When you have a big birthday in this state, you need a Texas-sized sheet cake. That’s what the Texas Exes, The University of Texas at Austin’s 90,000-member alumni association, cut into to celebrate its 125th anniversary. Almost five feet wide and three feet in length, the cake was printed with a scene of the Tower.
The cake was just the first of many grand gestures the Texas Exes plan to make this year to commemorate its sasquicentennial. In 1885, 34 graduates came together to form an alumni association that would improve the school for future students. Triumph and near-tragedy ensued in the following years. An early 20th-century governor tried to shut the university down, but the Texas Exes claimed victory.
Read the full story and other alumni encounters in the special 125th anniversary issue of The Alcalde.
One endeavor the Texas Exes have always prided themselves on is the giving of scholarship money, Texas Exes President Rudy Garza said before cutting the cake. In celebration of this year’s anniversary, he announced the Texas Exes will see the nonprofit’s grandest undertaking yet.
The 40 Acres Scholars program, designed to keep some of Texas’ brightest students in state, will provide full-ride scholarships to 300 students each year. The Texas Exes continue to raise funds toward the program’s $150 million endowment.
Garza and the Exes also are asking each alumnus to contribute $125 toward a Student Opportunity Endowment that will help graduate and undergraduate students pursue dreams like studying abroad, presenting at conferences, working internships and volunteering.
In addition, this spring the Texas Exes will debut a list of 125 Extraordinary Exes on its Web site.
Learn more about the history of the Texas Exes and how you can help build the Student Opportunity Endowment.
