The graduate students in my department are always struggling to find funding and many take quarters off when they cannot.  Our program typically takes between 8-10 years to complete and additional funding will enable students to finish sooner.
            --Phoebe Anderson, graduate student, Anthropology
 
 
I love to run and I love the UW – what could more fun than running for the UW?
            --Richard Boyce, graduate student, Biomedical and Health Informatics
 
 
My enthusiasm for grad education is not proportional to my speed.
            -- Toby Bradshaw, faculty, Biology
 
 
Personal philosophy:  Graduate Students are the center of gravity at UW.
            --Tom Daniel, faculty, Biology
 
 
Running is my passion, UW is my second passion.
            --Cynthia Enrico, graduate student, Social Welfare
 
 
I am inspired by the physical challenge and the cause.  It’s important to support graduate student education in all fields.  Getting your PhD is a long process and scholarships make a huge difference.
            --Kirsten Fagnan, graduate student, Applied Mathematics
 
 
I have worked closely with Dr. Gerry Baldasty, Dr. Lisa Coutu, and Dr. Gina Neff on projects. I appreciate what I have gained as a result of this and other graduate student and professor mentoring. Graduate students in my department have received matching grants from the graduate school for research and travel. This funding is very important for us, and I appreciate how the half marathon draws attention to that effort. Additionally, walking in preparation for the half marathon will help me keep active as I prepare for my upcoming exams and teach my autumn class. 
            -- Kristin Gustafson, graduate student, Communication
 
Having been a very poor graduate student for 6 years in the 1990s, I know what it is like to be a grad student and how important any form of support is. Now that I have four graduate students working with me towards their Ph.D., I can also appreciate extra support for graduate students. In general, grad students are an underappreciated part of any academic institution, and I would like to do something to improve this situation!
             --Katie Peichel, affiliate faculty, Biology
 
 
I read about Dr. Crutchfield in the UW staff newspaper and thought that this was a really worthwhile cause.  My husband just started a masters program in the Forestry Department at UW, so this is an issue close to my heart.  . . . I’m very appreciative of the opportunity to help graduate students like my husband.  It was a hard decision for us to drop back to one income so that he could attend school full-time, so I would like to help others in their quest to pursue postgraduate training.
             --Ronda Pulse, MD ’05, Anesthesiology Resident, UW Medicine
 
 
I’ve worked in the Grad School since 1993, formerly in GO-MAP and currently in Interdisciplinary Programs.  Need based funding for graduate education has been something there is never enough of, and I’ve seen that first hand these last 14 years.
            -- Jean Rogers, staff,  Interdisciplinary Programs, UW Graduate School
 
 
I am a strong supporter of providing the moral and financial support to capable individuals who would not have had opportunities in higher education otherwise. 
            --Ebasa Sarka, graduate student, Social Welfare
 
 
I like to walk!   When I saw the article about Bob Crutchfield then I thought “Right on!”  This is what I love about UW.  Faculty are willing to go the extra mile (or 13) for their graduate students.  This is good for the students, the faculty, research goals, and the entire University.
            --Billie Swalla, faculty, Biology
 
 
I loved being a grad student at the UW and now I love raising money for them!                
            --Carolyn Wennblom; MFA student 1995-97; staff,
               College of Architecture and Urban Planning