By Catherine Brown
Maya Rogers (B.S.’19, Cert.’21, M.P.A.’23) came to VCU in the fall of 2016 to earn a bachelor’s degree in accounting. A decade later, she’s still on campus — working as a financial services manager with the Office of the Provost. She even earned a second degree while working full-time.
“I love VCU. It has given me so much,” she says. “As I look back 10 years to when I first got to Richmond and to VCU, my life has grown exponentially.”
For Rogers, VCU equals opportunity. She recently served as Staff Senate president, a position that enabled her to build community among employees, collaborate with senior leadership and act as a nonvoting member of the Board of Visitors.
Rogers gives back to causes at VCU because she wants others to have the kind of positive, transformative experience she has had: “This is how I start to show how grateful I am for what VCU has given me.”
She uses payroll deduction to make regular contributions to VCU Athletics, where she worked as a student, and the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs, where she earned her master’s degree. Payroll deduction is a “game changer,” she says. “Learning that you can customize the amount that’s coming out of your paycheck really sold me.”
Rogers is also a member of the Women’s Impact Network, a VCU-led philanthropic community that fosters meaningful connections while supporting the university’s greatest needs. Through WIN events, she has met other community-minded women who also value philanthropy.
Working at VCU and serving on the Staff Senate, she says, have enabled her to see how philanthropy helps the VCU community. “When I first thought of donors and giving back to an institution, I only thought of scholarships,” Rogers says. “Obviously, that’s a major aspect of what donations can do for a university, but that’s only one facet. Through the VCU Board of Visitors’ reports and Unlocking Potential campaign events, I’ve been able to visualize where VCU wants to go and how donors can help us get there.”