By
Daniel Scarpinato
Arizona Daily Wildcat
1999-2000 fiscal report shows $25 million increase in fundraising efforts
The UA Foundation and the University of Arizona recently released figures showing a record amount of funds were raised during the 1999-2000 fiscal year.
The funds, totaling more than $91 million, were highlighted in a list released by the Council for the Advancement of Education. The report shows a $25 million increase in donations from the previous year.
Dana Wier, vice president of public affairs for the UA Foundation, credits an increase in fundraising efforts as the reason for the record-breaking year.
"This is a reflection of the entire university system gearing up for this special event," Wier said.
The numbers reported by the council represent funds raised in what Wier calls the "quiet," or planning, phase before the official start of Campaign Arizona last fall.
The five-year fund-raising plan has a goal of collecting $1 billion through individual donations from alumni and public corporations.
So far, the foundation effort has accumulated more than $486 million, which includes all money raised since June 1997.
The report states that UA alumni contributions made up the smallest category of funds, at $19.4 million. It was noted that only about 10 percent of all UA graduates donate.
Non-alumni gave the largest amount of donations. These funds - from private foundations, individuals and corporations - totaled nearly $65 million, the report stated.
Ken Bacher, UA Foundation development director, said that the organizations that donate to the UA range from large, nationally-established foundations to small, family-operated ones.
"There are a great variety of programs here at the U of A that tend to attract a large amount of donations," Bacher said.
Most donors directed their money toward a specific department or entity at the university.
According to the report, funds were most often designated to research as well as toward academic departments. Of the $91.7 million raised, less than $1 million was placed in the category of unrestricted funds, or funds with no designated outlet.
In a statement issued by UA President Peter Likins and UA Foundation President Dick Imwalle, the two thanked all who had made the record-breaking year a possibility.
"It is the outstanding work of the university's faculty, researchers, staff and students that inspires private giving and helps secure the future excellence of this institution," the statement read.
The UA Foundation has now set all of its efforts on Campaign Arizona, which will conclude in June 2005.
