We’re excited to share that Orange & Blue day will return in 2027 with even more opportunities for impact. This year’s event will be called Orange & Blue Day (OBD) and will take place on March 4, 2027, aligning once again with the long-standing March Forth campaign by the Marching Illini. Although our giving day will now take place on only one main day, we will still include early gifts, and the OBD campaign pages will remain active throughout the weekend, until midnight on Sunday, March 7.
This microsite features best practices, examples, and templates you can use to let our donors, alumni, and friends discover all the ways they can make a difference. Thank you for all the time and effort you put into amplifying the message of these important projects at Illinois. You are making a true difference for our students and university.
Important Dates
- Please submit your campaign ideas by December 18, 2026 via this Webtools form: (Link coming soon)
- January 4 – February 5, 2027: you will receive the link to your campaign page(s) and may request edits/updates as needed.
- February 12: all pages will be finalized and live, accepting early gifts.
- The countdown timer will show Orange & Blue Day ending at 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, March 4. However, we will reopen the page to continue to accept gifts through Sunday, March 7 at 11:59 p.m.
- If your campaign receives late offline gifts that should be included in your totals, please email Rachel Hull before noon on Monday, March 9 at: rhull3@illinois.edu
What’s changing this year?
This year, all units will represented on the Orange & Blue Day Campaign, whether you actively participate or not. This will give donors the opportunity to support unit annual funds as part of OBD. The campaigns you submit will still have their own landing pages and are encouraged to be shared widely.
Based on best practices from peer institutions, we are consolidating to a single, campus-wide giving day on March 4th. All participating groups are encouraged to send communications and solicitations (following regular UIF procedures) on March 4th.
Overall campaign structure
- Unit Annual Funds
Every unit will be represented with photos and limited text provided by the OBD Planning Committee. Unit annual funds will be available to choose in a drop-down menu. - Campus Projects
All special projects from around campus will get their own, individual campaign that can be shared directly with audiences. Each project will also be available to click on from a collection of projects on the main OBD homepage. - March Forth: Support the Marching Illini (standalone featured campaign)
A long-standing annual initiative, March Forth will be prominently featured and is not open for additional project submissions.
Requirements for campaigns
- Campaigns should be submitted by December 18.
- Goals should be participation-focused. We recommend 25 donors, unless past annual giving track record justifies a higher amount.
Unit Examples
Visit this box folder for shared examples from some units who participated in past Orange & Blue Days: https://uofi.box.com/s/p62rt1c8ypj5ls7ao1mxolnf0rmvyqzc
Additional links to unit examples:
- Student Affairs landing page for their 14 pages: https://studentaffairs.illinois.edu/give/orange-blue-days
- HRI – Odyssey Project Email: https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/03/2045270303.html
- HRI – Odyssey Project Newsletter sample: https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/59/921090659.html
- School of Information Sciences: Story with link to Orange & Blue giving page
- School of Information Sciences: Email solicitation
- ACES: gratitude email: https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/10/672474810.html
- ACES: day of email: https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/58/817844358.html
Questions?
Reach out to OVCIA’s Associate Director of Strategic Engagement, Rachel Hull, at rhull3@illinois.edu.