University experiences record increase in private giving during first half of fiscal year

The University of South Carolina has experienced a record 58 percent increase in private giving during the first six months of fiscal year 2007–08.

The university received $50 million in gifts and pledges from slightly more than 27,000 donors from July 1 through Dec. 31, 2007. That compares with $31.6 million received from 14,539 donors during the same period in 2006.

The University projects it will surpass its $75 million fundraising goal for this year.

“Alumni and friends are stepping up to help students with scholarship support and to help advance knowledge with support for faculty and important projects,” said Michelle Dodenhoff, associate vice president for development at South Carolina. She noted that 55.2 percent of donors are University alumni.

Nearly $45.3 million of the money raised thus far will be allocated to program enhancement, student support and capital project initiatives, Dodenhoff said. The remaining contributions will fund faculty support and other University projects.

“This level of support is very meaningful and gratifying,” University President Andrew Sorensen said. “It is an indication that we not only are communicating our goals to our alumni and friends, but also that we will be able to realize them, including recruitment of top students and faculty, enhancement of academic programs and the student experience, and the expansion of our research enterprise, which creates well-paying jobs.”

Of the $50 million given to the university, 91 percent has been donor designated or restricted to specific uses by the donor, including 32 percent for student support, 4 percent for faculty support, 34 percent for program enhancements and 21 percent for capital expenditures.

The university’s investment in its fundraising staff that identifies, cultivates, and solicits private support has paid off in a significant multiplier effect in donations received, Dodenhoff said, noting that for every dollar invested in development and fund-raising efforts there is a return to the university of at least $8 or more.

Expenditure of private donations by the university, particularly those from out-of-state donors, also has a secondary multiplier effect on the state’s economy, according to Doug Woodward, director of the Division of Research at South Carolina’s Moore School of business. When monies raised from out-of-state donors are expended, they foster new economic activity that helps create jobs and income for state citizens, Woodward said.

Private donations also help provide critical support in maintaining a high-quality educational experience for students in light of declining state appropriations that have come at a time of growing needs in general education, facility, and technology costs.

Out-of-state donors have been a growing part of the university’s private support base in recent years, highlighted by last month's announcement that Robert McNair, the Texas entrepreneur, industrialist, and founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of the Houston Texans NFL franchise, is increasing his McNair Scholarship Fund by $10 million. McNair’s latest gift benefited the McNair Scholars Program that he and his wife, Janice, created in 1998 with a $20 million donation. McNair founded Cogen Technologies, an energy company, which he sold in 1999. He is a 1958 graduate of the university.

“Janice and I believe that the best investment we can make is in intellectual capital,” said McNair. “When you invest in students and faculty, you are investing in intellectual capital that never decays or goes away. It just grows and spreads.

“We truly believe that we are stewards that have been blessed and that we in turn have a responsibility to be good stewards of these assets. I don’t know of a better way than to invest in young people. We’re delighted that we can do this and look forward to the continued success of the program.”

Jacque Riley, a McNair Scholar who recently graduated from the university summa cum laude and opened her own public relations firm in Columbia, called the McNairs “my knights in shining armor who brought opportunity to me. Pretty amazing things start to happen when you invest in people like that,” she said.

“My class of McNair Scholars includes several corporate executives, world travelers, pharmacists, dentists, and doctoral scholars to name just a few,” she said. “I’ve decided to stay in a city that I might never have known without the McNairs, and I’m doing my very best to follow in Mr. McNair’s footsteps as an entrepreneur.”

Shelley Price, a Carolina Scholar and South Carolina Honors College student from Spartanburg who is majoring in Russian at the South Carolina, was equally effusive in her gratitude for the donor who funds her scholarship.

“It enabled me to be a more focused student because I didn’t have to worry about working part-time while I was in school,” said Price, adding, “I could get more involved in activities that really interested me,” like the Russian Club, of which she served as president for two years. “I think of donors who help the University as angels who give the gift of education, and I’m very appreciative of their support,” Price said.

Among other recent gifts to the university was $25,000 from Steven Blair, a professor in the Department of Exercise Science. The money will be used to create the Blair Physical Activity Fund that will support research on physical inactivity as a public health problem. Blair anticipates the donation of at least another $25,000 to the fund this year. The monies come from his book royalties, speaking fees, and consultations.

“I consider inactivity to be the greatest modifiable public health threat of the 21st century in the United States and other industrialized countries,” said Blair, adding that the fund will support collaborations with researchers on the issue. It also can be used to support staff travel to scientific meetings, graduate assistantships and other research expenses.

Miles Loadholt, vice chairman of the University’s Board of Trustees and chair of the board’s Ad Hoc Committee on Advancement, hailed the University’s progress in its fund-raising report. “A record increase in private support to the university for the first six months of the fiscal year and a strong increase in the number of donors is a resounding endorsement of the University of South Carolina and its programs,” he said.

“We’re grateful for this vote of confidence by the university’s alumni and its other supporters. They’ve demonstrated that they understand the importance of South Carolina’s mission that is increasingly privately funded and want to be a part of the state’s progress made possible by their efforts. The university’s investment in its private support fundraising infrastructure is paying off.”