Monday, October 29, 2007
The Kansan’s recent editorial concerning spending by KU Endowment contained numerous factual errors and showed a lack of understanding about our spending policies.
During fiscal year 2006, KU Endowment provided $99 million to the university, not $56 million, as stated in the editorial. That’s because we didn’t just spend 5.6 percent of the endowment, we added funds given by donors for immediate use, as we do every year.
In fiscal 2007, we provided a similar amount, except for an increase in student support and a decrease in construction support because of fewer building projects. The editorial mentions that most high-end donors are interested in “vanity projects,” but the facts don’t support this notion. Some notable recent gifts to KU Endowment include $5 million in scholarships for low-income students, $2.1 million in scholarships for engineering and computer science majors, and $4.4 million for a new scholarship residence hall.
Many KU students are unaware that virtually all scholarships and awards came from donors. In fact, more than 5,000 students today benefit from scholarships, fellowships and awards from KU Endowment. Student support accounts for more than a quarter of the funds we provided to KU last fiscal year, and the desire to help students motivates many alumni and friends to give generously to the university. However, while donors can help, they cannot be held accountable for making up for recent tuition increases caused by a decrease in state support.
Over the years, our sound spending rate has enabled KU Endowment to provide a total of $1.4 billion to KU. During fiscal year 2006, our support amounted to $4,117 per full time student, double that of nine peer institutions in the Big XII and Big 10. It enhanced everything from the quality of the faculty to academic programs, library books, equipment and new facilities, all of which benefit students, even though it may not be in the form of scholarships. We encourage students to visit kuendowment.org to learn more about the impact of private philanthropy at KU.
Moreover, the endowment is not just one vast pool of money: it’s thousands of individual funds, each designated by a donor for a specific purpose and established to last in perpetuity. An endowment for a professorship cannot be used for a scholarship, and vice versa. If we don’t honor donors’ intents, we would lose their trust. And without that, our ability to raise money in the future would disappear.
Ultimately, our responsibility is to ensure that KU’s endowment is here not just for today’s students, but for many generations to come.
Rosita Elizalde-McCoy
Senior VP for Communications and Marketing
KU Endowment
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