University of Montana Foundation

Homecoming 1950 was in full swing. A small group of community leaders and alumni united with the goal to give back to the school they loved. These forward-thinking volunteers filed Articles of Incorporation to establish what would become the University of Montana Foundation.

In the early 1950s, as Korean War veterans returned home and college costs rose, a group of dedicated Montana citizens united to secure the future of public higher education. The UM Foundation’s Board of Trustees and passionate donors believed in the power of a UM education to change lives. Their grassroots volunteer efforts helped to expand student scholarships and campus innovation.

During the 1960s, Foundation donors and Trustees helped distinguish the University as a global hub of innovation and leadership. From UM's first computer to the groundbreaking Mansfield Lecture Series, this decade saw increased support for public programming, advanced technologies and more. Learn about UM’s first technology boom and the American luminaries who launched the Mansfield Endowment.

As the nation faced economic challenges in the 1970s, donors and Trustees ensured that the University remained a beacon of education, discovery and opportunity. They moved to protect Montana’s wild spaces and launched improvements that still serve students and faculty today, including upgrades to the Flathead Lake Biological Station, the establishment of Montana’s first astronomical research facility and so much more.

By the mid-1980s, private giving to higher education was on the rise, and UM donors were thinking bigger than ever before. Among them was actor Carroll O’Connor '56, known for his role as Archie Bunker, who helped fundraise for a new fine arts building. This era also saw construction of the iconic Washington-Grizzly Stadium and the launch of the “Extending a Tradition of Excellence” campaign, which inspired a record-breaking $7.8 million in two years for areas of need across campus.

In the 1990s, UM celebrated its centennial — and a decade of record-breaking growth. Donors rallied behind the “Ensuring a Tradition of Excellence” campaign, the most successful fundraising effort in Montana higher education history at the time. Supporters gave $71.4 million to expand scholarships, advance research, upgrade landmark facilities and more. Learn how donors helped ignite an era of transformative impact across campus.

During the 2000s, UM’s philanthropic community stood strong, bonded by a shared commitment to building a brighter future for Montana and beyond. Donors united to launch the “Invest in Discovery — Connecting People, Programs and Place” campaign, inspiring $131 million to set even higher standards of support for scholarships, faculty positions, academic programs and campus facilities.

The generosity of thousands of donors enabled UM to expand access, excellence and service for students during the 2010s. This decade launched with the grand opening of the landmark Payne Family Native American Center, funded by private support. The enduring dedication and leadership of UM alumni, friends, families, organizations and foundations during this era laid the groundwork for the most ambitious and successful fundraising campaign in Montana history: “Campaign Montana — Think Big. Be Bold.”

Donors rallied to invest in immediate student needs as the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in America, and private giving once again emerged as a stabilizing force. New forms of philanthropy, including crowdfunding and UM’s annual giving day, gained momentum. The early 2020s also saw UM in the midst of the largest infrastructure refresh in its history, including projects in the arts, athletics and music. In addition, “Treasure Montana: Cultivating Our Tomorrow” was launched to raise funds for Montana's new hub for environment and conservation.