WHERE YOUR GIFT IS NEEDED
University of Michigan Museum of Zoology (UMMZ) and the Herbarium
Contact
LSA Development,
Marketing & Communications
College of LSA
524 South Main Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104-2921
P.734.998.6255
F.734.998.6250
www.lsa.umich.edu
UMMZ Website:
www.ummz.lsa.umich.edu
Herbarium Website:
herbarium.lsa.umich.edu
The Vision
The University of Michigan Museum of Zoology (UMMZ) and the Herbarium, are
home to some of the finest zoological and botanical collections in the world. The
15 million specimens of birds, fish, insects, mammals, molluscs, reptiles, and
amphibians in the UMMZ; the 1.7 million specimens of plants, fungi, and lichens
in the Herbarium; and the expertise of the faculty-curators, students, and staff provide
a world-class facility for teaching and research in systematic biology and biodiversity
studies. The organismal and genetic resource collections such as those in
the UMMZ and Herbarium provide the best tangible record we have of life on Earth
and constitute a crucial resource for use in research and education benefiting science,
society, and the university. Working collaboratively with the highly regarded
Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and Biological Station, our goal is
to make UM a leading center for training and research in studies of the history, the
change mechanisms, and the conservation of Earth's diverse life forms.
The Value
The UMMZ and Herbarium collections were initiated in 1837 and have grown over
time as scientific expeditions by UM biologists and many others have entrusted
archival research materials, collected from every region of the world, to their care.
The collections are irreplaceable, coming from places and habitats that are now prohibitively
expensive or dangerous to visit or that have been drastically altered by
human activity. They include representatives of extinct species and populations,
providing a portion of the only record available for studying effects of environmental
change on the distributions, appearances, and genetic features of the world's animals,
fungi and plants. The value of these resources depends on wise stewardship by
the handful of institutions where they are housed and on continued access to them
for researchers and their students, who will become leaders in the next generation of
scientists. Students and researchers derive inestimable benefits from being able to
apply the UMMZ and Herbarium collections to study first-hand the diversity of
organisms from all habitats and regions of the world. The UMMZ and Herbarium
have been instrumental in the careers of many leading biologists, both inside and
outside academia, and they comprise an essential component of life sciences research
and teaching at the University of Michigan.
The Difference
To continue their roles as centers of scientific research, training, and public knowledge,
the UMMZ and Herbarium must address the following needs:
Named Endowed Professorship
$2 million endowed
To maintain their stature as leading zoological and botanical research collections,
the UMMZ and Herbarium need to attract the best faculty-curators. An endowed
gift of $2 million will establish a Named Endowed Professorship, in any of the taxonomic
areas represented by the collections. This will promote scientific research
and, help to ensure the future of the UMMZ and Herbarium as preeminent institutions
for research and teaching in studies of biological diversity.
Graduate Fellowships and Research Support
$1.5 million endowed
$75,000 annually
The UMMZ and Herbarium have a long tradition of training graduate students in
biodiversity studies, students who have gone on to accomplished and influential
careers in some of the world's leading universities and research museums. Their success
contributes significantly to the distinction of the UMMZ and Herbarium, and
funds to support graduate students in conducting collections-based research would be
of great benefit to our programs.
Postdoctoral Fellowships $1 million endowed
$50,000 annually
We would like to create two prestigious Postdoctoral Fellowships – one in the
UMMZ and another in the Herbarium. Competitive, funded, three-year fellowships
will bring outstanding young researchers to these units to interact with students and
faculty-curators and to use the collections in conducting high-profile research.
Postdoctoral fellowships such as these are important in attracting the best and
brightest scholars to the field of comparative biodiversity studies and in bringing visibility
and distinction to the UMMZ, to the Herbarium, and to UM.
Endowed Distinguished Visiting Fellows
$250,000 to $500,000
We would like to initiate this program to fund three- to twelve-month visiting fellowships
for distinguished scientists, who would make use of our zoological or botanical
collections and collaborate in research with our faculty-curators and students.
Funds would attract accomplished, highly-regarded visiting fellows to take leave of
their usual responsibilities and to dedicate time and energy to engage in research and
interactions at the UMMZ or Herbarium.
Curatorial Support Funds
$100,000
Funds are needed to support ongoing efforts to sustain and enhance the irreplaceable
collections in the UMMZ and Herbarium. Our needs include funding for undergraduate
students to work in the collections, for students or technicians helping to
enhance our electronic databases, for modern high-quality cases for specimens, for
floor-track compactors for cases, and for collecting expedition costs.
Director's Strategic Fund
$100,000
Gifts of undesignated, expendable funds are essential for the continuing success of
the UMMZ and Herbarium. Contributions to the Strategic Fund make it possible to
meet unexpected needs and fund new initiatives such as:
- purchasing new equipment to enhance our research and teaching mission
- funding seminars by visiting scholars
- funding travel to professional meetings for students and collections managers
- providing seed money for pilot projects by faculty-curators or students
All donors will be eligible for Presidential Society Recognition opportunities, including
the President's Club ($15,000), the Tappan Society ($50,000) and the Hutchins
Society ($100,000).
return to top
|
