University of Alberta Edmonton, Canada 4 April 1997

University's largest campaign off the ground

Well over 40 per cent of the goal has been received or pledged

By Michael Robb

The University publicly launched the largest fund-raising campaign in its history earlier this week. The goal: to raise $144.65 million over a five-year period, to support students, staff and facilities.

"Our vision is to be indisputably recognized as one of the top three universities in the country, and this campaign will help us get there," Board of Governors Chairman John Ferguson told a crowd of several hundred people gathered at the Citadel Theatre to witness the public launch. Many of the province's key political and business leaders were on hand.

The University expects to raise the money for three general areas: students, $60.4 million; scholars, $49.95 million; and, facilities, $34.3 million. Last week, President Rod Fraser told General Faculties Council the University was well on the way to raising that money. Well over 40 percent of the target has been received or pledged, he said. "We're now beginning to wonder whether the $144 million [goal] is a little too conservative."

Earlier this week, almost $70 million was pledged or in hand.

The money will come from the broader U of A family, the President said, and donors in many of the major Canadian cities, southeast Asia and around the world will be asked to contribute. The corporate sector, including the country's major banks and the paper and pulp companies, will be major donors. The Royal Bank and the Bank of Montreal have already committed over $1 million each to the campaign. The oil and gas industry and other sectors of the economy will also be asked to contribute.

According to Vice-President (Academic) Dr. Doug Owram, the campaign will help the U of A compete for the best students. "We have to be able to offer scholarships like the other major universities do. There's a second reason: we don't want to lose good students simply because they can't afford to come here."

One of the objectives of the campaign is to increase the U of A's endowments. The Canadian Association of University Business Officers annual endowment status survey places the U of A fourth in the country in terms of total assets, behind the University of Toronto, $501,087,000; McGill University, $440,100,000; and the University of British Columbia, $390,811,000. The U of A has assets of $268,125,000. It's estimated about $90.1 million of the $144.65 million total will be endowed money.

Giving patterns have changed over the last decade, the President told GFC members. Ten years ago, about 50 per cent of donations to universities were not designated. Now, about 90 per cent of the money given to universities is designated for specific purposes.

Two students asked the President whether the donations would pose a risk to the integrity of the University? Fraser said the University should always be wary and sensitive to risks associated with donations. It doesn't want to be in a position of accepting money for purposes that don't bear any relationship to the University's priorities.

"Government support for the University has fallen," says Dr. Reuben Kaufman, president of the Association of Academic Staff. "Instead of complaining about it, we're doing something about it." Concerns about the extent to which donors have a say in how the money they give will be used, will always be there, he said, but any university that doesn't protect academic freedom and continue to set its own priorities will ultimately end up weakened."

The U of A is among a number of Canadian universities in "campaign mode." McGill University has recently exceeded its campaign goal of $200 million. York University is seeking to raise $100 million. And the University of Toronto is in the planning stages for a $500 million campaign.

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