Some careers are built based on skills. Others are built because of people—the advisors, champions, and quiet encouragers who saw potential before it was proven. In recognition of those who impacted our careers, SOT is proud to announce the newest honorific in its Education Mission Fund Honorary Giving Campaign: “Our Mentors.”
My mentors, Drs. Meryl H. Karol and Thomas G. Akers, were pivotal to my career development and personal growth. They guide me not only by sharing their knowledge and expertise but by offering encouragement and opening doors. By acknowledging our mentors, we honor the profound influence they have had on our paths, express gratitude for their generosity, and help ensure their legacy continues to motivate generations to come. By honoring them in this way, we reinforce the value of mentorship in our SOT community and encourage others to become mentors themselves, strengthening the toxicology field for years to come.
“Our Mentors” joins a growing roster of honorifics within the SOT Education Mission Fund Honorary Giving Campaign, an initiative that invites the toxicology community to celebrate the people and institutions who have moved the field forward, while investing in the scientists who will carry it into the future.
A Campaign Built to Last
SOT launched the Education Mission Fund Expansion Campaign with a clear ambition: grow the fund from its current level of approximately $200,000 to between $1.2 and $1.5 million over the next three to five years. The goal isn’t merely a number—it’s permanence. The campaign is designed to ensure that the educational programs SOT values most are supported in perpetuity, no matter what the future holds.
The Education Mission Fund already powers programs that make a real difference: travel grants that bring graduate students to the SOT Annual Meeting and the SOT Summer Internship Program, which opens the doors of toxicology research to undergraduates. Expanding the fund means increasing access—to mentorship, to opportunity, and to the field itself.
Honoring the People Who Made the Field
At the heart of the campaign is the Honorary Giving Campaign, a way for donors to contribute in honor of individuals or institutions whose contributions to toxicology deserve lasting recognition. Each honorary campaign seeks to reach $50,000 in cumulative gifts. Once that milestone is achieved, the honoree’s name becomes permanently associated with the Education Mission Fund.
Three other honorifics are already established, recognizing Anthony N. Ndifor, Richard E. Peterson, and William Slikker Jr. The honorific for Dr. Slikker has reached its maximum gift while those honoring Dr. Ndifor and Dr. Peterson remain open for giving. “Our Mentors” is the newest addition to this distinguished group.
To encourage momentum, SOT will provide a matching contribution of up to $10,000 once a campaign reaches $40,000—with matching funds available for up to 10 honorees. It’s a powerful incentive to give now, while your gift goes further.
What Your Gift Means
Every donor to the Education Mission Fund will be recognized on the SOT Endowment Fund Honor Roll of Contributors, published on the SOT website. Those who give $500 or more to a named honoree campaign will receive an additional acknowledgment: an invitation to the SOT President’s Reception during the campaign.
Contributions to the SOT Endowment Fund are tax-deductible. SOT is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Join Us in Shaping What Comes Next
Toxicology’s future is being written by the students and early career scientists in classrooms and laboratories right now. Your support helps ensure they have the resources, the training, and the mentors they need to succeed—and in doing so, advances the science that protects human health and the environment for everyone.
#Communique:SOTNews