Scholarships that help students afford college, including one in Boulder for participants in precollegiate programs. A new Colorado Springs program that inspires and prepares students to become K-12 teachers in technical disciplines. An innovative center for commodities to anchor a new downtown Denver business school building. Endowed chairs that support faculty excellence in women’s health research, childhood dental medicine, and adult diabetes on our medical campus.
These are among the more than 2,300 programs that donors supported this past year at the University of Colorado, which benefited from more than $228.6 million in private support for the 12-month-period ending June 30, 2012, according to preliminary numbers—the highest fiscal-year total in CU history.
“As private support becomes increasingly critical to CU’s budget mix, donors have helped CU continue to provide the teaching, research, outreach, and health programs of the highest caliber,” said CU President Bruce Benson. “We are extremely grateful for the more than 47,000 donors who have helped create futures throughout the University of Colorado and beyond.”
More than half these funds were donated through the University of Colorado Foundation, the university’s development and investment management arm, which raised $110.1 million this year, its 2nd most successful year for fundraising in history, reflecting a 7.5 percent increase over last year.
The total of $228.6 million also includes $118.5 million in private support booked directly through the university or the CU Real Estate Foundation. The total exceeds by 7 percent last year’s then-record total of $213.6 million.
Gifts through the CU Foundation include $43.5 million toward the Anschutz Medical Campus, $45.5 million toward the University of Colorado Boulder, $7.6 million toward the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, $13.1 million toward the University of Colorado Denver, and just over $300,000 directed toward the CU system.
The latter figure represents CU Denver’s most successful fundraising year ever, bolstered by three seven-figure commitments including $5.5 million by J.P. Morgan Chase to name the J.P. Morgan Center for Commodities on the first floor of the new CU Denver Business School building.
“The strong support of our donors is a clear indication of the life-changing work occurring on each of CU’s four campuses,” says CU Foundation President and CEO Richard W. Lawrence. “We will continue to work hard to reinforce our donors’ faith in our efforts.”
Another positive fundraising development this year is a continued strong pipeline of bequest commitments made by donors. More than $30 million in future estate commitments were recorded by the Foundation this year, and the total pipeline of provisions made by donors in their estate plans surpassed the $190 million mark this year—nearly half of which has been committed in the last three years. Though not counted in aforementioned fundraising totals, these commitments indicate a strong likely future flow of gifts that will benefit CU for generations to come.
Donors are creating futures at CU by supporting:
- Discovery and Innovation at CU Denver, where a $900,000 grant by the Merck Foundation supports an XSci research collaborative that explores how extraordinary physical experiences can make good teachers great
- Learning and Teaching at CU-Boulder, where Roe Green (’70) endowed the first faculty chair for an arts program in CU history with a $2 million pledge establishing the Roe Green Chair in Theatre
- Community and Culture at the Anschutz Medical Campus, where a $1 million commitment from the Bolanos Foundation will help establish a health clinic in Guatemala, in conjunction with CU Center for Global Health faculty and student efforts
- Health and Wellness at UCCS, where thanks to a $4 million gift, the Lane Center for Academic Health Sciences will integrate clinical care, teaching, and research to benefit Pikes Peak region seniors athletes, and other populations
Benson reinforces that since more than 98 percent of donors earmark their gifts for specific purposes, philanthropy does not replace the vital need for operational funds squeezed by declining state funding.
CU has raised more than 80 percent of its $1.5 billion goal for the Creating Futures campaign, which began in 2006 and was announced publicly in April 2011. Ongoing priorities for support for this campaign include: scholarships, endowed chairs, and professorships; research programs; buildings and infrastructure; and academic support.
Endowments held by the CU Foundation were valued at approximately $773 million as of June 30, 2012. The investment return on the CU Foundation’s Long Term Investment Pool,which includes the vast majority of these endowments, declined 0.9 percent in the trailing 12-month period, bettering the -2.5 percent return of the LTIP’s benchmark (based on the expected performance of an investment fund with the LTIP’s target asset allocation). Over the trailing five years, the LTIP has gained 9.7 percent, materially exceeding the benchmark’s 1.3 percent decline.
— Jeremy Simon, CU Foundation
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