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NOTE:
The following is an excerpt from the Ball State University Foundation's
annual report. To
see the entire report, view the PDF.
WHILE THE ABOVE AND BEYOND CAMPAIGN came to a formal conclusion on July 31—overwhelmingly exceeding its total goal and reaching $112.9 million—the work of the Ball State University Foundation had just begun.
“Fund raising is like the planting of the seeds. It’s our job at the foundation to tend to these seeds,
allow them to grow, and see them through to the ultimate benefits of harvest,” says Tom Heck, vice president for operations/treasurer of the foundation.
During the five-year span of the Above and Beyond campaign, the Ball State University Foundation partnered with the Office of Development to plan projects, raise money, and work with contributors.
Now the bigger function of the foundation continues with the management of the generated assets to maximize the impact of the funds raised.
“Our primary function is to serve as a bank for the university—manage the gifts, make sure they are dispersed at the direction of the donor, and help facilitate the implementation of projects,” says David Bahlmann, president/CEO of the foundation. “Projects funded by gifts to the campaign have included the
development of the football training center and Shafer Tower, as well as other kinds of physical additions to campus that we have already welcomed. In looking forward, we will also see through a number of scholarships and teaching grants, all part of the objectives of the campaign.”
Much of the foundation’s work requires looking long term—both with the processing of campaign pledges and the growth of investments. “Some of the campaign gifts were pledges, and we will be receiving them for many years after the close of the campaign,” says Bahlmann.
Significant to the Above and Beyond campaign were gifts through planned giving—or deferred gifts—as a result of the foundation being the named beneficiary through such vehicles as a will or retirement account. The foundation received fifty-six such gifts during the campaign.
The role of planned giving is only one operational aspect that enhanced the Above and Beyond campaign from the foundation’s perspective. The foundation itself—as well as the whole institution—gained valuable experience from the last major campaign, Wings for the Future, which launched in 1987. During “Wings,” many systems were put into place, from information networks to investment resources to professional staffing. For Above and Beyond, the
foundation was more efficiently equipped with the expertise and technology to accommodate the remarkable outpouring of support.
“This is the smallest this foundation will ever be, and that’s exciting,” says Heck. “Every time we have a comprehensive campaign, we permanently raise the level of the foundation.”
“It’s our responsibility to be a steward to our contributors,” says Bahlmann. “We continue to diversify our investments and look at ways to best ensure we keep this momentum going to enhance and strengthen the university.”
Continue:
Financial Report
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