--- title: Forward Launch Week Recap date: 2025-10-23T09:49:00-04:00 author: Geoff Coyle canonical_url: "https://forward.umd.edu/launch-week" section: Pages --- # Forward Launch Week Recap **Forward Campaign Launch Week** ## Forward in Motion From a special evening at Reckord Armory to the "Traveling Letters" that made their way to all corners of campus, Launch Week showcased the momentum we have as we accelerate towards our $2.5 billion goal. - [See More Launch Event Photos](https://universityofmaryland.zenfolio.com/forwardlaunchhighlights) - **Carousel Slide: Forward Campaign Launch Event Go Pro 10302025 JC 0136 RGB 1** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Campaign 10302025 JC 3375** - **Carousel Slide: 0103 Forward Gala websize** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters McKeldin Sun Burst Motion** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Campaign 10302025 SC 2725** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters Student Group** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Campaign 10302025 SC 7794** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters Dog** - **Carousel Slide: 0381 Forward Gala** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters Riggs 11012025 SC 9626 1920x1080** - **Carousel Slide: 0295 Forward Gala websize** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters Students Selfie** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters Student Posing from Angle** - **Carousel Slide: Forward Letters Under Fall Foliage** - **Kaya Eam** (Class of 2028) - **Wesley Lau** (Class of 2028) - **Alice Michigan** (Class of 2028) - **Mariam Sanni** — Class of 2028 - **Nathaniel Sorto** (Class of 2028) - **Alayna Vidmar** (Class of 2027) ### Voices That Move Us Forward These featured speakers helped introduce the *Forward* campaign at its public launch, sharing what it means to them and the impact they believe it will have on the University of Maryland and beyond. Their voices reflect the promise of *Forward*—advancing opportunity, innovation and change that reaches far beyond campus. - **Darryll J. Pines** — President - **Jennifer King Rice** — Senior Vice President and Provost - **James V. "Jimmy" Reyes '85** — *Forward* Campaign Co-chair UMCP Foundation Board of Trustees President, Reyes Holdings, LLC - **Lisa K. Hunt '97** — UMCP Foundation Board of Trustees Managing Director, Charles Schwab - **Neda Atanasoski** — Associate Director of Education, AIM Professor and Chair, The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies - **Nidhin Gangisetty** — College of Computer, Mathematical, & Natural Sciences, Class of 2027 - **Lisa Osei** — College of Arts and Humanities, Ph.D. Candidate, Class of 2028 - **Ebenezer Mensah** — College of Education, Ph.D. Candidate, Class of 2026 - **Emmie Woerner** — School of Public Health, Ph.D. Candidate, Class of 2025 - **Dillan Fontus** — College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Class of 2027 ## Impact in Action - [See More Forward Impact Stories](https://forward.umd.edu/impact) - **Clark Foundation Invests $51.7M to Support Engineering Scholarships, Programming** — Latest Series of Commitments Adds to Legacy of Giving at UMD - **Brin Center’s Launch Multiplies Global Math Renown** — Research Center Endowed by Family’s Latest Gift Draws International Luminaries, Inspires Collaborations - **UMD Researcher’s $16M Planned Gift to Support Professors, Postdocs, Students** — ‘We Need to Give Back to What Got Us to This Place’ - **Program Endowed With $8M Gift Opens Big League Doors for Students** — Sports Management Undergrads Embed With Local Teams, Put Marketing Skills to Test