Drake University is celebrating one of the University’s best fundraising years on record. Fiscal year 2019, which ended June 30, generated more than $42.5 million in new gifts, multi-year pledges, and documented qualified deferred gifts.

Compelling initiatives such as The Harkin Institute building project, The Gregory and Suzie Glazer Burt Boys and Girls Club, the University Streetscape project, and the Lorentzen Sustainability Challenge—which supported several campus initiatives to reduce the University’s carbon footprint—drove many of the generous gifts and commitments. Contributions also included a leadership gift to revitalize one of our academic buildings (more details to follow later this semester), transformational investments in Drake Athletics, and multiple realized estate gifts.

Other highlights from fiscal year 2019:

• The Drake Fund generated $3.84 million. The Drake Fund supports the most immediate needs of the University, including student scholarships and key priorities among the colleges and schools.

• Cash contributions totaled $29.25 million, marking the fifth-highest annual amount of cash gifts received in history. These cash payments represent new cash gifts, pledge payments, and estate gifts. This metric is captured within the University’s balanced scorecard under the Volunteer Support of Education (VSE) measure.

• All In, the University’s annual giving challenge, generated a record-setting number of gifts and donors. In 24 hours, the challenge raised more than half a million dollars from 1,680 donors—340 of whom were faculty and staff.

The University Advancement team is deeply grateful to faculty, staff, alumni, volunteers, and community members for supporting Drake’s mission and vision. It is through philanthropic giving that we can support student scholarships, academic resources, faculty research, new technology, community partnerships, experiential learning opportunities, and state-of-the-art facilities. Put simply, donor support allows us to transform the lives of our students and secure the University’s future.

Throughout the semester, I will continue to share updates in OnCampus on future fundraising goals and priorities. Specifically, look for an article next week regarding the Big Ideas initiative.

—John Smith, Vice President, University Advancement

As a member of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), Drake is continuing to advance sustainability as an institution and in the community. Drake is thrilled to announce and share with the community that we have earned a Bronze STARS rating demonstrating Drake’s commitment to sustainability. This is Drake’s first time participating in the STARS reporting process.

The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) is a program of AASHE, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. STARS is a comprehensive sustainability ratings system for colleges and universities that addresses the environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability. STARS was developed by the higher education community through a transparent and inclusive process. The score an institution receives is based on the percentage of applicable points earned in credits across four main categories: Academics, Engagement, Operations and Planning, and Administration. More specifically STARS is designed to:

• Provide a framework for understanding sustainability in all sectors of higher education.
• Enable meaningful comparisons over time and across institutions using a common set of measurements.
• Create incentives for continual improvement toward sustainability.
• Facilitate information sharing about higher education sustainability practices and performance.
• Build a stronger, more diverse campus sustainability community.

View Drake’s public STARS report in detail and learn more about sustainability at Drake.

Through this assessment, we have been able to track Drake’s sustainability performance. This process is helping us better identify areas for improvement and connect us with resources to perform better in the future.  Some highlights include:

• Air & Climate
• Diversity & Affordability
• Academic Curriculum & Research
• Immersive Experiences
• Community Partnerships

We encourage members of the Drake community to explore and utilize the resources provided as a member of AASHE. Visit the AASHE website to take advantage of our membership resources. AASHE enables higher education institutions to meet their sustainability goals by providing specialized resources, professional development, and a network of peer support. Membership covers every individual at an institution, so the entire campus community can take advantage of member benefits, www.aashe.org.

We would like to thank all the faculty, staff, and students who helped complete this process. Creating a more sustainable campus and community requires a willingness to participate from everyone, and we are excited to see positive changes in the coming years.

Have questions or ideas? Want to get more involved with Drake’s Sustainability? Email Drake Facilities Planning & Management’s Sustainability Intern Sophia Siegel at Sophia.Siegel@drake.edu or Director of Facilities Kevin Moran at Kevin.Moran@drake.edu.

—Sophia Siegel, Sustainability Intern, Facilities Planning and Management