Fundraising needs to begin

With the University of La Verne in the middle of a budget crisis, surely the one thing on many people’s minds is why doesn’t the University have an endowment to fall back upon?

The focus from there falls upon fundraising.

The University has been notorious for little fundraising efforts. While they claim to engage in every major avenue of fundraising that other universities pursue, that is just not the case.

The University holds two major fundraising events a year. The President’s Dinner is a big event held in either January or February of each academic year. The other event is the annual Golf Tournament hosted each June.

But the University says it does not raise the majority of its money through such events. They claim to raise several million a year in other ways.

There is supposedly a team of 18 people within University Relations department who work on fundraising or support for fundraising.

These people work to reach out to alumni, parents of students, corporations and the community. They also work on setting up trusts and requests to gain additional income for the University.

While these could be considered strong efforts to some, it may not be the best way to go.

The University could learn a lot from other institutions. Claremont McKenna College, for example has a team dedicated purely to annual giving.

For individuals, the focus should be more defined and organized than simply calling people on the phone each year. At CMC there are work study positions for students 6 to 9 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, to call alumni, parents, community and friends. There are also alumni events like this that happen one to six times a year.

Or maybe instead of cold calling, there should be a one-on-one approach, where potential donors are approached in person and their particular interests are touched upon in fundraising needs, another CMC tactic.

Another thing the University does not have is full-time grant writers on staff who work to convince foundations and corporations that the University is a good investment. Right now, it is left up to individual professors. Unfortunately, these professors do not have the time for the task given their already heavy workload, nor do they necessarily have the experience or expertise to do so. This alone is enough to potentially cost the University millions of dollars in grant money per year.

CMC does not host events to raise money. They host events instead as “friend-raising.” This in itself brings people into the University without contribution, but the possibility of contributions linger for the future.

It has been suggested that the University reevaluate its planning strategy to focus on raising funds for projects with the potential to open doors and create more opportunities for the University.

“We need a fundamental change,” Professor of Chemistry Iraj Parchamazad said. “If the University raises money for emerging technology that is related to the mission statement of the University. This kind of investment in a short period of time can bring in much more money. Then you can create a training program and attract professionals and students to that program.”

For example, in recent years, many funds from the federal and state governments have been available for energy. ULV, however, has not taken advantage of this opportunity.

By taking advantage of these and other grants available to the University, ULV may be able to get its name out there and attract more students with its reputation.

Instead, they have chosen to take another route.

ULV has announced that over the next few years, it will revamp the facilities on campus.

Sounds like an ill-considered attempt to increase enrollment. The logic here is that if we build it, they will come.

But what if nobody comes?

Focus should be placed on the University’s inner strengths. Buildings don’t attract students, quality does. In doing this, we will not only attract more students, but we will attract those who are serious about their education.

Not only will this benefit one’s discipline, but it has the potential to open the door for others as well.

What risk does the University have to take other than putting itself out there? Is it greater than the risk of losing students due to increasing tuition, lack of funds for programs and departments or lack of professors to teach courses students need to graduate?

More income will enable ULV to provide more services to the students and will allow for larger budgets for departments. And it may even allow for better facilities to work with.

The University should take a step back and look at the big picture. Rather than trying to patch up the problems we have now, ULV should reevaluate how the University brings in money. Right now, more than 90 percent of ULV’s income comes from tuition, leaving the institution extremely vulnerable to budget problems after every economic downturn or demographic shift.

To stay strong, the University cannot subject itself to the whims of these constantly changing variables, but should build sturdy foundation of financial viability.

So if adding money is crucial to ULV, especially now during the budget crisis, it is a wonder why we have not heard of any new planning strategies for coming years. The University feels that it is a priority enough to keep it on an ad-hoc basis.

We’ve seen what the University can do for temporary relief, but why don’t we hear about the planning stages of a new fundraising plan?

It's all about getting more people involved. Instead of waiting for people to approach the University, the University needs to reach out to the people and secure the well-being of the institution.