News-Letter

Media Credit: Laura Bitner [Click to enlarge]

Donations to Hopkins increased in the 2006 fiscal year, resulting in $458 million in campaign commitments — a combination of both pledges and cash.

According to the Office of Alumni and Development, 22 percent of alumni participated with pledges and gifts. This represents a 15.9 percent increase from the $395.3 million accrued in 2005.

On strict cash fundraising, Hopkins was ranked seventh in 2006 with $337.34 million in a survey by the Council for Aid to Education -- 14.2 million and one ranking up from last year.

In a recent endowment study, the National Association of College and University Business Officers ranked Johns Hopkins as having the 24th largest endowment amongst national universities in 2006. The study reported an eight percent increase in the market value of the endowment from 2005, jumping from a total of $2.18 billion to $2.35 billion last year.

The minimum endowment gift at Hopkins, according to the Alumni and Development Office, is $100,000. An endowment gift differs from an annual gift because of its perpetuity in a specific department or school at the university as it can function as a permanent scholarship, professorship or fellowship. Endowments are generally larger gifts that remain untouched and tend to have an impact over a longer period of time due to varied financial strategies.

"When people donate endowment gifts they have to look at their personal financial situation and decide whether or not they want to do something for the short term or invest heavily in a specific area to have a more lasting effect," said Fritz Schroeder, senior associate vice president of the Alumni and Development Office.

As compared to other prestigious universities, Hopkins' growth is exceptionally low. Stanford University (15.4), Duke University (17.6), and the University of Chicago (17.6) all exhibited double-digit percent changes for their respective endowments during the past fiscal year. The endowment growth at Hopkins, as pointed out by Schroeder, is due primarily to two factors: investment increases and additional raised monies through private gifts.

"Over the life of [the Knowledge for the World] campaign, we have added approximately $585 million to the endowment through private giving," Schroeder said.

The campaign, which was launched in July 2000, is scheduled to conclude in December 2008. The monetary goal of the campaign increased in October of this year to $3.2 billion. To date, the office has raised over $2.46 billion. When asked to give a reason for the revision, Schroeder stated a visible trend of increased support from benefactors following the conclusion of the 2005 fiscal year influenced the decision.

"The growth from 2005 to 2006 became a major factor," Fritz said. "And when we saw that we were on course to exceed our goal, we wanted to continue our hard work and bump it up to a larger goal."

Alumni gift-giving has played a significant role towards the development of the campaign. With over 140,000 current alumni -- a number that includes former medical, graduate, part-time and undergraduate students -- roughly 26 percent of the population has already contributed to the campaign.

Apart from alumni giving, fundraising for Hopkins generally comes from three other areas: non-alumni, foundations and corporations. Organizations, like the American Cancer Society, give modestly as well, but are not lumped in with any of the aforementioned categories.

Of the gifts received since the initiation of the campaign, 10 percent have been committed to student scholarships/fellowships, 16 percent for facilities and capital projects, 32 percent for program support, 30 percent for research, 10 percent for faculty support and the balance for a variety of other things.

The area with the highest percentage of donations, program support. is for any non-research related institution and is generally geared towards a hands-on method of teaching. This approach can entail the history department's sponsorship of a speaker series as well as the support for the Nursing School's community-based programs that provide services to members of the surrounding neighborhood.

When asked about the approach for designating gifts, Schroeder stressed that the donors are given the flexibility to control the direction of their pledges no matter the size.

"Philanthropic support does not come in as large, unrestricted amounts waiting to be allocated by the president or other university leadership," Schroeder said. "Donors have clearly identified interests and the institution then utilizes those dollars based on that documented interest."

One alumnus, Patrick Russell ('89), who has supported the Knowledge for the World Campaign and serves on the Alumni Association Council, believes there are a multitude of reasons for the present participation among alumni.

"Some want to give because they want to support those who cannot afford a JHU education, and give them an opportunity to experience a JHU education," Russell said. "Some give to build upon the momentum that Hopkins is a premier institution and they want to see that momentum continue, and frankly, some give because they are simply asked."

Citing the friends he made, the fond memories of his time at Homewood and the impact his alma mater has had on his career, Russell was notably dissatisfied with the fellow graduates who had not yet contributed to the success of the fundraising campaign.

"[The] percentage of giving needs improvement. Although [Hopkins] has some phenomenal supporters and donors, the fact remains that we cannot simply rely on the large donations of a few people. Compared to peer institutions, our percentages of alumni who give is quite low," Russell said.

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