Campaign fund reaches $1.36 billion

As far as the Campaign for Penn fund is concerned, red and blue make green. Now at $1.36 billion, the philanthropic monies raised by the five-year Campaign have surpassed the original goal of $1 billion and the $1.3 billion goal established in June. The Campaign is set to conclude at the end of the year. "All of us had felt all along that Penn had this potential to raise this kind of money," said Virginia Clark, vice president of development and alumni relations. "It's nice to know that you're right." Clark attributes the Campaign's success to the leadership of University administrators and the support of former University President Sheldon Hackney, former Interim President Claire Fagin and current President Judith Rodin, combined with the support of Trustees, alumni and more than 200 volunteers in the President's Council. The strong support of alumni who have a "tremendous sense of pride" in the University, according to Clark, is one of the Campaign's tantamount achievements. "This Campaign is an indication of the quality and enthusiasm of the institution," she said. "When it comes down to it, you really have to look at our own alumni base." And, she added, "we have very loyal and supportive alumni." Besides a monetary figure, the goals of the campaign were to raise money for 150 endowed chairs across the University, provide more funding for undergraduate financial aid and finance programs that will contribute to minority permanence on campus. "Each of the schools have a part in raising money for the [Campaign's] overall goals," Clark said. "Penn is a strong institution because each of its parts does contribute to the overall good of its institution." Some of the Campaign's more tangible results can be found right on Locust Walk. Funding from the Campaign has helped to finance renovations to College Hall, the Fisher Fine Arts Library and the Jaffe History of Art Building. The University's accomplishments in fundraising have caught many a philanthropic eye. In the Nov.1 edition of The Chronicle of Philanthropy, the University was ranked 16th out of 400 organizations in fundraising, up from last year's 25th place in the paper's annual Philanthropy 400 survey with $191.4 million in donations. The Salvation Army, with $682.9 million, came in first, followed by the American Red Cross at $535.7 million. The only other institution of higher education ranked higher than the University was Harvard University, in 11th place with $221.8 million. Clark attributes the nine-place jump to the Campaign's total fundraising effort, which has been accumulating since its inception in the fall of 1989. "We're very pleased with the results," she said.