In an effort to sustain the fundraising momentum initially sparked by the Campaign for Academic Enrichment, which ended in Dec. 31, the Corporation has formed the Committee on Development, which will oversee all University fundraising.
The committee is chaired by Vice Chancellor Jerome Vascellaro '74 P'07, a Corporation trustee and former co-chair of the campaign. Senior Vice President for University Advancement Steven King '91 will work closely with the committee, which will also include President Ruth Simmons, Chancellor Thomas Tisch '76 and three to five other Corporation members.
According to Vascellaro, the Committee on Development will oversee fundraising efforts and develop strategies for future fundraising. King added that the committee will also review fundraising progress and report its findings to the Corporation at least once per year.
With the recent end of the campaign, Vascellaro said the committee intends to ensure "a continuation of the momentum and fundraising results of the campaign." He added that before the campaign began, the University raised about $80 million in gifts and pledges each year, but during the campaign, that number rose to $200 million per year.
Vascellaro called the new committee "a natural evolution from the campaign."
The Campaign for Academic Enrichment Executive Committee, including the president, chancellor and three campaign co-chairs, decided to create a development committee at the Corporation level that would be established when the campaign was over, King said.
The campaign "set a standard of excellence," he said.
King and Vascellaro both said another important duty of the Committee on Development will be to discuss the University's fundraising priorities. King said the committee will ensure the University's institutional priorities determine the committee's fundraising priorities.
Vascellaro said the committee will work closely with the administration to establish these fundraising priorities and will work to match specific donors to specific initiatives. The new engineering school and the financial aid program are two possible areas of focus for the committee, he said.
"I feel good that we will have the leadership and support of this group," said King, adding that fundraising is crucial for the future of the University.
