University outlines plans for fundraising

University officials outlined Princeton's upcoming $1.75 billion capital campaign at yesterday's meeting of the Council of the Princeton University Community (CPUC).

"It is a very exciting time," said Michele Minter, director of Development for the Office of Campaign and Individual Giving. "The University is propelled forward, both in terms of what it can fund and in terms of its relationship to its alumni."

Planning for the campaign has been ongoing for years, and Minter said the campaign's "quiet phase" officially began July 1, 2005.

Since that time, more than $547 million has been raised, and Minter said she expects to approach $600 million in pledges before the campaign's official kickoff on Nov. 9. On that day, more than 1,500 alumni and their spouses will pack Jadwin Gym as the University launches the public phase of the campaign.

The campaign will run until June 30, 2012, giving every class a major Reunion during the campaign period. All of Princeton's capital campaigns follow a five-year schedule, since major Reunions, which occur every five years, are traditionally considered a time for increased donations.

The capital campaign is a huge undertaking for the University and will involve more than 160 members of the development staff, including 20 who will travel across the country weekly. Additionally, the Development Office will partner with 20 other University offices for the effort.

The two national co-chairs of the campaign, Bob Murley '72 and Nancy Peretsman '76, will oversee 19 regional committees and more than 2,500 volunteers. Officials expect to process approximately 500,000 gifts, 3,000 of which will range from $50,000 to more than $100 million.

"It is a very high-paced time," Minter said. "We ask a lot of our volunteers and of ourselves. We have high expectations. We want our donors to feel that they can count on Princeton, that their gifts will be very well-used. And we really have to deliver on that and do that in a timely fashion."

The $1.75 billion campaign is broken into subcategories within the "Table of Needs." The University plans to spend $325 million each on "Engineering and a Sustainable Society" and "Exploration in the Arts," as well as $300 million each on "New Frontiers in Neuroscience" and "Citizenship and the World." An additional $250 million will go to projects that fall under the "Princeton Experience" category.

The last $250 million are expected to come from the next five Annual Giving campaigns, which are always included in the fundraising goals for University capital campaigns. The 2006-07 Annual Giving campaign raised more than $49 million, the highest total in University history.

Minter said that 90 percent of the alumni who participate in the campaign will do so through their Annual Giving contributions, which the University can distribute where it wishes. Donations not part of Annual Giving campaigns, by contrast, are directed toward a specific project, and the University must spend them in compliance with benefactors' wishes.

"We work extremely carefully with the donors to ensure that we understand their intentions and that the University can use them that way," Minter said. "We have to be very, very precise. The University takes those commitments extremely seriously."

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The campaign will fund a number of massive building projects, including a neuroscience institute, the creative arts community, the new Butler College and additional facilities for the engineering school.

"We do have some very ambitious needs, particularly in the area of facilities," Minter said. "We have to match up those facilities with what the donors are interested in; we have to match it up with who has the money and also match it up with the timing of our construction."

This can be a complex process, Minter explained. "There may be a donor out there who is very interested in giving a gift to neuroscience, but they may not have $75 million," she said. "You have to find the person who does have $75 million and is interested in neuroscience, and do it on the time frame that we need it to break ground and build the building."

The campaign will also enhance international initiatives, including study abroad opportunities and offerings by the Wilson School, the Office of International Programs and the newly opened Center for African American Studies.

Responding to a question from USG president Rob Biederman '08, President Tilghman and Executive Vice President Mark Burstein confirmed that funds have also been set aside to renovate Dillon Gym, augment its recreational programs and expand its staff.

Minter said that the campaign benefits everyone associated with the University, even if their specific program isn't on the "Table of Needs."

"The way we construct a campaign is we focus on things we think we can raise money for, but it doesn't mean that there are not other important funding initiatives that we're not raising money for," she said. "In some cases, because we're able to raise money or these areas, it frees up area in the budget."

Minter cited the renovation of Firestone Library and construction of the new chemistry building as projects that benefit from additional funding in the budget.

She added that even when the campaign has ended, the University will continue to benefit for decades to come. "The campaign brings some benefits that can't exactly be quantified," she said. "We hope that this is a time when we engage a whole new generation of donors and volunteers, and if we invest in them, they will be around for a long time."

Tilghman added that while students do not have an official role in the campaign, they are essential to its success.

"You are our most effective advocates," she said. "When you can describe the experiences that you are having on this campus right this minute ... that is extremely powerful. We will be calling on you from time to time to do exactly that. I know of nothing that's more effective."