Just as Carthage provides a place where students uncover and ignite their true potential, we believe making a gift to the College uncovers and ignites passion in you as a donor.
Do you want to make a difference? Do you want to do something active about a problem, or take a stand on a particular issue? Or do you simply feel that giving is good thing to do? We guarantee that in giving to Carthage, you help students find and claim their own best path. Let us inspire you with these stories.
Space Sciences
Fly with NASA
The Carthage Space Sciences program is one of just a few programs across the country that provide undergraduates with the opportunity to participate in national space systems engineering projects and collaborative research projects with space scientists around the world. Our students participate in the full payload design cycle, developing spacecraft technologies and experiments from concept to implementation on rockets, suborbital reusable launch vehicles (sRLVs), and even the International Space Station. Carthage students have presented their space sciences work in international conferences in Beijing, South Africa, Paris, and Belgium. Carthage has had more time in the weightless environment of microgravity than John Glenn experienced in his pioneering three orbits around the world in 1962. From near space research with high altitude balloon payloads to participating in the first NASA payload on the Virgin Galactic II Spaceship, Carthage students are invited to come fly with us.
150 Years of Women
The 150 Years of Carthage Women initiative pays tribute to the important role of women at Carthage since 1870. Join us as we seek to improve the Carthage experience for female students of tomorrow and for generations to come. This exciting year-long initiative enables us as a community to not only reflect on and celebrate our past but to redefine what it means to be a woman at Carthage and build a better future.
The Bridge Fund
When Jillian Kirschbaum’s home caught fire three weeks before her high school graduation, her parents had to use money set aside for her college tuition to pay for the repairs. Devastated, Jillian gave up hopes of attending Carthage — even her acceptance letter was burned in the fire. Everything changed, though, when Jillian and her dad met with the Financial Aid Office at Carthage. They learned of a Bridge Fund, a fund that provides emergency aid for students facing financial crises. Because of the Bridge Fund, Jillian was able to begin her freshman year at Carthage.
Summer Undergraduate Research Experience
One-on-one research with faculty
A hallmark of the Carthage experience since the mid-1990s, the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience offers students across academic divisions the opportunity to engage in collaborative research with professors. Students work closely with a faculty mentor on a new or developing line of research. “In a classroom setting, we usually emphasize the problems with straightforward, clear answers whose correctness can be assessed readily,” said physics professor Julie Dahlstrom. “My job is to introduce my students to the ambiguities, frustrations and exhilaration of scientific research. Research is not so clear cut, and its lack of clarity can be a shock. … SURE provides initial exposure to extremely valuable research experience, which helps to bridge our students to research offerings at other institutions or in industry.” Added physics professor Kevin Crosby: “It’s one of the more effective ways to educate students in science. They’re facing real-world problems where the answer isn’t in the back of a book.”
