Fundraisers hunt far, wide for wealth

In a fifth-floor office on Walnut Street, nine University employees hunt for the world's riches. According to Robert Millar, director of development, research, and analysis for the campaign, they try to find and target individuals and groups that can donate at least $25,000 over five years. But these wealthy donors do not just appear. Millar and his staff are charged with the job of trying to hunt down and find these riches. The five-year campaign -- which aims to raise funds for the endowment, renovation of old buildings, and ongoing support for the University -- will end in October of 1994. Millar said Wednesday that the campaign initially set a goal of 14,000 donors in this $25,000 price range to meet the $1 billion goal. At the beginning of the campaign in October 1989, they started with a base of 3,000 donors, said Millar, a 1987 College graduate. They met the 14,000 person goal two years later. Yet to reach this level, the research staff does daily searches of national newspapers and magazines, such as The Wall Street Journal, Business Week and Forbes, to find the "movers and shakers of the world," said Millar. While combing these sources, the researchers look for many things. Rick Nahm, who as senior vice president for development is in charge of the campaign, said last month that they search for people who have "VIP titles" such as CEO, managing partner, and president. Then, Millar said, "if the person is really successful, we just hope [they will donate]." He added they look for people who have a connection with the University or have an interest in an area the University covers. For example, he said if a person has an interest in modern art, then they would inform him of the Institute of Contemporary Art. Other ways to spot these generous individuals include consulting large source books and public stock records. Millar said two possible places to look are Who's Wealthy in America and Wealth Holders of America, but he added they are "not very good books" just "a place to look." A more credible way to search for donors is by looking at Security and Exchange Commission records, which disclose the companies' top officers and stock owners who hold more than five percent of the company's stock, said Millar. On top of poring over records and newspaper clippings, the research department uses some more unorthodox methods. Millar said when he goes to an event that lists donors such as the opera or visits a place with a donation plaque, he takes note of the big givers. Nahm also said half-jokingly that when he visits a museum he "sees if a Renoir is donated by [someone who] went to Penn." One of the most recent strikes of the campaign's research staff, said Millar, was discovering that a wife of one man listed on the Forbes 400 richest Americans is an University alumna. Millar would not give the person's ranking in the list, but did say the minimum requirement for the Forbes 400 is a net worth of $275 million. Another way to find potential donors is by evaluating past givers to Penn to see if they could increase their donation, said Millar. However, he added they carefully rate all donors' potential because the campaign "does not want to waste a person's time or offend him." In addition to individual donors, Millar said the campaign targets foundations and corporate gifts, but the group gifts only comprise approximately 15 percent of all contributions. Another "burgeoning area" which the office researches is donations from international sources, he said.

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