NIRSA Foundation Campaigns & Activities

Since 1992, the NIRSA Foundation has provided NIRSA members meaningful opportunities for scholarship, research, and personal and professional development. These opportunities are created through the generosity of NIRSA members and NIRSA Foundation corporate partners. Learn more about all of the accomplishments this generous community has made since 1992.

The following campaigns and activities are scheduled for the year. If you missed something or don’t see anything that resonates with you, you are always welcome to make a gift when and how it works best for you!

Student Officials Development

You support the skills and leadership development of student officials through training offered at the high-profile NIRSA National Championship Series tournaments when you donate to student officials development. These donor-restricted funds have provided essential logistics, such as lodging, meals, and on-site transportation, for student officials and their NIRSA volunteer evaluators at these tournaments.

Students who participate in these crucial trainings strengthen their leadership and conflict resolution skills and give back to their communities on and off the field. Your gift to the student officials development fund is also a grassroots solution to the shortage of young officials at all levels of competition.

Donate to Student Officials Development – Team Basketball

Donate to Student Officials Development – Team Flag Football

Founders Day

Dr. William Wasson developed an intramural program at Dillard University and in 1948 he commenced a study, with funding from the Carnegie Foundation. The results of his study were shared with the institutions that participated in his research. The discussion culminated in an Intramural Summit at Dillard on February 22, 1950, where the 20 intramural directors gathered representing 11 Historically Black Colleges & Universities, during the summit, this small group of visionaries formed the National Intramural Association. The NIA was the first organization of its kind, bringing intramural program leaders together to share skills and wisdom to advance the good work of their profession. Eventually, the NIA was renamed NIRSA.

The NIRSA Foundation celebrates our Annual Day of Giving on February 22 to commemorate and celebrate the founding of the Association.

75^th Anniversary Campaign – 2025

Honor the Past. Embrace the Moment. Lead to the Future.

In honor of the 75^th Anniversary of NIRSA, and to celebrate the enduring impact of campus recreation on the student experience, the NIRSA Foundation is asking members, corporate partners, and friends of NIRSA to support the 75^th Anniversary Fundraising Campaign. This Campaign will fund critical work named in NIRSA’s strategic priorities so that campus recreation can continue to lead into the future.

However, the Foundation cannot fund this work without your help. The Funding Opportunities are summarized below. Please identify and support the priority that is most meaningful to you. Together, we can expand the impact that campus rec has on the students and communities we serve. Thank you in advance for being a part of the 75^th Anniversary Fundraising Campaign.

View Funding Opportunities for NIRSA Strategic Priorities below.

Priority #1: Health & Wellbeing

Many students on college campuses report mental health challenges such as anxiety and/or depression. The Foundation will provide financial support for initiatives to educate campus recreation professionals and the students/faculty/staff community that they serve on the positive benefits of movement and play on mental health.

For campus recreation professionals

Fund tools and training for campus recreation professionals to better recognize students and staff in distress and provide the necessary support to help these individuals.
Fund initiatives that strengthen collaborations with mental health professionals on campus in support of integrated wellbeing and addressing the prevalence of mental health concerns on campus.

For the campus community

Fund a marketing (awareness) campaign aimed at increasing the understanding among college students about the positive impacts of play and movement on their physical and mental health. 1) Make the connection between good physical, mental, and overall health to higher GPA and graduation rates, as well as fostering a sense of belonging and friendships. 2) Inspire a generation of college students to instill lifelong healthy habits.

Donate to Health & Wellbeing Fund

Priority #2: Advocacy through Research

The Foundation knows the impact campus recreation programs and professionals have on student success; but that doesn’t always resonate with potential partners and other campus entities. The Foundation will fund updated data and reports that support the value of campus recreation.

NIRSA has published reports demonstrating the impact of campus recreation on student success. These include The Value of Recreational Sports in Higher Education (2004), also known as the Kerr-Downs Report; The Benefits of Campus Recreation (Forrester, 2014); and Leadership in Intramural Sports and Club Sports (Dugan, 2014).

The field has significantly changed over the past 10 years, and it is important to update these data sets and conclusions. Based on the track record of the previous reports, this is a highly valued tool that campus recreation professionals have used to enhance and advance their programs and impact. The Foundation would like to fund an industry wide data set and report as well as designate a portion of the funding to address the specific context for smaller schools and HBCU’s.

Donate to Advocacy through Research

Priority #3: Professional Pipeline/Workforce Development

The professional pipeline in (and out) of campus recreation has seen more rapid turnover and diversification in recent years. It’s critical to invest in the development of our mid-level professionals, who are now entering these positions with more varied backgrounds and as such, face new challenges and operating environments.

For Mid-Level Professionals

Quality leadership development for mid-level professionals is time and resource intensive and they deserve our very best. The Foundation would like to support our future Directors by increasing educational offerings targeting this group while at the same time, decreasing or eliminating financial barriers to these crucial leadership development opportunities.

For Professionals from Adjacent Fields

There is a need to expand NIRSA’s education portfolio to accommodate a range of non-traditional entry points to the field. By providing education tailored to these professionals, we can better support their career success and better support departments (institutional members) with highly trained staff. The Foundation will provide financial resources to accelerate the development of these new education opportunities for those joining the field from other industries.

Donate to Workforce Development

Donate Today

All donations to the NIRSA Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, qualify as tax deductible. Any portion of a donation may be applied to a specific endowment. Endowments provide educational and scholarly opportunities for individuals in collegiate recreation programs.