A major APTA fundraising project to support diversity and inclusion in the profession is nearing its ambitious goal, and the association's upcoming centennial events could put it over the top.

The APTA Campaign for Future Generations launched in 2020 with the aim of increasing the APTA Physical Therapy Fund by 100% from its 2019 baseline of $1.3 million. Part of the strategy included leveraging events associated with the APTA centennial in 2021 to create opportunities for contributions to the effort.

The strategy is working: According to Carmen Elliott, APTA vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion and executive director of the Physical Therapy Fund, the fund balance is now approaching $2.45 million, just shy of the $2.6 million goal. The PT Fund is the overarching fund source that supports the APTA Dimensions of Diversity Fund as well as the APTA Minority Scholarship Fund.

"It's clear that APTA members are engaged in our work to reignite the spirit of diversity in the profession, and the success of the campaign is positive proof that we're moving in the right direction," Elliott said. "Achieving our goal during our centennial year speaks volumes about our members' commitment to the values of DEI that are so central to the association's transformative vision."

Thanks to the campaign, APTA's centennial-related events include a fundraising component whenever possible, with net proceeds from all events being channeled into the PT Fund. The flow of donations has been helped along by several entities that stepped up to sponsor or cosponsor various events, thereby helping to reduce direct costs to the association.

The new APTA headquarters, known as the APTA Centennial Center, has also proven to be a useful resource for both large and smaller-scale fundraising.

Earlier this year, names of members and supporters contributing as little as $10 to the physical therapy fund were included in the APTA "community wall" art installation on the first floor of APTA Centennial Center. The building has also generated donations through options for naming rights of various rooms and locations. The result: rooms and spaces named in honor of Leon Anderson Jr., PT, and Lynda Woodruff, PT, PhD; Stanley Paris, PT, PhD, FAPTA, and Catherine Patla, PT, DPT; Marilyn Moffat, PT, PhD, FAPTA; Catherine Worthingham; and Charles Magistro, PT, FAPTA, and his wife Noël, all of whom played significant roles in the growth of the physical therapy fund.

While close, the fundraising goal hasn't been reached yet. You can help by making a direct contribution to the PT Fund.