More fundraising records fall

Case Western Reserve University’s supporters set 22 all-time records for fundraising in fiscal year 2015, including its eighth all-time record for attainment in the past nine years. That total of $166.9 million bested 2014’s record by $15.3 million—a figure nearly three times as high as the previous year’s growth. “We continue to be honored and humbled by the extraordinary support we receive from alumni, friends and other organizations,” President Barbara R. Snyder said. “Our gratitude is deep, as is our commitment to make Case Western Reserve an even stronger institution every year.” For the third consecutive year, both the schools of medicine and engineering set new all-time records, while the law school’s results exceeded a threshold that had stood since 2001. The university also saw new highs for the annual funds in nursing and management, as well as those for the Kelvin Smith Library and the Parents and Family Fund. In August 2014, Case Western Reserve announced that donors had allowed the university to reach its $1 billion capital campaign goal two-and-a-half years ahead of schedule. Rather than declare victory, leaders instead expanded the campaign to $1.5 billion. Priorities continue to be capital projects and endowed professorships, with student support receiving extra attention as the subject of a targeted scholarship effort for undergraduate aid. “Increasing the campaign goal by 50 percent was ambitious,” campaign chair and trustee Frank Linsalata said, “but the university’s needs justified the decision. The results we have seen this year demonstrate that our broader community recognizes the importance of advancing scholarship, research and teaching—and that an investment in Case Western Reserve will help realize those goals.” Some of the specific records broken include:

• $62.6 million: School of Medicine attainment (just over $10 million more than last year’s all-time high)
• $33 million: Case School of Engineering attainment ($244,000 ahead of 2014’s record)
• $8.9 million: School of Law attainment ($3.2 million ahead of its all-time record, set in 2001)
• $66.5 million: Foundations’ annual attainment ($13.3 million ahead of the previous record, set in 2013)

This fall, the university will unveil two building renovations made possible through donor support: the first phase of the Milton and Tamar Performing Arts Center at The Temple – Tifereth Israel and the first three floors of the think[ box ] innovation hub. The university continues to raise support for capital projects, scholarships and endowed professorships. On July 28, the university celebrated the most recent appointment at a chairing ceremony for Rafick-Pierre Sékaly, PhD, the recipient of the inaugural Richard J. Fasenmyer Professorship in Immunopathogenesis. Sékaly is a world-renowned researcher on HIV and immunology. “Our supporters’ commitments translate to meaningful gains for Case Western Reserve,” President Snyder said. “Whether the gifts allow us to open a new space, or to give a student the scholarship needed to enroll, or the resources that attract a leading researcher, they all make an enormous difference. We are deeply grateful.”