By Molly Atchison | Editor-in-Chief
Baylor announced it raised its second largest amount of money in history earlier this summer.
Totaling more than $113 million, in a Baylor Media Communications brief the university recognized this fundraising effort which stated that “the generosity of the Baylor Family will impact students, faculty and a diversity of programs across campus and reflects a depth of engagement by students, alumni, parents and friends giving at all levels for the future of the institution.”
This momentous occasion marked the end of the 2017 fiscal year, and with it, the end of Dr. Linda Livingstone’s first year as Baylor’s president. According to the brief, alumni, family and friends were among those who donated to Baylor in hopes of growing the boundaries of the university’s educational experiences — for both current and future students.
These endowments and donations have come in all shapes and sizes and are spread out to reach as many parts of Baylor as possible.
“This financial support is invaluable to strengthening Baylor as a place of transformational education for our students and a source of transformational change to our surrounding world,” Livingstone said in the brief.
This is clear to see with several significant endowments from alumni and Baylor supporters. A notable donation sparked the creation of the Lynda and Robert Copple Endowed Chair in Christian School Leadership. According to the newsletter, this gift is meant to attract prestigious speakers and researchers from Christian teaching communities in an attempt to lay academic foundations for the Center for Christian Education.
With plenty of endowments that supported specific purposes in the Baylor community, and a senior-class gift totaling at $12,300 to benefit the university, the general consensus is that the Baylor community’s financial involvement is at an all-time high. With alumni donation rates rising to 27 percent this year, and the amount of corporate gifts matching that with an increase of 18 percent, Baylor’s fundraising goals are on an upward trend as well.
After attempting to reach the $100 million mark for the past three years (and blowing that mark out of the water), Baylor can now look to the future with confidence.
“More than 19,000 donors chose to come alongside Baylor this past year as we pursue our aspiration to become a pre-eminent Christian research university,” said David Rosselli, vice president for university advancement.
The “Illuminate” Initiative is Baylor’s newest endeavor. Over the next four years, Baylor will attempt to become a premier research institution and renovate the core academic standards of the university in order to help students achieve. With millions of dollars in donations behind them, the Baylor administration can continue its goal of creating a new and innovative structure for the Baylor core curriculum, and Baylor Bears can continue to excel in their studies.
