The Campaign for San Diego State is currently just $25 million short of its $500 million goal.
The campaign was declared in 2007 to raise funds for scholarships, sustaining faculty and supporting the abundant amount of innovative and academic programs around campus. Prior to its development, the different groups on campus would fundraise for their own needs individually. The Campaign has targeted numerous initiatives such as entrepreneurship, overall student success and building an endowment.
The Campanile Foundation, an official auxiliary and philanthropic tax-exempt foundation for SDSU, aided The Campaign by helping development staff members meet potential donors. Ten percent of the total funds have come from members of the board.
Vice President of University Relations and Development and CEO of the Campanile Foundation Mary Ruth Carleton said SDSU will continue to fundraise in order to support students, faculty and staff. She said SDSU aspires to become a nationally-recognized research university once The Campaign has reached its goal.
“SDSU is on the rise, and support from alumni, friends, parents and the community will play a key role in our continued success,” Carleton said.
Donors designate where exactly their money should be allocated. Recently, The Campaign has brought in $103,000 from the Steven Rogers Estate for the College of Sciences and $25,000 from Lee Carson pledged toward the Basketball Performance Center, which is planned to officially start around summer. The recent donation of San Diego philanthropist Conrad Prebys was also a part of the approximately 45,000 donors who have added to the success of The Campaign, according to the SDSU NewsCenter.
The impact of the donations can be seen across campus in buildings such as the Donald P. Shiley BioScience Center and the Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center. Contributors can donate directly through the website, through planned giving and even through payroll deductions.
William Leonhard, a 1964 SDSU graduate from the College of Engineering and retired Air Force Colonel, is one of the many contributors to the campaign.
“You don’t have to be a billionaire to give money back to the university. It doesn’t take a lot of money over a long period of time to endow a scholarship,” Leonhard said to The Campaign.
The Campaign is projected to officially reach its goal this year.
Photo by Monica Linzmeier, Photo Editor
