MacMurray alumni launch grant program, seek funds for local projects

Former students of MacMurray College are turning their alumni efforts into a new local funding source, inviting nonprofit organizations and school districts to apply for grants and asking the community to help raise money. The MacMurray Foundation and Alumni Association announced two grant tracks with awards of up to five thousand dollars each, and organizers said they expect applications to be competitive with a deadline of Feb. 15, 2026.

The grants are divided into educational grants for nonprofits or school districts and community project grants for nonprofit groups seeking to create or improve projects that benefit the community. Organizers said they hope to award three or four grants in each category, depending on how much money is raised from alumni and community groups, with successful applicants to be notified by March 31, 2026.

Board chair David Ekin, a 1977 graduate with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and psychology who now lives out of state, framed the program as part of a longer term plan to preserve the college’s mission. "When we formed, there were a couple of main things we wanted to do to try to keep the legacy alive," Ekin said. "One of them was to still have some emphasis on areas that the college was known for … and then the other was eventually moving into grants." He added that the grants could be routed through a district to a classroom teacher for a project the district cannot fund. "Grants maybe would go through a school district to a classroom teacher for a project they want to do, but that the district maybe doesn’t have the funds to do," Ekin said. "That was (the direction) where we wanted to move in when we were formed five years ago."

The association already operates a scholarship program that organizers said has provided students with more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars, but that aid is restricted to applicants who have some connection to MacMurray College. The new grants are intended to broaden impact across Jacksonville and Morgan County by supporting programs and projects that serve current residents and students.

MacMurray College closed in 2020 after operating for one hundred seventy four years, a decision attributed to severe financial problems and declining enrollment. The institution had five hundred twenty seven students when it shut its doors. The alumni pool remains substantial with an estimated ten thousand five hundred living graduates, but organizers warned that number will not grow. "Alumni are decreasing and never going to increase," Ekin said.

Residents and organizations interested in applying or donating can find more information at MacAlumFoundation.org and follow the donation link that says "donate now" at the top of the page. For Morgan County schools and nonprofits facing tight budgets, the grants represent a potential source of modest but targeted support that could fund classroom projects, community programming, or facility improvements that other revenue streams do not cover.