Private gifts received for the UI and the UI Foundation in the fiscal year that ended on June 30, totaled $216.6 million – the third highest gift total ever, according to Walter Knorr, chief financial officer and treasurer of the foundation. FY11 was the fourth consecutive year – and only the fifth year ever – that the university and foundation eclipsed the $200 million mark in gifts received.
Sources of gifts
- $216.6 million:
Alumni: $66.8 (31 percent)
- Corporations: $57.5 (26 percent)
- Foundations: $37.2 (17 percent)
- Associations: $29.5 (14 percent)
- Friends: $25.6 (12 percent)
The amount of $49.1 million was designated to the UI directly and $167.5 million was contributed through the foundation. More than 147,000 gifts from 86,000 donors were recorded during FY11. In addition, the university’s ongoing fundraising campaign, Brilliant Futures, topped its $2.25 billion goal.
The announcements were made Sept. 23 at the foundation’s 76th annual meeting. (Watch the annual business meeting online.) The three-day meeting conducted by the foundation, an independent, nonprofit corporation that secures and administers private gifts for the UI, also announced several gifts for each campus. More than 500 alumni and friends of the university attended the event held on the Urbana campus.
“Our supporters have made an amazing commitment with $216 million in gifts received this past fiscal year,” Knorr said. “Considering these challenging economic times, I am most impressed by the dedication of our donors.”
“We have many people to thank for the tremendous year we had,” said Sidney S. Micek, foundation president. “The alumni and friends of the University of Illinois continue to step up to the plate and invest in the university. It is clear that our stakeholders believe in our outstanding faculty and students and want to give back. I applaud them.”
The $216.6 million in gifts received provided support for a number of initiatives across the campuses at Urbana, Chicago and Springfield. This past year, $93.1 million was raised for academic programs, $22.4 million for student support, $17.7 million for faculty support, $47.4 million for research and $36 million for other purposes.
Of the $216.6 million raised last year, 68 percent ($147.8 million) was designated as current-use funds. These funds are intended to be used during the current fiscal year. Also, $65.2 million was designated for the endowment. In addition, $3.6 million was designated for annuity/life income funds.
The active endowment of both the university and the foundation represents $1.6 billion as of June 30, or 67 percent of the total endowment of $2.4 billion. The UIF endowment produced a preliminary net return of 22 percent during FY11. Deferred gift commitments to the UI and the foundation total $803.3 million. This deferred amount combined with the active endowment creates a total of $2.4 billion.
Related story:
