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Aug 15, 2012

Campus surpasses $400M fundraising milestone again

Building.sunlight.contrastDespite a still-sluggish economy, UCLA has once again surpassed the $400 million mark for annual fundraising. In the 2011-12 fiscal year that ended June 30, the university raised $402 million from 58,358 donors who gave more than 75,000 gifts and pledges to UCLA.
 
The performance is a testament to UCLA’s ability to sustain a long-term upward trajectory in fundraising in defiance of a wobbly economy and amid draconian cuts in state funding. Since the end of Campaign UCLA in 2006 — when UCLA raised more than $3 billion in what was at the time the most successful fundraising effort in the history of higher education — the university has raised an average of $412 million per year.
 
The 2011-12 total slipped 16 percent from 2010-11, an extraordinary year that was anchored by four gifts of $20 million or more. It was the third highest fundraising year in UCLA’s history.
 
In 2011-12, the largest gift to UCLA came from faculty member and public health leader Dr. Jonathan Fielding, founding director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, and his wife, Karin Fielding. Their extraordinary gift, valued at $50 million, is the largest ever in the history of the School of Public Health. The gift will support faculty, students and the educational infrastructure at what was renamed the UCLA Jonathan and Karin Fielding School of Public Health.
 
All told, 55 gifts and pledges of $1 million and above came in during 2011-12, compared to 49 the year before.
 
"The fact that we have been able to raise an average of more than $410 million annually since the end of the last campaign demonstrates the continued confidence our alumni and friends have in the university’s mission and the ability of leaders to carry it out," said Steve Gamer, associate vice chancellor of development and executive director of the UCLA Foundation.
 
Gamer noted a 3 percent increase, to $15 million, in the amount of unrestricted giving from the previous year. These gifts are significant because they can be used at the discretion of UCLA’s senior leaders and provide a measure of flexibility to address specific resource gaps and meet campus priorities, he said.
 
With tuition increasing to make up for reduced state funding, scholarship support continues to be a priority for the campus. One notable gift in this area in 2011-12 was a $3 million bequest from the estate of the late actor Peter Falk, which was used to establish an endowment to support undergraduate students.
 
UCLA-gift-history-slide.475UCLA continues to rank among the top universities nationally in higher-education fundraising. In its survey of 2011 contributions to the nation’s colleges and universities, the Council for Aid to Education ranked UCLA tops for fundraising among public universities, and eighth overall.
 
UCLA’s fundraising success in 2011-12 lays a solid foundation for a new fundraising campaign expected to launch in 2014 and culminate with the university’s centennial in 2019, Gamer said.
 
Also in preparation for the centennial campaign, the UCLA Investment Company, owned by The UCLA Foundation, hired a president and chief investment officer to oversee management of the endowment. Over the past 20 years, assets under management have more than doubled to approximately $2.5 billion and are expected to grow further. Srinivas "Srini" Pulavarti came to the UCLA Investment Company from a similar position at Spider Management Company, which manages $1.9 billion for the University of Richmond in Virginia and $1.1 billion for 23 other entities. Under Pulavarti’s management, the Spider endowment has consistently ranked as one of the nation’s best-performing among universities.
 
Philanthropy has become increasingly vital to the university in order to maintain academic excellence at UCLA at a time when state funding has plunged for all 10 UC campuses. Since 2007-08, the state has cut the University of California budget by nearly $1 billion.
 
"We’re extremely grateful for the unwavering commitment to the university’s mission and partnership shown by donors," Gamer said. "We recognize we are not alone in our effort to maintain academic excellence and access for the brightest students, while continuing our path to life-changing research discoveries. Through their generosity, donors have shown they are committed to a bright future for UCLA."