Private Giving To Penn State Increases 10 Years In A Row, Broadhurst Says

August 23, 2001
University Park, Pa. —For the tenth consecutive year, private giving to Penn State has increased, according to James S. Broadhurst, volunteer chair of the University’s Grand Destiny fund-raising campaign.

            Penn State received $177 million in gifts from alumni and friends for the year ending June 30, 2001, compared to $171 million in 1999-2000. The totals include gifts actually received and exclude campaign pledges.

            The $177 million received in 2000-2001 came from 116,971 donors, including about 71,000 Penn State alumni, said Broadhurst, who is chairman and CEO of Pittsburgh-based Eat’n Park Hospitality Group and a 1965 graduate of the College of the Liberal Arts.

He attributed much of the continued increase in private support to the seven-year Grand Destiny campaign, which began July 1, 1996. Gifts to Penn State totaled $83 million in fiscal 1995-96, the year immediately preceding the campaign.

            “Giving to the University has more than doubled since the campaign began,” Broadhurst said. “We are very grateful to Penn State alumni and friends everywhere for their generosity. Our campaign’s success has also benefited from hard work by our volunteers and the development staff, and a robust economy.”

When the Grand Destiny campaign was publicly announced in April 1999, it aimed to raise $1 billion in private support. In May of this year, Penn State’s Board of Trustees approved raising the goal to $1.3 billion so that the University has the resources to meet new and changing needs, identified after careful study by President Graham Spanier and the academic leadership.

As of June 30, 2001, overall campaign gifts and pledges totaled $1.005 billion.

            Donors created 287 endowments in 2000-2001, including 149 new undergraduate funds (primarily scholarships), 63 funds for graduate students, 14 faculty funds (such as endowed professorships), and 61 program funds.

            “This brings the University’s total number of endowments to 3,162—almost 1,200 of which have been created during the campaign,” explained Broadhurst. “But we still have a long road ahead of us to make Penn State more competitive in attracting the best students and faculty, and in giving it the resources it must have to serve Pennsylvania and the nation. We are counting on continued support from both current and new donors.”

            He added that “many donors, having seen the positive impact of their previous gifts, are making more contributions to the campaign’s new initiatives.”

            In its final two years, the campaign will emphasize giving to endowments, expanding alumni participation in the campaign, and support for buildings and other facilities.

mb

Contacts:
Mike Bezilla (814) 863-4512 (work) (814) 238-5842 (home) mxb13@psu.edu
Laura Stocker (814) 863-4512 (work) (814) 237-2013 (home) lstocker@psu.edu