The Friends of The Daily Texan annual gathering will be a virtual event this year, including awarding of seven scholarship grants for Texan staffers and honoring of new Daily Texan Hall of Fame members.

The event was originally scheduled for an in-person gathering and dinner on Oct. 2, at The Union on the UT campus.

But due to safety and health concerns, the in-person event will be replaced by a series of virtual events to be held this fall.

This year seven Texan staff members will receive scholarship grants, one more than last year. The scholarship application process will begin soon, and those selected will be announced later in the fall.

In addition, 10 inductees have been selected to enter The Daily Texan Hall of Fame.

The honorees will be announced at the end of September.

A committee of the FOTDT board is reviewing the options for the virtual events, with the goal of re-creating the in-person event as a virtual event and making it as visible as possible to all.

Stay tuned for more information, via social media and friendsofthedailytexan.org.

“The annual dinner is our main method of raising funds for the scholarships, and other needs of The Texan staff,” said John Reetz, president of the Friends group.

“If you attended last year, or were planning to attend this year, please consider a contribution of that amount to continue the group’s steady funding of The Texan scholarships and needs of the paper,” Reetz said. “Four of the seven scholarships are fully endowed, but the others remain dependent on annual fund-raising and dinner proceeds in order to continue. Cancellation of the annual event makes that more difficult, but we are committed – with your help – to continuing all scholarships and other efforts to provide financial support.”

Please demonstrate your support for The Texan by making a donation or joining at these addresses:

Donate:

https://www.friendsofthedailytexan.org/donations/

Become a member:

https://www.friendsofthedailytexan.org/become-a-member/

Deductions are tax deductible, and all funds go directly to The Texan and Texas Student Media.

Since its organization  in 2013, the Friends organization, a non-profit, tax-deductible corporation, has supported creation of scholarships for Texan staffers, plus providing key funding to advance digitization of The Texan archives and preserve the paper for posterity.

Funds have also gone to photo and video equipment, conferences, coverage of sporting events and other requests and needs outlined by Texan management and approved by the board of the FOTDT.

The Texan continues to fulfill its twin missions of covering the University and training the next generation of journalists. However, it is not immune to the financial and cultural pressures facing media today, and the regular support by the Friends group FOTDT is vital.

Support The Daily Texan and its staff by donating here. All funds donated to the Friends of The Daily Texan go directly to scholarships for Texan staffers, photo and video and other equipment purchases, training, travel and other needs of The Texan. The Friends group is a 501 3c organization and donations are tax deductible.