Indiana State University Newsroom

One lucky child watching Saturday's Indiana State University Blue and White Homecoming Parade will receive a four-year scholarship to attend Indiana State.

ISU Foundation staff walking in the parade will hand out cards with pennies attached. One card containing a blue coin will award the scholarship to a recipient 10 years old or younger.

"Scholarships are at the heart of the ISU Foundation's historical purpose," ISU Foundation President Gene Crume said. The foundation provides more than 800 students annually with $2.1 million of support.

"This one-time giveaway is our way of saying ‘thank you' to the Terre Haute community, alumni and friends who have supported the university," Crume said.

The scholarship, with an estimated four-year value of more than $40,000 if the student enrolls in 2018, must be claimed within seven days of the parade. Instructions for claiming the scholarship will be printed on the winning card.

This scholarship giveaway marks the launch of the public phase of the first comprehensive campaign on behalf of Indiana State. Borrowing its name from school fight song, the "March On!" campaign aims to enhance the student experience by providing scholarships to attract and retain the best and brightest students.

Specifically, the campaign will fund four pillars for the university: student support, teaching and faculty development, program support, and facilities.

"To date we have raised more than half of our $85 million goal," Crume said. Significant gifts during the early phases of the campaign have included support from ISU alumni, friends and the Terre Haute community.

"These generous supporters have begun the momentum that should carry us through to a successful conclusion by the end of 2011," Crume said.

Mike Alley, a member of the ISU Board of Trustees and chairman of the March On!campaign, was one of the early donors.

"I am so connected to ISU because the greatest changes in my life happened here," he explained. "ISU is one of the only institutions in Indiana that can transform young people's lives so dramatically." Alley is owner of Patriot Investments, LLC is the retired president and CEO of Fifth Third Bank of Central Indiana. He lives in Carmel.

Co-chairs of the campaign include Sheron Dailey of Terre Haute and Buffy and Larry Boulet of Indianapolis. Dailey served the university as a professor of communication for 35 years and established three student scholarships, two of which are President's Scholarships. President's Scholarships are the most prestigious scholarships awarded to Indiana State students.

The Boulets are long-time supporters of ISU and the foundation, with their most noteworthy contribution to the institution being the establishment of the Boulet President's Scholarship in 2003. The scholarship provides financial assistance to an Indiana student interested in pursuing a career in business.

For more information or to donate to the March On! campaign, call 812-237-3732 or visit www.marchonisu.com.

Photo: http://isuphoto.smugmug.com/photos/689101666_kpNsn-S.jpg - The lucky youngster who receives this card with a special blue coin during Saturday's Indiana State University's Homecoming parade will win a four-year scholarship to the university. (ISU/Tony Campbell)

Media contact: Ki m Bloch, Indiana State University Foundation, 812-237-8875 or 812-230-6245