By making a gift through the UNO Student Activities Support Fund, you will help Mavericks make lifelong memories and provide an impact student life experience on campus.
At the University of Nebraska at Omaha, school spirit extends far beyond campus.
Thanks to the Student Activities Support Fund, students have the opportunity to travel, connect and celebrate what it means to be a Maverick. From supporting athletics to creating memorable events, the fund plays a vital role in shaping student life.
Bill Pickett is director of the Spirit, Tradition, and Signature Events office at UNO. He oversees the programs that define the Maverick experience, such as Durango Days, Homecoming, De-Stress Fest and monthly Maverick Meals.
“The fund helps us create additional campus events and spirit trips. These are opportunities that students remember forever,” Pickett said.
Spirit trips are at the heart of the fund’s impact. Each year, students travel across the country to cheer on UNO teams, from hockey tournaments to volleyball championships.
“The most memorable example came in March 2025, when UNO’s men’s basketball team made its first-ever appearance in March Madness,” Pickett said. “Thanks to donor support, 50 students boarded a charter bus to Rhode Island for a trip of a lifetime.”
These opportunities go far beyond entertainment. They foster community, pride and lifelong memories.
“Students may not remember every class years from now, but they will remember traveling with their peers, supporting their team and feeling proud to be a Maverick,” Pickett said.
Looking ahead, Pickett envisions the fund continuing to strengthen student life, whether through spirit trips, campus traditions or new programs that make UNO feel like home.
He added that none of this would be possible without the generosity of donors. Their contributions give students access to experiences they wouldn’t otherwise have, creating memories that last a lifetime.
“The impact is meaningful,” Pickett said. “It creates connections that define the Maverick experience.”
To help UNO students build community and lasting Maverick pride, please consider donating to the UNO Student Activities Support Fund today.
Cassie Fritch remembers carrying her flute into her first Omaha Area Youth Orchestras practice as a child without ever really knowing what she was getting involved in.
Fritch, a Papillion, Nebraska native, joined the program after learning about it from her band teacher. The school didn’t have a strings program, so she had never been exposed to the large multi-instrument ensemble that orchestral music provided.
She didn’t know what she was walking into, but from her first moments in OAYO, Fritch was hooked.
“It was love at first sight,” Fritch said.
Years later, Fritch now serves as manager of youth music programs and operations at OAYO.
The program has been a mainstay in the Omaha musical community since its inception in the 1950s. In 2024, it joined the University of Nebraska at Omaha School of Music.
OAYO offers orchestral music experiences to over 200 students grades 3-12 annually. Those experiences are broken up into five ensembles, including:
Fritch said OAYO’s goal is to expose Omaha’s youth to classical music while removing the cost barrier that typically accompanies it.
“Classical music is a world that has a huge cost barrier, and that’s something that I personally see is a problem that should not exist,” Fritch said.
OAYO is closing that gap thanks to scholarship support provided to the program through the UNO Fund. This year, around 20 percent of students involved in OAYO receive some form of scholarship support, Fritch said.
That support allows students to continue growing as musicians through OAYO without their families worrying about the cost of the program.
“That’s really the beauty of this organization,” Fritch said. “When these kids come in, a lot of people assume that this is something they won’t be able to keep doing. We’re able to tell them, ‘We are here for you.’”
For Fritch, hearing from families about the impact OAYO has on the students participating in the program has been music to her ears. She said the success of this program isn’t possible without the continued support of donors.
“It’s honestly just so touching that we can provide this opportunity to these students, and we’re so thankful,” she said. “These contributions, no matter how big or small, all make it so we can make sure that door is open to any student that wants to participate.”
