SU plans fundraising effort
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Southern University is planning a major fundraising capital campaign to raise at least $25 million in the coming years, university officials said.
Southern leaders are mulling other revenue options such as selling partial naming rights to A.W. Mumford Stadium, while also considering waiving out-of-state tuition fees for students in states contiguous to Louisiana to boost dwindling enrollment.
“I’m so excited about this,” said new Southern Board of Supervisors Chairman Tony Clayton, primarily referring to the fundraising campaign.
“This is probably going to be the biggest venture Southern has ever embarked on,” said Clayton, of Port Allen.
Southern previously initiated a three-year capital campaign in 1997, but it was never finalized, said Southern University System President Ralph Slaughter.
In comparison, LSU, which is a much larger institution, has its Forever LSU campaign that aims to raise $750 million by the end of 2010.
Currently, Southern’s biggest fundraising event is its annual radiothon, Slaughter said.
The private, nonprofit Southern University System Foundation is funding a campaign feasibility study and staff training to the tune of $45,000 through Charleston, S.C.-based Corporate DevelopMint, which specializes partly in university fundraising, Clayton said.
Corporate DevelopMint Vice President Lee Mikell is a Baton Rouge native and LSU graduate who married a Southern graduate.
Despite the national recession, Mikell said, a major fundraising campaign is very possible.
“It’s more difficult with the economy; there’s no doubt about it,” Mikell said. “But there’s a lot of money still being raised by colleges and universities, and there can be significant success.”
FUNDRAISING to 2B
Mikell called Southern a “sleeping giant” in fundraising capabilities.
First though, Mikell will help Southern determine what should be the drive’s goals and timelines. The feasibility component should last at least four months, he said.
“It’s a lot like a political poll,” he said. “It’ll tell you if the conditions are right.”
Clayton said the campaign primarily would support the main campus in Baton Rouge but also Southern’s law center, agricultural center, and Shreveport and New Orleans campuses.
Raising funds to attract top faculty and support student scholarships would be the primary goals, Clayton said. But the campaign also would help fund athletics, he said.
With A.W. Mumford Stadium currently being expanded, Clayton said, the time is right to sell naming rights or sponsorships. While Mumford’s name would not be taken out, a corporate sponsor could be added, he said. Certain rooms and sections of the stadium also could have sponsors, he said.
A handful of colleges currently have corporate names on their stadiums, such as Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium at the University of Louisville in Kentucky.
“In this day and age with budget cuts looming, Southern University has to think outside of the box,” Clayton said. “I know it’s not done in college much, but it’s a way to make money.”
Clayton said the overall campaign would target major donors and corporations for big donations, but also reach out to all alumni.
“If we line the campaign up right, it has the potential to be very big,” Slaughter said. “There’s a tremendous need to supplement our budgets with private funds.”
That is especially true, Slaughter said, as higher education budgets are being slashed statewide because of the slumping economy.
Clayton said he tentatively sees $25 million as a good original goal. The hope is to hit that goal and keep on growing from there, he said.
Southern leaders are mulling other revenue options such as selling partial naming rights to A.W. Mumford Stadium, while also considering waiving out-of-state tuition fees for students in states contiguous to Louisiana to boost dwindling enrollment.
“I’m so excited about this,” said new Southern Board of Supervisors Chairman Tony Clayton, primarily referring to the fundraising campaign.
“This is probably going to be the biggest venture Southern has ever embarked on,” said Clayton, of Port Allen.
Southern previously initiated a three-year capital campaign in 1997, but it was never finalized, said Southern University System President Ralph Slaughter.
In comparison, LSU, which is a much larger institution, has its Forever LSU campaign that aims to raise $750 million by the end of 2010.
Currently, Southern’s biggest fundraising event is its annual radiothon, Slaughter said.
The private, nonprofit Southern University System Foundation is funding a campaign feasibility study and staff training to the tune of $45,000 through Charleston, S.C.-based Corporate DevelopMint, which specializes partly in university fundraising, Clayton said.
Corporate DevelopMint Vice President Lee Mikell is a Baton Rouge native and LSU graduate who married a Southern graduate.
Despite the national recession, Mikell said, a major fundraising campaign is very possible.
“It’s more difficult with the economy; there’s no doubt about it,” Mikell said. “But there’s a lot of money still being raised by colleges and universities, and there can be significant success.”
FUNDRAISING to 2B
Mikell called Southern a “sleeping giant” in fundraising capabilities.
First though, Mikell will help Southern determine what should be the drive’s goals and timelines. The feasibility component should last at least four months, he said.
“It’s a lot like a political poll,” he said. “It’ll tell you if the conditions are right.”
Clayton said the campaign primarily would support the main campus in Baton Rouge but also Southern’s law center, agricultural center, and Shreveport and New Orleans campuses.
Raising funds to attract top faculty and support student scholarships would be the primary goals, Clayton said. But the campaign also would help fund athletics, he said.
With A.W. Mumford Stadium currently being expanded, Clayton said, the time is right to sell naming rights or sponsorships. While Mumford’s name would not be taken out, a corporate sponsor could be added, he said. Certain rooms and sections of the stadium also could have sponsors, he said.
A handful of colleges currently have corporate names on their stadiums, such as Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium at the University of Louisville in Kentucky.
“In this day and age with budget cuts looming, Southern University has to think outside of the box,” Clayton said. “I know it’s not done in college much, but it’s a way to make money.”
Clayton said the overall campaign would target major donors and corporations for big donations, but also reach out to all alumni.
“If we line the campaign up right, it has the potential to be very big,” Slaughter said. “There’s a tremendous need to supplement our budgets with private funds.”
That is especially true, Slaughter said, as higher education budgets are being slashed statewide because of the slumping economy.
Clayton said he tentatively sees $25 million as a good original goal. The hope is to hit that goal and keep on growing from there, he said.
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