University of Montana Foundation

As the University of Montana Foundation’s 75th anniversary year comes to an end, we are filled with gratitude for the generosity, vision and partnership of our devoted giving community and volunteers. Your commitment has changed thousands of lives and strengthened UM’s access and excellence for generations.

Over the past 75 years, donors have built an enduring legacy of life-changing support for students and faculty; campus expansion and renewal; state-of-the-art research and innovation; and renowned academic and athletic programs.

In 2023, Steve and Jane Bahls gave to supplement the salaries of law school faculty selected by the Law School Dean. This year, they deepened their commitment with a $1 million endowment, expanding the program’s reach and ensuring it will help UM recruit and retain top legal scholars. 

When renowned artist Patricia Forsberg passed away in 2024, her husband of nearly 60 years, Stephen, was inspired to include a significant gift in his estate plan to the College of the Arts and Media to honor her legacy. The fund will help transform the School of Visual and Media Arts’ ability to support future generations of emerging artists at UM in perpetuity.

Learn how donor support of UM's Music Building, a new hub for conservation and an innovative anatomy lab will renew our campus landscape, help prepare students for successful careers and strengthen our entire community.

The State of Mind theater and public dialogue tour is expanding its mission of normalizing conversations about mental and behavioral health to new communities across the state. The tour is made possible by continued support from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and the Headwaters Foundation.

Michael Boateng Agyenim, a first-generation college student from Ghana, earned the Nelson “Jerry” Weller Graduate Economics Research Fellowship. With this support, Agyenim is conducting high-level research with a faculty mentor, earning a Master of Arts degree in economics and building his career as a professor, researcher and policy advisor. 

By using your rental property to fund a Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT), you can convert active rental income into hassle-free payments for life or a set term without the headaches of property management. A CRUT can support your financial goals and the causes you care about most at UM while offering tax benefits.

Joe Whittinghill '89 was honored with the Neil S. Bucklew Presidential Service Award this fall. Learn more about his remarkable service and contributions to student success at UM.

Designed with our donors' convenience and needs in mind, the Foundation's new online giving platform makes giving to support UM fast and simple. Find giving opportunities aligned with your interests; give using Venmo, PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay; make a monthly or yearly recurring gift commitment; recommend a donor-advised fund grant; or donate a gift of cryptocurrency.