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Mari Castañeda, dean of Commonwealth Honors College and professor of communication, and Jeff Smith, executive director of recreation and wellbeing, have been named co-chairs of the UMass Amherst Community Campaign (UMACC), with each to serve a two-year term.

UMACC gives faculty, staff and retirees an easy way to support the nonprofits they care about through payroll deduction, check or credit card. Last year, hundreds of UMass employees and retirees gave $418,000 through the campaign, and about 60% of those gifts stayed in Western Massachusetts. UMass does not retain any portion of donated funds. 

Castañeda, who serves on the board of Amherst Cinema and whose teaching and research center on community partnerships, sees that generosity as part of the university’s public mission. “A public university is measured not only by what it discovers, but by who it lifts up along the way,” she says. “When we invest in our neighbors, we strengthen the common good that every community in the world depends on.”

Smith, who serves on the advisory board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hampshire County, sees the campaign as a way to turn individual generosity into collective impact. “Lasting change starts when someone decides to show up for someone else,” he says. “UMACC lets all of us show up together, and that shared generosity reaches far beyond our campus.”

This year’s campaign kicks off Tuesday, Sept. 29, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. with the UMACC Launch and Nonprofit Fair in Old Chapel. Attendees will be able to meet representatives from over 30 nonprofits, learn about volunteer opportunities, enjoy treats and visit with rescue animals from local shelters.

To learn more about UMACC or to make a gift, visit umass.edu/umacc.

For questions, contact Jennifer Gallant, UMACC manager, at [email protected].