The Red Shirt™

Get The Red Shirt™ 11th Edition Today

Now you can share Bucky’s cool, confident style. (Not that you didn’t already, of course!) Plus, every shirt you purchase supports the UW’s Great People Scholarship, helping current and future students afford a life-changing education. It’s a fun shirt with a serious mission — and a must-have for every Badger.

Live Red. Give Back. Buy The Red Shirt™, 11th Edition!

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Meet the Next Design

Every year, we create a new edition of The Red Shirt based on a design selected by voters. Find out which design was chosen for the 12th Edition!

SEE THE WINNER

Impact

Mission

The Red Shirt™ gives alumni, students, and friends the chance to make a difference today for the Badgers of tomorrow. This unique collectible provides a spirited way to give back because proceeds go to the Great People Scholarship.

Impact to Date

Total Shirts Sold: 57,928
Dollars Raised: $290,000
Scholarships Awarded: 159

Impact in Action

Proud Great People Scholarship recipient Brian “Kai” Brito ’17 reflects on the positive effect the scholarship has had on his UW student experience.

Need for The Red Shirt™

Help us invest in the next generation of Badgers! WAA contributes 50 percent of proceeds from sales of The Red Shirt™ to the Office of Student Financial Aid’s Great People Scholarship.

The Great People Scholarship support students who have been accepted to UW–Madison based on merit but do not have sufficient financial resources to attend and succeed at the university. Two-thirds of first-year UW students apply for financial assistance, and — with the help of alumni and friends like you — we are working hard to meet their needs. A recent survey found that 58 percent of high achieving students who did not ultimately enroll at UW–Madison cited scholarships/financial aid packages as a determining factor in their decision. Your support can make a difference. Make an investment in the success of our students, and in turn, the success in the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Great People Scholarship Recipients

“The proceeds from The Red Shirt help to make a college education possible for some of the UW’s most deserving students. I am grateful for your support and hope that you know how much I — and hundreds of other scholarship students — appreciate your generosity.” — Denisse Ugalde ’16

“My scholarship has helped me to do more than attend UW–Madison. It enabled me to learn and grow more than I would have been able to do otherwise.” — Jessalyn Barker ’15

“UW–Madison offers a truly unique experience for all of its students … Without the Great People Scholarship, I would not be able to take full advantage of all the opportunities offered.” — Brian “Kai” Brito ’17

“While at UW–Madison, I’ve been able to connect with many people and ideas, pushing me to be the best Badger I can be. This would not have been possible without your support. Thank you!” — Breana Nehls ’16

“As a first-generation college student, it is with much gratitude that I thank alumni and friends such as you. Thank you for welcoming me into the Badger family.” — Danielle Vargas ’14

“I come from a working-class family, and I’m the first to go to college straight out of high school. Because of the Great People Scholarship and the university, I’ll be able to graduate without too much debt. That’s something I’m very grateful for!” — Robert Walter ’15

About

Mission

The Red Shirt™ — also the official shirt of UW Homecoming — is no ordinary shirt. It’s the only one of its kind designed to unite Badgers and give back to the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Proceeds from sales go to the Great People Scholarship, giving deserving students the chance to earn their UW degrees.

Every Shirt Sold Makes a Difference

The Red Shirt™ is changing the lives of future Badgers. Learn more.

Retired Editions and History

The year was 2008. The idea was simple: give Badgers a spirited way to give back. The tradition of The Red Shirt™ was born — because after the first edition was unveiled in ’08, a new, collectible design has been introduced every year. In 2015, we released the The Red Shirt™, Limited Edition by Virgil Abloh, a cutting-edge designer who, three years later, became the director of menswear for Louis Vuitton. He applied his unique brand of elevated street style to the classic University of Wisconsin T-shirt to create three new designs. With each new edition of The Red Shirt™, the previous one is retired … never to be sold again. But because every edition of The Red Shirt™ unites Badgers and gives students the chance to earn a UW degree, they’ll never be forgotten.