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CHARLESTON, IL (04/15/2026) Eastern Illinois University will host its 2026 Giving Day Wednesday, April 22. The campaign encourages alumni, faculty, staff, students and friends of EIU to consider supporting current and future Panthers through financial donations that can help offset current or future educational costs.

EIU alumni, staff, students, parents, and friends are challenging one another to “Step up for Panthers” during EIU’s Giving Day, a 24-hour opportunity to support the students who define EIU and help strengthen what makes the campus such a special place to learn and grow.

At EIU, students are uplifted through personal connections, a close-knit campus community and a commitment to helping every individual succeed. Giving Day is a chance for the entire EIU community to be part of that support and make a direct difference for students as they pursue their academic, personal, and career goals. Donations can be made at any time leading up to Giving Day and will be included in the overall Giving Day campaign total. To view this year’s featured funds and to donate, visit go.eiu.edu/GivingDay to explore convenient ways to give.

• Challenge Gifts
  Generous donors are offering Challenge Gifts, where donors have agreed to match donations to the fund of their choice, up to a certain level, if other Panther supporters make donations to those funds. A list of challenge gifts is available at go.eiu.edu/challenges.
• Giving Day Activities on the Library Quad
  Friends of EIU who are near campus on April 22 can join the excitement on the Library Quad from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Participants will enjoy food trucks, lawn games, and a chance to win an exclusive EIU t-shirt. Students are encouraged to jump in the “thank you video booth” to be featured in a message to alumni who have supported EIU or to write a postcard of thanks to donors who make it all possible by funding scholarships, emergency resources, wellness programs, student organizations, and more. EIU Giving Day events on the quad are open to all students, staff, and alumni and are sponsored by EIU Student Government and University Advancement.

Giving Days have become popular events for non-profit organizations, including higher education institutions, to seek complementary support in achieving their principal missions. For EIU, that mission includes offering superior, accessible education intended to help its students become responsible citizens and leaders. EIU has served the East Central Illinois region for more than 130 years since its founding in 1895. In that time, the Charleston, Illinois-based university has provided opportunities for generations of students to earn degrees, enhance their lives, achieve lucrative careers, and contribute to the communities in, across, and beyond Illinois in which they live, work, and play.

“Every gift, no matter the size, can go a long way toward helping our students receive the best educational experience possible,” said Interim Vice President for University Advancement Dr. Anne Flaherty. “Commitments from people within our own EIU Family can go a long way in showing our students what being ‘All In’ for EIU and its students really means.”

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