USU raises fundraising goal to $400 million
As if raising $200 million for the Campaign for Utah State University in one year wasn’t ambitious enough, USU President Stan Albrecht has decided to double it.
Speaking to an audience of 500 USU supporters at the Depot in Salt Lake City, Aug. 6, Albrecht announced a new goal of raising $400 million by July 2012.
“We’ve got many many hands in this effort and people are lifting according to their ability,” said Kent Clark, who works with corporations and foundations with the USU Development office. “The overall impact is the university and campaign are really thriving. I think the success that we’re seeing parallels where the institution is going and the confidence level people have in this administration and faculty.”
Currently, more than $225 million has been raised in the campaign, which has already been put to work in the construction of the Jim and Carol Laub Athletics-Academics Complex, the Sant Engineering Innovation Building and the Performance Hall, Clark said.
Since the the beginning of the campaign, more than 36,000 individuals have contributed and about 100 new endowments have been created.
While USU has been the beneficiary of many large, generous donations, Clark said the campaign’s success has been a result of all donations, large and small. Many USU employees gave through payroll deduction, he said.
“People told us with gifts large and small that they really believe in where USU is going,” he said.
Up to this point in the campaign, the majority of the funding was directed by the donors to specific endeavors – particularly in building construction and program improvement, Clark said. In this next phase of the campaign, the university will continue to receive gifts to go toward buildings and programs, but the big focus is on building the endowment, he said.
“You realize, even though we have raised over $225 million, there are still plenty of needs on campus that remain unmet,” Clark said. “So, it’s a difficult thing to say a campaign has been successful, but there is more to do. The momentum is moving our way and we’ve had tremendous success and response already.”
Meeting the long-term needs on campus is the focus of the endowment and the direction the university needs to take to continue to be strong in the future, Clark said.
An endowment is a program where a donor gives money to the university, which is then invested to provide continued returns for the university years down the road, thereby aiding in the future success of USU, Clark said.
While perhaps not as glamorous on the surface as having a building named after a donor, Clark said giving to the endowment can be one of the most rewarding ways to contribute to USU. Endowment scholarships, for instance, can be named after the donor and the scholarship recipients often have interaction with the donor, which can be rewarding for the donor, Clark said.
“I think the endowment donors have the best experience because if they make a scholarship endowment, they get to see firsthand what their gifts are doing,” Clark said.
An endowment is a common measure of institutional performance, Clark said, and a good way to evaluate the level of investment that alumni and other donors are making. Compared to peer universities, USU’s endowment is small, Clark said, but the additional $200 million goal will aid in increasing the ability of USU to meet its needs, aiding future students and faculty.
“Ultimately people are investing in our success,” Clark said. “This is an investment where people don’t get a financial enumeration out of it. Their investment is made worthwhile by the successes we have.”
-seth.h@aggiemail.usu.edu