29 July 2016
When the University of South Australia rolls out the special blue carpet for its 25th Birthday Gala Dinner tonight, almost 900 guests at the party will have the opportunity not only to celebrate their success, but also to contribute to someone else’s.
The Gala Dinner on July 29 at the Adelaide Convention Centre hopes to raise money to support many more scholarships and prizes for students who might otherwise not be able to afford to study.
Every year, donors to the University make their contribution to more than 1000 new student scholarships.
That support opens up opportunities for students from the country and the city and for students of all ages and circumstances, funding everything from the full cost of a degree and special study exchange programs to other countries, to work experience opportunities here and abroad, and right down to the cost of a new laptop or books.
UniSA Vice Chancellor, Professor David Lloyd says the Gala Dinner will be a fabulous celebration of everything that makes UniSA a warm and welcoming place to study.
“The one thing students often say about our University is that, no matter their circumstances, they feel welcome and accepted at UniSA,” Prof Lloyd says.
“They also feel that, with our support and their hard work, anything is possible.
“One of my greatest privileges as Vice Chancellor is to be at graduations – to see all that hard work and dedication pay off and to see the pride, satisfaction and enthusiasm of our students on graduation day.
“All of them have achieved their goals with support from family and friends and many of them with some special support from donations to scholarships.
“The 25th Birthday Gala Dinner will bring together a swathe of past graduates and hundreds of our staff past and present to celebrate our milestone but also to contribute to more scholarships and prizes for future graduates and that makes this a very special party.”
The Gala Dinner will feature a main auction including a range of exciting items from holidays and adventure experiences to special wines and paintings by renowned artists. There will also be a silent auction where people including alumni from around the globe, can bid online, even if they can’t attend the event.
Among the guests will be long-time friend of the University and namesake of its Prime Ministerial Centre, former PM Bob Hawke, AO, the Premier of South Australia, Jay Weatherill; Leader of the Opposition Steven Marshall; artists Sydney Ball and Geoff Wilson and former Vice Chancellors Professors Denise Bradley and Peter Høj.
Entertainment includes Australia’s leading jazz maestro, James Morrison and the James Morrison Academy Band. The James Morrison Academy Band consists of students from the James Morrison Academy of Music – a dedicated Jazz School established in partnership with the Un;versity of South Australia in Mount Gambier.
Prof Lloyd says the dinner promises to be one of the biggest fundraising events in Adelaide this year but also one that will have influence long afterwards, through the hundreds of students who are supported to study at UniSA.
You can see all the Gala auction items here and those hoping to take part in the silent action online can do so by logging on here.
Media contact: Michèle Nardelli mobile: +61 418 823 673 email: michele.nardelli@unisa.edu.au
