teaching drives me to inspire future generations, and your support brings me closer to achieving this dream. I am profoundly grateful for your investment in my future. Teaching is something that I have a lot of passion for and I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity.”
—Nycole Clark ‘26
At Illinois Wesleyan University, scholarships make an IWU education attainable to the best and brightest students regardless of their financial situation. Every scholarship tells a story of possibility, perseverance, and potential realized.
These gifts create pathways for Titans to pursue their passions in classrooms, labs, studios, and communities, and to graduate ready to shape a world that needs their talent and vision. Scholarships are where impact becomes personal. Each award represents a student whose journey continues because someone believed in their future. That belief ripples outward, inspiring excellence and fueling a culture of generosity that defines the IWU experience.
Because of you, bright and motivated students have access to an exceptional education rooted in the liberal arts and infused with real-world experience. Your support doesn’t just fund an education, it transforms lives.
Parent Fund
The Parent Fund at Illinois Wesleyan University is an extension of the Wesleyan Fund. While the Wesleyan Fund fuels the full IWU experience from scholarships and academic programs to campus life and innovation, the Parent Fund focuses that same spirit of generosity on some of our students’ hardest moments.
When the loss or permanent disability of a parent threatens to derail a student’s education, the Parent Fund steps in to make sure they can stay on course.
Thanks to the generosity of IWU parents and friends, this fund has already helped more than 300 Titans persevere through unimaginable challenges.
One of those students is Mallory Mills ’25. After losing her father, Mallory leaned on the support of her IWU community and the Parent Fund to continue her studies. She didn’t just persevere, she thrived. Mallory became a two-time CCIW RESPECT Award recipient, a co-captain of the women’s lacrosse team, and a member of the Academic All-CCIW Team three years running. Her story is one of resilience, leadership, and achievement made possible in part because donors like you stepped in when she needed it most.
Mallory’s journey is a powerful reminder that your generosity does more than cover tuition bills. It creates the space for students to grieve, to heal, and to find strength in community. It transforms hardship into hope. Every gift to the Parent Fund affirms that no Titan has to face life’s toughest trials alone.
Mallory Mills ‘25
MAJOR: Marketing
CAREER: Account Specialist at Lockton
Center for the Humanities
The Wesleyan Fund gives University leadership the flexibility to say yes – to fund projects with the power to make a lasting impact, even when they aren’t part of the original budget. These are the opportunities that spark innovation and elevate the Illinois Wesleyan experience.
One of those opportunities was the creation of the Center for the Humanities. In its inaugural year, the Center has come alive under the visionary leadership of Joanne Diaz, Isaac Funk Professor of English.
Initiatives at the Center for the Humanities:
• An Immersive Horror in the Humanities ghost tour, film series, and archival exhibition was organized by History professor Alyssa Culp.
• Dialogues Across the Disciplines series,organized by Political Science professor James Simeone, featured a lecture from Biology professor Loralyn Cozy titled, “Can Microbes Be Altruistic?”
• The Chicagoland Cervantes Symposium was held at IWU: a two-day event featuring lectures and panel discussions, and concluding with a seventeenthcentury banquet.
• IWU will host the Humanities+ Conference in the spring of 2026 which will allow students and faculty from across the region to present research and gain professional development.
• The Hart Career Center will offer a Spring Break Career Immersion in the Humanities in the spring of 2026 to connect students with alumni working in professional humanities fields.
• In May 2026 Professor Diaz will lead a Humanities study abroad course titled “Maps, Bones and Windows: London and Paris in the Medieval and Renaissance Periods.”
Your support of the Wesleyan Fund makes this impact possible. It fuels the Center’s ability to reimagine the humanities as a forward-looking, dynamic force that enriches campus life and prepares students to engage thoughtfully with the world.
Dr. Joanne Diaz
Isaac Funk Endowed Chair of English and inaugural Director of the Center for the Humanities
Campus Beautification
Because of your generosity, Illinois Wesleyan University’s campus continues to shine as a place of pride, inspiration, and belonging. This past year, support from the Wesleyan Fund helped bring new life to our grounds and facilities by enhancing landscaping, investing in beautification projects, and making thoughtful improvements that honor our historic charm.
Every enhancement reflects a community committed to excellence. A beautiful, wellcared-for campus tells every student, parent, and visitor the same story: this is a place where tradition and innovation meet, and where, with your support, the future is built with care.
“I have always found IWU’s campus to be incredibly lively not just because of the vibrant student body, but also because of its stunning natural scenery. With hundreds of trees on campus and new ones planted, the landscape radiates color and life in every season. I’m grateful to attend a university that values and actively preserves our natural beauty”
—Abby Quinn ‘26
The Wesleyan Fund in Action
The Wesleyan Fund meets the needs of our IWU community as they arise, and opens doors to experiences that shape both learning and community. Because of your generosity, students and faculty benefit from visiting speakers who spark new ideas, faculty projects that push boundaries, and expert guidance from consultants who help us grow stronger. Your support ensures that IWU remains a place where curiosity thrives and an entrepreneurial spirit flourishes within the liberal arts.
Just as importantly, the Wesleyan Fund nurtures connection. From the laughter and fellowship of the Back-to-School BBQ, shared meals between student groups and University leaders at the Campus House, and the proud sight of IWU billboards across Bloomington-Normal, your gifts create moments that bring Titans together and extend our presence beyond campus. In every initiative, your support makes it possible for IWU to listen, respond, and invest in the people and traditions that define our community.
Shape the Future Today
Every story in this report builds on those that make up our 175 year history, and they wouldn’t be possible without you. The Wesleyan Fund is IWU’s most powerful tool for shaping the next 175 years by empowering the journey of Titans today, thanks to your generosity. Your support gives IWU the flexibility to say yes and gives leadership the ability to direct resources where they’re needed most. It strengthens scholarships, energizes faculty innovation, enhances campus life, and fuels student success. Thanks to you, today’s Titans are thriving and preparing to solve tomorrow’s challenges. The Wesleyan Fund is the embodiment of 175 years of Titan spirit and generosity where impact happens right now with ripple effects reaching far into the future. Thank you for shaping that future every day through your continued support.
You are an IMPACT-MAKER.
Every gift you make says “YES” to IWU.
