{"id":34009,"date":"2025-12-12T14:13:22","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T22:13:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sop.washington.edu\/?p=34009"},"modified":"2025-12-16T15:34:12","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T23:34:12","slug":"paying-it-forward-dana-hurleys-path-from-student-support-to-philanthropic-leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staff.washington.edu\/twentzel\/wordpress\/paying-it-forward-dana-hurleys-path-from-student-support-to-philanthropic-leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"Paying It Forward: Dana Hurley\u2019s Path from Student Support to Philanthropic Leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Driven by her desire to support students in fragile financial situations, School of Pharmacy alum and Chair of the Dean&#8217;s Advisory Board <strong>Dana Hurley <\/strong>(&#8217;97, &#8217;00, &#8217;04)\u00a0initiated her support of the School of Pharmacy quickly after graduation and was eventually joined by her husband, Matt Thomlinson, BSEE \u201894 and MSEE \u201897.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnce I graduated, I started giving to the School of Pharmacy immediately,\u201d Dana says. Later, the couple approached the School of Pharmacy about additional need. \u201cWe asked, how can we provide something of meaning that would be impactful? \u00a0The drive to give back has led both Dana and her husband <strong>Matt Thomlinson <\/strong>toward deeper and more meaningful engagements with the UW ever since.<\/p>\n<p>Dana was not sure she would be able to afford to complete her undergraduate degree in Pharmacy at all.\u00a0 As a student with limited financial resources, she didn\u2019t have anyone to turn to until she was connected to UW support services for students in her precarious position. Through grant funding the UW was able to provide her with $500, an amount she says, \u201cfelt like the whole world,\u201d and gave her the financial resources to continue her education.<\/p>\n<p>Dana did not come from a financially stable family and she experienced the impacts of having a parent with a pharmaceutical painkiller addiction, so paying for a college degree came with challenges. Despite those challenges, she went on to complete not only her undergraduate degree in Pharmacy (\u201897), but also a masters (\u201804) and PharmD (\u201800) in Pharmacy at the UW. Dana\u2019s own connection to addiction and her desire to provide pathways to a better future for others was what initially drove her education and career, and now her giving.<\/p>\n<p>While Dana has led the charge on her and Matt\u2019s giving plans through the School of Pharmacy, Matt has recently become more involved in advising projects more closely related to his field of interest in technology and AI that also overlap with pharmacy research.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was fun sitting down and having the conversation,\u201d he said. \u201cHalf of the conversation is over my head and Dana was understanding, and the other half was where I was geeking out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Once engaged with the university as a donor, Matt says it was easy to dive even deeper.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen you give, you start getting looped in to all the communications, and you become an insider as to what is happening at the UW,\u201d he said. \u201cStories start pulling you in and you become interested in this research, or another program, or the Nobel Prize.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The couple\u2019s desire to connect with the UW in a more substantial way has led them to give their time as volunteers on the UW Foundation Board, as well as advisory committees for emerging programs. Matt relishes the opportunity to take his involvement further.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can give of yourself in many ways,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are times when we give more time than money, and there are times when we give money and then we want to back it up with being involved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Matt also believes the UW is well positioned to be a leader in many technology fields. \u201cThe university is on the cutting edge of so many fields, and in the near future the outcomes are going to be even more interdisciplinary,\u201d he notes. \u201cI think that puts the UW in a really good spot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the couple\u2019s connection to UW runs deep, it\u2019s the connection to a broader community that keeps them engaged and encourages other people to join them in support of programs that reach students in need, much like Dana was herself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re all connectors,\u201d she said. \u201cI can\u2019t help it. When I meet new people, I want to know, \u2018what are you interested in? What is your background, and have you thought about the University of Washington?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dana believes it\u2019s worthwhile to get involved with the UW in any capacity, either financially or as a volunteer. \u201cThe more you get involved, the more you are aware and the bigger impact you can make for everybody,\u201d she says. \u201cMy first gift was $50, I think, to the Dean\u2019s Fund in the School of Pharmacy,\u201d she continues. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t have to be a lot. There will always be a need. Somebody will always benefit from what you have to offer. So just get started.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Driven by her desire to support students in fragile financial situations, School of Pharmacy alum and Chair of the Dean&#8217;s Advisory Board Dana Hurley (&#8217;97, &#8217;00, &#8217;04)\u00a0initiated her support of the School of Pharmacy quickly&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[472],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-alumni-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Paying It Forward: Dana Hurley\u2019s Path from Student Support to Philanthropic Leadership - 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