Advertisement

Capital Campaign Enters Final Year

Success varies with popularity of programs, schools

Every day, Harvard steps $1 million closer to the end of its $2.1 billion Capital Campaign.

But although the University stands 87 percent of the way toward finishing and was $180 million ahead of schedule as of April 30, it only raised about 7 percent of the total in the last year, and the campaign's success is uneven: certain schools and programs have done phenomenally well, while others lag far behind.

Set to finish next June, administrators are turning their attention to those falling behind, and while they say not every 1993 goal will be met, the campaign as a whole will exceed its goal.

Falling Behind

Initiatives to benefit Harvard's libraries and facilities have both been identified as lagging behind expectations. The library and facilities funds are at 44 and 57 percent of their goals, respectively.

Advertisement

William H. Boardman Jr., associate director of development for capital giving, accounts for these deviations from the successful norm by saying that some areas are inherently more attractive to donors than others.

Financial aid and funds destined for specific purposes usually lure donors more readily than giving to facilities or general renovation, he says.

The drive to create 40 new professorships in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) has also failed to meet its goal, standing at 51 percent of its goal. Funding for only 19 has been raised, and at the hefty price tag of $3.5 million each, the University is fighting an uphill battle.

The President's University Fund--a $235 million venture to raise money for University-wide professorships, project ADAPTand cross-disciplinary projects such as theinterfaculty initiatives--has only reached the 59percent mark, largely because it received littleattention from fundraisers until this year.

Both Boardman and Vice President for AlumniAffairs and Development Thomas M. Reardon say itis unlikely that Harvard will meet all goalsdetermined in 1993 at the outset of the campaign.But, they hasten to add, campaigns rarely do.

Top Priorities

Neglected until this point, these lagging areasof the campaign are now "priority objectives," andHarvard officials are pledging whatever support isneeded to bring these areas up to speed.

"What we're doing now is very, very explicitlyfocusing on those areas," Rudenstine says, "andletting those needs be known much more in a targetway and making people aware of them."

Rudenstine says the emphasis is producingresults, in the area of libraries, for instance.

Earlier this year, even with the library fundlagging behind almost all others, Harvard proposedto renovate Widener Library at an estimated costof $20 million dollars.

"A year ago, we were quite worried about thelibrary," Rudenstine said. "But ever since westarted telling people this is really important,we've had some good responses"--including a $17million gift from Kathryn B. Loker.

Recommended Articles

Advertisement