Tiger Giving Day 2026 Funds SIGD’s Community Makerspace

The funds will allow the School to create Auburn’s first collaborative makerspace and empower creativity through hands-on learning.

“This makerspace is about making design tangible and shared,” said Mario F. Bocanegra Martinez, Assistant Professor of Graphic Design. “We hope it becomes a place where students and community members experiment side‑by‑side, learn through hands‑on processes and discover how creative making can bring people together.”

The space will be a hub for both students and the larger community to participate in experimental workshops, collaborative projects and accessible tools. Some of the planned workshops include digital stencil printing that can be used for art zines, posters and brochures.

“We hope this future space will become more than a place to learn about new tools — we want students to teach and share what they discover here,” said Courtney Windham, Associate Professor of Graphic Design, “and in doing so, build the skills that will carry them into professional practice as designers, art and creative directors, educators and leaders.”

In previous years, Tiger Giving Day has supported a disaster relief tool trailer in the McWhorter School of Building Science, Landscape Architecture’s Experience Alabama Fieldwork Program, the Shoe Design Outreach Program for high school students, the preservation of the historic Rosenwald Schools and civil rights research for the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma.

CADC Director of Philanthropy Christopher Griffin said that the 2026 Spring Tiger Giving Day campaign didn’t just reach the financial goal of $10,000, but unlocked opportunities for people to be creative.

“I look forward to seeing the impact our School of Industrial and Graphic Design’s makerspace has for years to come and appreciate our alumni and friends coming together to make this a reality,” he said.