Ohio University’s Advancement division is gearing up for the public phase of its capital fundraising campaign, and the university wants students to get involved.
The Promise Lives capital campaign is $385 million toward its goal of $450 million, and the public phase of the campaign, which will include events, videos and distribution of other campaign materials, will bring in smaller contributions. The campaign is slated to end in June 2015.
“The big gifts are in the door,” said Bryan Benchoff, vice president for University Advancement. “Now it’s time to take the campaign across the country.”
Campaign events will take place both in metropolitan areas across the country and in other parts of the world where OU has alumni chapters, said Becky Watts, chief of staff to OU President Roderick McDavis.
University Advancement is also publishing booklets for each academic college highlighting the successes of students and faculty members and instructing potential donors about how they can give to the university.
“To date, (the campaign) has been focused on planning and strategy and seeking large, transformational gifts,” Watts said. “The public phase will be focused on more gifts, but not at the transformational level.”
One of the major gifts brought in as part of the capital campaign was a $105 million donation from the Osteopathic Heritage Foundations in May. The money will go toward OU’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, which plans on an extension campus in Columbus to be the first of several major projects during the upcoming years.
“As tuition rises and state funding decreases, the need for private funding is ever greater,” Benchoff said.
The public phase of the campaign launches in April, and OU will be reaching out to alumni, friends of the university, companies and foundations, Benchoff said. He also hopes to add a student component to the campaign.
“I’m hoping that we can identify a specific project that students can get behind,” he said. “In essence, (they would) adopt a project, a manageable one, and raise some money.”
A campus beautification project is one example of a project students could organize and raise money for, Benchoff said.
“It will send a message to donors, that students are with us on this,” he said.
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