‘We Give Blood’: Illini Save Lives With Abbott and the Big Ten | Student Affairs

Student Affairs

Tue, 11/18/2025 - 12:00

A Life-Saving Competition

This fall, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign joined forces with Abbott and the Big Ten Conference in the “We Give Blood” drive. Since August 25, 2025, Illinois has been competing against all 18 Big Ten universities to see which school can donate the most blood. Over 197,000 lives have been saved so far in this competition, with 65,000+ donors pitching in to make a difference.

The winning school will receive $1 million from Abbott to advance student or community health. The winner of the “We Give Blood” drive will be announced at the Big Ten Championship Game on December 6 in Indianapolis.

Illinois is inching toward the Top 5, with over 3x more donations compared to the previous year. With three and a half weeks left to go in the drive, U. of I. students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members still have time to step up and give back!

Universal Need

Someone needs blood every two seconds, and one donation can save up to three lives. Some blood centers have less than a 1-day supply available, and as people get older, they become less likely to be eligible to donate blood.

Yet, the need for blood is constant—trauma victims, mothers experiencing complications after childbirth, or individuals receiving cancer treatment all benefit from receiving blood donations. The number of young people donating blood has been falling in recent years, so it has never been more important for younger generations to donate if eligible.

Illini Making An Impact

For U. of I. student Bernard Jones, becoming a donor was not too complicated or time consuming.

“It is fulfilling working towards a bigger picture,” said Jones, an undergraduate student in the College of Health & Kinesiology, majoring in Health Administration & Planning. “This 30 minutes out of my day can really impact someone's entire life.”

Jones has donated over one gallon of blood during his college career so far. His blood has traveled throughout the state of Illinois, Memphis, Tennessee and parts of California to support those in need.

How to Participate

Anyone, anywhere can donate and score points for the University of Illinois...on-campus or if you live elsewhere!

Donate blood at any upcoming campus drive (see schedule below) or at any blood center in the U.S. (find a local donation center: bigten.org/abbott/Illinois)
Upload proof of donation or attempt to donate: Submit Here or text DONATE to 222688 (ABBOTT)

Make Your Donation Count

Logging a donation for Illinois is easier than ever. After you donate, you can submit your donation at BigTen.Org/Abbott or text “DONATE” to ABBOTT (222688). Donations will be tracked on a live leaderboard at BigTen.Org/Abbott throughout the campaign.

Upcoming Campus Blood Drives

November 20 | 11:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M.
Illini Union | Urbana
Register Now

Resources

“Every Drop Counts” | Healthy Illini Podcast Ep.
The Healthy Illini Podcast is hosted by McKinley Health Center featuring health and wellness topics for the Illinois community.

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