Leaders & Best: Giving to Michigan

Leaders & Best: Giving to Michigan Celebrating the University of Michigan's philanthropic spirit and impact on our world. Check out Michigan Giving at giving.umich.edu 🎁

Leaders & Best publishes stories of the University of Michigan’s most remarkable people, programs, and happenings. As a university publication, it caters to the donors and volunteers who help make Michigan a world-class university with global reach and limitless potential. On this page, we celebrate the U-M community’s philanthropic spirit by highlighting its far-reaching influence on our state, o

ur nation, and our world—because we don’t just believe in giving to Michigan. We believe in giving through Michigan.

Rose Page was raising seven children and helping her husband build a business when everything changed.In November 1967, ...
09/04/2026

Rose Page was raising seven children and helping her husband build a business when everything changed.

In November 1967, Rose learned she had colon cancer. At the time, families had far fewer answers about what caused the disease, how to find it early, or how best to treat it. Rose passed away just eight months later, at age 43.

Decades later, her daughter Holly Kunick turned that loss into a way to help others. In 2013, her family’s charitable foundation partnered with Michigan Medicine to establish the Page Colon Cancer Research Partnership Fund, supporting work to improve prevention, early detection, and treatment.

Today, screening can help find colon cancer earlier, and may even prevent it by finding growths before they become cancer. For people at average risk, screening is recommended beginning at age 45.

“I think there can never be enough money for research,” Kunick said. “I know ours is a very small portion, but to contribute to help people live a better life—that’s what I want to do. My goal is to help people live a better life.” 🌟

U-M helped prepare their daughters for life after college. Now, their family is paying it forward.Join the Ziegelmeyer f...
09/03/2026

U-M helped prepare their daughters for life after college. Now, their family is paying it forward.

Join the Ziegelmeyer family and make a gift today at the link in the first comment. 💙

Innovation begins with a simple question: What might people need decades from now?When Pfizer announced it was leaving A...
09/02/2026

Innovation begins with a simple question: What might people need decades from now?

When Pfizer announced it was leaving Ann Arbor in 2007, its former campus found a new purpose. The University of Michigan transformed it into the North Campus Research Complex, where more than 3,500 faculty, staff, and students now work and learn each day. Teams there are advancing heart and cancer research, improving treatment for critically ill patients, and testing blood and tissue samples to support patients across Michigan.

That same long-term thinking is behind U-M’s recent purchase of the Concordia University campus: approximately 140 acres with classrooms, residence halls, athletic facilities, the historic Earhart manor, and a chapel. Protecting the property creates possibilities like preserving access to parks and the Huron River, providing athletics facilities for local K-12 schools, and expanding places for students to learn.

“We don’t know what we’ll do with [the Concordia campus], but we know that we are an institution that is here to do the public good,” Regent Paul Brown. “On North Campus, for instance, we just put in an amazing robotics building. In 1949, we had no idea that would be a necessity.”

Learn more at the link in the first comment. 🏫

More people want to know how their food is grown, and whether the farming practices behind it protect our land and water...
09/01/2026

More people want to know how their food is grown, and whether the farming practices behind it protect our land and water.

What started as a U-M doctoral project supported by a Rackham Graduate School Public Scholarship Grant has grown into the Great Lakes Cover Crops Project, which now works with more than 225 farmers across six states. Together, they’re using nearly 600 fields to study how different cover crops and planting methods perform under real-world conditions.

Planted between harvests, cover crops like clover, rye, and radish help keep soil and nutrients in place, prevent fertilizer from washing into waterways, and make farms more resilient. “If you can keep [fertilizer] on your farm, it’s good for the environment, it’s good for your farm, it’s good for your budget,” said Adrian farmer David Halsey.

But cover cropping can be complicated, and fewer than 10% of U.S. farms currently use it. By testing ideas and sharing what they learn, farmers and researchers are working to make the practice easier and less risky to adopt. Their goal: healthier soil, cleaner water, and a more sustainable food system for all of us.

Learn more at the link in the first comment. 🚜

Fall is back at Michigan, and so is your chance to make twice the impact.A new academic year at U-M means new goals, cha...
09/01/2026

Fall is back at Michigan, and so is your chance to make twice the impact.

A new academic year at U-M means new goals, challenges, and opportunities for students in Ann Arbor, Dearborn, and Flint.

Small gifts can add up in a big way—providing steady support for the programs and people moving Michigan forward, from scholarships and research to healthcare and the arts.

Through the Look to Michigan Matching Program, new monthly gifts are matched up to $100 per month for 12 months, helping your support go twice as far for the people and programs you care about most.

The best part? You choose where that doubled impact goes.

See the link in the first comment to get started.

Research funding goes a lot further than the lab—and the numbers show it.Last year, U-M federal grants supported more th...
08/31/2026

Research funding goes a lot further than the lab—and the numbers show it.

Last year, U-M federal grants supported more than 16,000 faculty, staff, postdoctoral researchers, and students while generating nearly $396 million in research-related spending nationwide. More than $164 million went to Michigan businesses that provided the supplies, equipment, and services needed for research. That funding helps move important work forward, from advancing medical treatments and energy technologies to supporting space exploration and national defense.

These investments also give students hands-on experience and prepare them for future careers. Students made up 43% of U-M’s federally supported research workforce, building skills for careers in science, engineering, and other growing fields.

"IRIS data show that federal investment in the university's research enterprise does more than support discovery; it invests in opportunities and well-being for communities across Michigan," said Jason Owen-Smith, executive director of the Institute for Research on Innovation & Science. 〽️

Photo Credit: Eric Shaw

A hummingbird is at the heart of alumna Gabriela Lena Frank’s Pulitzer Prize-winning symphony about courage and our plan...
08/28/2026

A hummingbird is at the heart of alumna Gabriela Lena Frank’s Pulitzer Prize-winning symphony about courage and our planet’s future.

In “Picaflor: A Future Myth,” Frank (AMusD ’01) reimagines an Andean Peruvian story about a heroic hummingbird on a mission to save Pachamama, or Mother Earth, from ecological disaster. The deeply personal work, shaped by her Peruvian heritage and experiences with California wildfires, earned her the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Frank credits her mentors at U-M for encouraging the curiosity and creative risk-taking that continue to guide her work. “They encouraged and were fascinated by my travel to Peru, my mother’s homeland, which began during my grad school years at Michigan,” Frank said.

Now an acclaimed composer and mentor herself, she’s helping the next generation find their voices too. Through her nonprofit creative academy, emerging composers from a wide range of backgrounds collaborate with renowned performers and shape their own sound.

Learn more at the link in the first comment. 🪽

Welcome to Wolverine Village! Take a look behind the scenes of move-in day as students unpack and make this unique, stud...
08/27/2026

Welcome to Wolverine Village! Take a look behind the scenes of move-in day as students unpack and make this unique, student-driven space their own. 〽️

Located on Central Campus, Wolverine Village adds 2,300 student beds, expanding U-M’s undergraduate housing capacity by about 25%. That means every first-year student who applies by the spring deadline can choose to live on Central Campus, while more returning and transfer students will have access to affordable university housing.

More than 2,600 students helped shape the community, from room layouts and gathering spaces to the Wolverine Village name itself. It introduces several campus firsts, including covered bicycle parking, a rooftop courtyard, and a designated pet relief area for residents with support animals.

Students can pick up packages from one central room, do laundry without hunting for coins or paying extra, and enjoy an all-electric dining hall—all in a community powered in part by solar panels and energy-efficient heating and cooling.

“Wolverine Village is the direct result of listening to our students,” said Martino Harmon, vice president for student life. “Every space was designed to foster community, support learning, and keep student success front and center.”

Learn more at the link in the first comment.

Jaynee has seen up close the difference that C.S. Mott Children's Hospital makes. Now, she’s giving to help more kids th...
08/27/2026

Jaynee has seen up close the difference that C.S. Mott Children's Hospital makes. Now, she’s giving to help more kids thrive.

Join Jaynee in making a difference at the link in the first comment. 💙

The boxes are rolling in, and a new journey is beginning. Welcome home, Wolverines! From day one, donor-supported progra...
08/26/2026

The boxes are rolling in, and a new journey is beginning. Welcome home, Wolverines!

From day one, donor-supported programs and resources help students thrive on campus:

- The Kessler Scholars Program, established by the Judy and Fred Wilpon Family Foundation, connects first-generation students with mentors and a strong network of peers.
- Gifts to the MAIZE & BLUE Cupboard help members of the U-M community access healthy, nutritious, and nourishing food as well as everyday household essentials.
- At the UMMA: University of Michigan Museum of Art, philanthropic support creates more opportunities for students to experience world-class exhibitions and discover new perspectives.

These resources, among others, help Wolverines make Michigan their home, both during move-in and beyond. 📦

Photo Credit: VP Communications, Regents of the University of Michigan

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