At St. ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½, we believe education changes lives, strengthens communities, and prepares people to meet the challenges of an increasingly complex world.
Donors help expand opportunities for students and ensure ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ continues to prepare graduates to make an impact in their career and community.
Our giving priorities reflect the areas where donor support makes the greatest difference.
ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½'s Giving Priorities
Priority 1 | Expanding Access and Opportunity
Priority 2 | Advancing Social and Environmental Impact
Priority 3 | Supporting Indigenous Success and Reconciliation
Priority 4 | Transforming the Student Experience
Priority 5 | Creativity, Culture, and Community
Priority 1 | Expanding Access & Opportunity
A university education remains one of the most powerful drivers of social mobility, yet financial barriers continue to prevent many capable students from pursuing their educational goals.
At ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½, more than 40% of first-year students are first-generation university students, making access and opportunity central to our mission. Donor support helps ensure that talent, determination, and potential, rather than circumstance, determine who can succeed.
Donor support can:
- Create scholarships and bursaries that make a ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ education more accessible
- Strengthen first-generation student success initiatives
- Provide emergency financial assistance when unexpected challenges arise
- Increase access to internships, research, travel, and other high-impact learning opportunities
Priority 2 | Advancing Social & Environmental Impact
Communities across New Brunswick face complex social, economic, and environmental challenges. Addressing them requires leaders who can combine creativity, collaboration, ethical judgment, and practical action.
Through programs such as Business and Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability and Environmental Studies, ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ prepares students to strengthen organizations, build resilient communities, and create solutions with lasting social and environmental value.
Donor support can:
- Grow the Social Enterprise Hub and Sustainability Learning Lab
- Create paid internships, applied research, and community placements
- Strengthen partnerships with non-profits, municipalities, Indigenous organizations, and employers
- Help students turn promising ideas into practical community impact
Priority 3 | Supporting Indigenous Success & Reconciliation
Reconciliation requires sustained commitment, trusted relationships, and meaningful action.
Approximately 12% of ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½’s student population identifies as Indigenous. At the heart of this success is the Wabanaki Centre, which provides belonging, cultural connection, academic support, and opportunities for leadership and growth. Continued philanthropic support will help ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ sustain and expand this proven, Indigenous-led approach.
Donor support can:
- Strengthen Wabanaki Centre leadership, staffing, and programming
- Create scholarships and experiential learning opportunities for Indigenous students
- Expand wellness, cultural, and community-based supports
- Advance teaching and learning connected to Truth and Reconciliation
Priority 4 | Transforming the Student Experience
The most meaningful learning experiences often happen when students put ideas into practice. Internships, research, athletics, community engagement, Moot Court, Enactus, Map the System, student leadership, and other experiential opportunities help students build confidence, develop professional networks, and connect learning with purpose.
Philanthropic support helps ensure that more students can participate fully in these transformative experiences, regardless of their financial circumstances.
Donor support can:
- Expand internships and work-integrated learning
- Create undergraduate research and community-based learning opportunities
- Strengthen student leadership, wellness, athletics, and recreation
- Support participation in Moot Court, Enactus, competitions, and other high-impact programs
Priority 5 | Creativity, Culture & Community
The arts help us understand ourselves, connect with others, and imagine new possibilities.
For more than 30 years, ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½’s Black Box Theatre has served as a creative home for students, educators, artists, schools, and community organizations across New Brunswick. Since opening in 1994 as the first theatre space of its kind in the province, it has nurtured creativity, built confidence, and created opportunities for experiential learning and cultural engagement.
ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ is seeking to renew and reimagine this beloved space as the Ilkay Silk Theatre, a modern, accessible, and welcoming venue that honours an extraordinary legacy while supporting future generations of students, artists, and audiences.
Donor support can:
- Renew seating, lighting, audio, accessibility, and production systems
- Expand student learning, artistic programming, and professional mentorship
- Strengthen partnerships with schools, artists, and community organizations
- Create an enduring cultural resource for New Brunswick
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