Alumni and Friends Making an Impact

She may have grown up in North Carolina, but Lauren Cloos always knew there was a front porch with her name on it at the University of Dayton.

Her mother, Diane Doerr Cloos, graduated from UD in 1990, and Cloos grew up listening to Diane’s stories. But of all the stories, the ones involving her mother’s front porch captivated Cloos the most.

“She loved her porch,” said Cloos. “That’s where her true memories of Dayton came.”

And even though she grew up nearly eight hours away from the Gem City, Cloos began to form her own attachment to the Flyers.

“I grew up watching Dayton basketball,” said Cloos. “I remember the 2014 run to the Elite Eight. I’d never seen my mother happy about a sport until that moment.”

With the University of Dayton as the ultimate goal, Cloos worked hard in high school. But she knew it would take more than just hard work to attend UD. When she was just two years old, her father died, and with two siblings, Cloos worried about how she would pay for college — any college — with only her mother’s income to support the family.

“Everyone thought I was crazy wanting to leave North Carolina for Ohio,” said Cloos. “But no other college gave me that special feeling.”

That’s when donors stepped in.

Cloos was awarded the David F. and C. Louise Israel Scholarship and the Stanley Greenberg Memorial Endowed Alumni Legacy Scholarship, putting that UD experience she always wanted within reach. Scholarships also helped her older sister and younger brother become Flyers, too.

“Scholarships open opportunities for students,” said Cloos. “Donors are truly making an impact on me and other students, giving us the peace of mind to involve ourselves and pursue our dreams.”

“Scholarships open opportunities for students,” said Cloos. “Donors are truly making an impact on me and other students, giving us the peace of mind to involve ourselves and pursue our dreams.”

For Cloos, her dream has shifted to graduating with her degree in communication. To prepare, she works with Flyer Media helping produce, write and edit news programs. She’s also part of the team that operates social media accounts for athletics and is a member of Phi Beta Chi, UD’s communications honors fraternity. And even with all of that, she finds time to run the Flyers food pantry.

As a way of saying thank you to the donors who made her Dayton dream possible, Cloos will join other students for the 2023 Scholarship Brunch Sunday, Nov. 12, as part of this year’s Donor Appreciation Week.

“I am excited to talk to donors. If there is one thing I love about UD, it’s the alumni,” said Cloos. “They’re so willing to talk about their experience at Dayton and listen to mine.”

And now that she has a front porch of her own, Cloos is building her own true memories of Dayton, just like her mother.

“It’s fun to people-watch and do homework and witness the community unfold,” said Cloos. “Watching the student body come to life is awesome. I now understand everything my mother told me.”