Capital projects can engage the larger alumni community because they offer naming opportunities. Renovations can do the same thing on a smaller scale. As a central university (and often iconic) building, a library capital project is uniquely positioned to cultivate donors from all sectors of the university community.
Keywords
Capital project funding; Named spaces; Academic library renovation; Special projects
New libraries and library spaces are a great case for engaging donors for one big reason: naming opportunities. In their book about philanthropy in higher education, Thelin and Trollinger (2014) explain that a lot about giving to universities is about supporting what donors see as historic to an institution (p. 3). For a relatively young country, our universities are historic places that often have beautiful architecture and hold important collections and artifacts. The academic libraries have a very strong opportunity to cultivate donors based on this identified affinity with history. This is one opportunity that really turns the old argument that libraries have no constituency on its head.
The “keeper of history” combined with an affinity for named spaces is a great case for giving to libraries. They are the one place on campus where all students and faculty engage on some level, and donors who like to name spaces understand that a library is going to get more traffic than any other academic building on campus, creating more visibility for their name.
Additionally, naming a space in the academic library is an opportunity for diverse interests and can appeal to a wide variety of alumni from schools and departments across campus. Central buildings like the library, student union, or football stadium, for example, are the structures on campus that all students identify with as a symbol of the university, and they are the structures most often featured in university branding. The academic library serves as a strong representation for the student experience at your university.
This is great news for libraries, but it can also create challenges for the often lone libraries development officer or academic lead finding himself or herself competing with other academic units for support. First and foremost, it’s important to receive permission to approach all alumni, and establishing opportunities for collaboration with colleagues across campus is crucial for protecting professional relationships. As the one unit that does not have graduates, the library risks having its system-wide building campaign seen as an infringement on departmental areas of cultivation. Just make sure that a strategy for this scenario is part of a larger scenario with participation from the library, development, and the university to ensure optimum opportunity while avoiding confusion and conflict.
Capital projects are a way to build long-lasting partnerships; and large campaigns are an opportunity to inform colleagues about the library services and programs and develop donors to support their college or department by supporting the resources, technology and spaces that support learning and research in that college or department.
Most university development divisions have a strong structure for managing capital projects and major renovations. For an individual fundraiser, the opportunity to raise money to build a major building on campus may never come in the entire career. Raising the funds for a major construction project is a rare and valuable professional experience. A building campaign is a tremendous opportunity to make an impact in your organization and to increase your academic fundraising experience.
There are elements in this kind of campaign that are unique in development, and this is the kind of project that garners interest among all kinds of donors including individuals, corporations, and even some foundations. Although donors may be attracted to the academic library during this time merely due to the naming opportunity, there is an opportunity to build a relationship with them after their gift and cultivate them beyond the capital campaign. Interests can shift with time, and there is always potential for a donor’s philanthropic priority to transition into a stronger connection to the library if stewarded properly.
While stewardship is always an important step in major gift fundraising, the impact of stewardship is greatly heightened with donors of named spaces in capital projects. By definition, these are often high capacity donors. Most building development strategies are designed for what the university considers principal gifts. Although the motivation may be honoring a family member or memorializing their time at the university, the cultivation of these donors for the academic library begins the moment that gift is made, no matter who closes the gift. It is very natural for the library dean to want to get to know these donors and natural for them to engage with the mission of the library as they start to understand the role it plays in scholarship and research throughout the university.
Renovations of libraries and spaces can be modeled in a similar fashion and should always be leveraged for cultivating donors. As renovations are budgeted projects, they may not be considered candidates for fundraising. Never miss an opportunity to connect a prospect through a naming opportunity! We recently spoke to a colleague who told us about a capital renovation project that failed to attract interest from donors. In this case, the renovations were done first and then presented as an opportunity. Unfortunately, this is an example of not understanding the motivations of potential donors. While it is often true that donors are attracted to a naming opportunity in order to leave their name behind as a legacy of their connection to the university, Thelin and Trollinger (2014) explain that one of the two most common motivations for giving to higher education is an interest in reform (p. 172). Many higher education donors want to be a part of positive change and improvement, so they need to be approached before the change begins. The cultivation should be positioned as a partnership in making things better for students, learning, and research.
Finally, don’t underestimate the power of a campaign for those who may never have given before and those who don’t even participate at all. A system-wide capital campaign isn’t just about the giving; it’s also about disseminating the academic library message to a much larger stakeholder group. Part of the power of a campaign is the repetition of a message and helping people understand the value of the academic library. Cast your message far and wide!
Success story
Cathy Gatchel
Vice President of Development and Marketing
The Honeywell Foundation, Inc.
Former Director of the Annual Fund for Manchester University
During my time at Manchester College (now Manchester University), my colleague Timothy A. McElwee, PhD (former Vice President for Institutional Advancement) was the point person working with key representatives from a homecoming reunion class making a large gift commitment to Funderberg Library to help us make improvements to the library. After getting a few good initial gifts, the campaign stalled. Our concern was that we would come up short and not meet our goal. I suggested that we resolicit the entire class for the remainder balance, asking everyone for their “share” of what remained. It came out to $28 per class member. We then sent a letter and followed up through Phonathon (our student annual fund solicitation drive). It worked. Not every class member gave $28, but because the solicitation was low, many stepped up and gave more. To me, this is an example where we successfully invited all to participate in a way that made it very difficult to say no. This gift earned the class a permanent recognition plaque!
Success story
Alicia O. Redinger
Development Director
Marian High School
Marian High School in Mishawaka, Indiana, was celebrating its 50th anniversary with multiple planned events taking place throughout the year for students, faculty, staff, parents, and alumni. Our longtime principal, Carl Loesch, had recently been promoted to Secretary of Education for the entire diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend. School board members wanted to renovate our library in honor of Carl and his entire family's dedication to Catholic education. About 60% of the renovation was pledged from school board members and other close friends for the surprise reveal to Carl. The remaining funds were solicited through a “Past Due Notice” themed library appeal picturing original yearbook photos of the library and current pictures where not much had changed. The theme of the appeal tied into Marian’s 50th anniversary and carried through to describe each physical item that needed to be “renewed” within the library. The remaining funds were raised primarily through gifts smaller than $250. We received a few wonderful notes along with donations from alumni whose parents had volunteered in the original library and whose families had given many years ago to update the library’s collection of books.
Success story
Wilmeth Active Learning Center
Purdue University
The Wilmeth Active Learning Center at Purdue is set to open in fall 2017 and will combine six previously independent libraries in the areas of hard and social sciences and engineering. The facility represents not only an appreciation but a commitment to the concept of the library as the foundation for academics on campus, and many university classrooms will exist in this building. Fundraising for this major building project was broad and included strategies for all university stakeholders including state government, alumni and friends, private foundations, and corporations. When fundraising first began for this major capital project, the central development office assigned a specific development division to lead the fundraising efforts, recognizing the need for more support for the small fundraising staff in the libraries in order to make the campaign a success. Not only did this collaboration assist the development team in the libraries, but it brought recognition to the larger division, where all fundraisers were kept abreast of activity and could be engaged in sharing the message and cultivating their donors. The University Initiatives team worked alongside the Libraries Development team, and many of the gifts were secured with a case for a named opportunity on campus. Many donors at the highest level never learned about the mission of the library or the services and programs it provides students and faculty until the stewardship phase of the gift. However, the largest gifts by far were made by long-term, dedicated library donors, many of whom have served on the Dean’s Advisory Council. In an exciting end to a very successful fundraising campaign, the goal was hit during the annual one-day giving event with small gifts averaging around $25.
A fundraiser speaks to an academic librarian
FR:Capital projects can involve new facilities or the renovation of existing spaces. They are the perfect project to market to alumni or prospective donors who don’t necessarily have a strong affinity for the academic library, but it appeals to them to name a space in a central location on campus.
AL:The library on campus is an iconic university building to alumni and students. Whether or not they used the library, everyone is aware of it and has probably set foot in it at least once during their academic career.
FR:This is also the kind of project that donors who have supported the library in the past tend to really get behind.
AL:So true. Nothing inspires people more than seeing a building rise up from the ground! A capital project or even a renovation is a way to mobilize and increase the level of giving for all donors who have supported the library for years through annual giving, and especially for those who have served on academic library advisory boards. These individuals are typically very close with the dean.
FR:For them, it is a satisfying experience to see the library increase its exposure and create numerous discussions about its value.
AL:Even renovations need to be approached like a campaign. As you suggest, a physical structure or major transformation of a space is a great story and one that should be leveraged to generate the maximum impact possible in terms of philanthropic giving.
FR:Exactly! It also inspires development officers and staff and is a great occasion to inspire and engage the internal library community.
AL:Yes. With all the opportunities for presenting that occur in a major campaign like this, faculty get the opportunity to talk about their research, and staff get to talk about collections and space design.
FR:It is a way to pull in all the assets of the academic library and celebrate not only the mission, but also the important work going on with students, faculty and scholars. A philanthropic capital gift for a new facility or space provides many opportunities for donor recognition.
AL:Absolutely, that is the time to think about design and placement of donor recognition (walls and plaques for named spaces). A space-related project can stretch well beyond the traditional library donor. There are always alumni interested in leaving their mark at their alma mater, and with the library serving as a central facility on campus, there is an opportunity to solicit gifts from donors and prospective donors who may have otherwise never even thought to give.
FR:Stewardship of that gift is also extremely important. Failing to recognize the importance of stewardship in the process of securing major gifts is a huge mistake that can be detrimental to long-term strategies and relationships with donors. It’s not only the ethical thing to do, but it provides the opportunity to further cultivate the donors later. Never miss an opportunity to effectively steward donors for gifts of all sizes. You never know where your next major gift may come from.
