July 27, 2007
Private giving to South Carolina up 28 percent at $66.9 million
Private giving to the University of South Carolina and the number of donors making gifts and pledges both increased sharply in 2006-07.
Gifts and pledges to the university totaled $66.9 million, a 28-percent increase from last year's $52.3 million.
More than 38,000 alumni and friends of the university -- a 44-percent increase from last year's 26,500 -- contributed to the institution during fiscal year 2007, which ended June 30.
Their gifts will support student scholarships, numerous academic programs, a planned addition to the Thomas Cooper Library and the university's regional campuses.
"This is especially gratifying because it's a tangible indication of support from our alumni and friends and yet another indication of our momentum on a number of fronts, including student and faculty recruitment, academic program rankings and the development of Innovista," said Andrew Sorensen, university president.
Support for student scholarships and fellowships totaled $8.9 million. Gifts for faculty development, including chairs and professorships, reached $2.5 million. Gifts for capital projects totaled $12.9 million, and program enhancement support was $34.1 million. Unrestricted gifts totaled $8.6 million.
Last year's private giving included five gifts totaling $1 million or more; this year's total included eight such gifts. In addition, planned gifts to the university, which include bequests and trusts, totaled $4.7 million in FY 2007 compared with $1.2 million in the previous year. Parents of current students made gifts totaling $2 million, while alumni gave $21.6 million.
The university's success in garnering private support extended across the campus and throughout the campus system. The athletics department enjoyed one of its most successful years ever with the Gamecock Club annual fund reaching $14.5 million, up 9 percent from last year's $13.3 million. USC Aiken experienced a 34-percent increase in its number of donors.
Dodie Anderson, a 1981 alumna of the university's Upstate campus, pledged a sizeable gift to the university's athletics department to support the planned Academic Enrichment Center, which will be named in her honor. The center will provide tutoring and other academic support services to student-athletes on the Columbia campus.
"My daughter went to school there. She graduated in 1981, too, and I went to a lot of the games with her," Anderson said. "I really got caught up in it, and now I just love the Gamecocks. Steve Spurrier wanted to build this new center, and I think it's a good thing that will benefit all of the student-athletes."
John Rainey, a 1965 graduate of the university's School of Law, gave $100,000 for the development of a large garden area behind the Arnold School of Public Health's new Public Health Research Center. The garden is named in honor of his wife, Anne, a 1961 Carolina graduate.
"I am very proud to have had the opportunity to both thank and honor Norman Arnold through the contribution of this garden," Rainey said. "This research center is an important part of Innovista, and we hope that more gardens like this will be a part of the university's innovation district."
Sloan and Deward Brittain of Hartsville, 1943 and 1942 graduates of the university, respectively, donated a beachfront condominium to the university Development Foundation, and proceeds from its sale will benefit the Thomas Cooper Library's planned addition to house rare books and special collections and modern political collections.
"Through the years, we've had a lot of attachment to the university, and with whatever material wealth we've accumulated, we want to support institutions such as Carolina that benefit society," Deward Brittain said.
