Fundraising 101

Overview of UTK Fundraising Program

Role of Development and Alumni Affairs in the Journey to the Top 25  Increased Resources – specifically endowment growth, faculty funding, scholarships, graduate fellowships, and capital projects  Communications/Improved Reputation – we serve as a “voice” for the journey and can mobilize our 200,000+ alumni to be advocates  Student Recruitment & Retention – in addition to providing financial assistance, we have student alumni programming that provide opportunities for students to be engaged at UT increasing the likelihood of them being “retained”

Benchmarking UTK’s Fundraising Program against the Top 25  Endowment ~ $500M behind  Annual Private Support ~ $25-$40M behind (gifts received)  Alumni Participation Rate Gap – 4% (10,000 alumni donors) behind

Benchmarking UTK’s Fundraising Program against the SEC  Endowment Size– 11 th place  Annual Private Support – 10 th place  Alumni Participation Rate – 14 th place

 Completed – December 31, 2011  $860M received for UTK (against goal of $610M)

Questions  When does the next mega-campaign start?  Do our donors have “campaign fatigue”?  What are the funding priorities?  How big will the goal be?

Mega-Campaigns  Organized around strategic plans with clear funding priorities  Provides public pressure to achieve ambitious fundraising goals which motivates deans, chancellors, and development officers  Establishes a high level of giving achieved during a campaign that is sustained in the post-campaign era.

Mega-Campaigns  Includes large, transformational gifts  Motivated by mega-campaign goal or university strategic plan?  Success is highly dependent upon small percentage of the donors  During the Campaign for Tennessee, 13 of the donors provided 39% of the total dollars to UTK campus

Significant Changes at UTK in last 3 years  Resource Reduction – State support decreased by $60 million  Leadership Transition – Chancellor, numerous Deans & Department Heads hired  New Challenge – To become a Top 25 Public Research University  Completed Campaign for Tennessee – Receiving over $860M for UTK and $110M for UTIA

Our Strategy The university has decided to begin a new fundraising initiative – “Investing in the Journey to the Top 25” – immediately. It is widely anticipated that this fundraising initiative will transition into a campaign once a handful of key eight figure gifts can be secured.

Investing in the Journey to the Top 25  Aligned with Vol Vision/Top 25  In campaign mode – but not officially in a campaign  Focused on major ($25K+), leadership ($1M+), and principal ($5M+) gifts  Working with ~8/9 year goals for units and priorities  Not officially in a “campaign” until we secure 5 eight- figure gifts

Investing in the Journey to the Top 25  Significant emphasis on faculty funding  Transparent reports for tracking progress towards key priorities to be shared with academic leadership  Fundraising drive will provide the backdrop to improve the comprehensive fundraising program at UTK  Timeline ~

Tentative Funding Goals by Priorities  Faculty Funding - $150 million in chairs, professorships, and faculty awards

Tentative Funding Goals by Priorities  Undergraduate Education - $100 million in financial scholarships (Tennessee Pledge & Promise) and $100 million in merit based scholarships

Tentative Funding Goals by Priorities  Graduate Education - $50 million in graduate scholarships and fellowships

Tentative Funding Goals by Priorities  Research and Creative Activity – TBD

Tentative Funding Goals by Priorities  Resource Base - $400 million in additional strategic unit priorities

Improve the Comprehensive Fundraising Program  Becoming a top five fundraising program in the SEC by 2020 as measured by all commonly used metrics; up from being currently ranked between 8 th and 14 th place depending on the metric.  Developing alumni programs that communicate the importance of alumni participation – as investors and advocates – in the Journey to the Top 25.  Develop a stewardship program that provides our donors with the best stewardship experience of any charitable organization that they support.

How Can You Help?  Continue to do your great work! – these gifts are made as a validation of the work of UT’s faculty and students  Help create a culture that values and appreciates private support from alumni and friends – they have a multitude of other organizations they could support  It is in enlightened self-interest to pay attention to those who have given; as they will most likely give again

How Can You Help?  Share leads with your development office  Be willing to participate in a fundraising call or alumni reception  Spend the resources generously given to your unit  Call, write, or visit a donor to say “thank you” and share with them the impact of their support.