SAEMF Challenge

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Who will win the 2026 Academy, Committee, Interest Group Challenge?

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About the Challenge

The annual SAEM Foundation (SAEMF) Challenge will kick off on May 1! YOUR gift or pledge by August 31 will help your Academy, Committee, or Interest Group rise to the top of the leaderboards!

  • A spirited competition that raises funds in support of funding more and larger emergency medicine (EM) grants by supporting SAEMF's work.

  • Each year between May 1 and August 31, hundreds of members of SAEM’s academies, committees and interest groups come together to contribute to the Challenge.

  • During that time all donations and pledges, up to the first $10,000 raised, will be matched $1:$1 by SAEM!

  • Make a charitable gift by visiting saem.org/donate

  • Email Julie Wolfe to pledge a donation for later in the year and we will send you a reminder to donate by December 31.

  • A single gift or pledge will count towards all of the groups you participate in! 

Winning the Challenge

  • The groups to raise the most funds and/or who reach 100% participation first will WIN the competitions.

  • Beginning in 2022, SAEMF recognized the Bylaws Committee (which has the fewest number of members of all committees), in addition to the next highest participating committee(s), as participation winners.

  • Vice Chairs: You have your own Challenge! Your gift to the Vice Chairs' Challenge, which runs concurrent with this Challenge, counts for participation in both Challenges. If the Vice Chairs' Interest Group wins either highest participation or total raised in the Interest Group category of this Challenge, and you raise $35,000 in new donations or pledges in 2026, you unlock a special celebration for your SAEM27 group meeting!

Watch Your Group Climb the Leaderboard

  • See the Challenge leaderboards beginning May 1 to track progress in the categories of funds raised and percent of group members who are donors.

  • Note: your gift will be applied equally to each academy, committee, and/or interest group to which you belong. 

Wondering if you already donated this year? Checkout the 2026 Challenge Updates document.

  • Members may donate more than once.

  • The total amount of all donations for each member will be counted towards their groups' totals; but each member will only be counted once for their participation.

  • Gifts and pledges from donors who gave earlier in the year, or those who have a pledge installment due in the current year, will count towards the Challenge total raised and participation rate for each group to which they belong, however, they are not eligible for SAEM's match.

  • Members can set up monthly automatic recurring gifts if they so choose at saem.org/donate. All donations are tax deductible to the extent of current IRS regulations and 100% of dollars raised are used to fund grants to SAEM members.

The Real Winners

The groups that raise the most funds and those with the highest participation within each category will be recognized on SAEM's socials, on this website, in SAEM Pulse, and will receive a special treat at SAEM27. The biggest winners are those whose research your gift will help fund. See the Donor Guide to learn more about SAEMF, its grantees and their work, and the power of a donation.

Questions? Contact Julie Wolfe for Challenge details or to check your donation history.


Congratulations to the 2025 SAEMF Challenge Winners!

Highest Participation Competition
  • Academy of Geriatric Emergency Medicine
  • Finance Committee & Bylaws Committee
  • Research Directors Interest Group & Vice Chairs’ Interest Group
Most Funds Raised Competition
  • Academy for Diversity & Inclusion in Emergency Medicine
  • Grants Committee 
  • Operations Interest Group & Vice Chairs’ Interest Group
Celebrating YOUR Impact

  • Generous SAEM members donated a record-breaking $99,400 from 198 donations/pledges raised during the Challenge fundraising period, which ran from May 1 to August 31! With SAEM's thoughtful matching gift, our final tally for this year reached an impressive $109,400 to fund more EM grants! 

  • Winning groups get ready to be celebrated throughout the upcoming year and during SAEM26!

Thank you for your support of the SAEMF Challenge!


Chairs Challenge Flyer

Challenge Resources