The University of Nebraska Foundation has much to celebrate on its 70-year anniversary, breaking its records for gifts received and benefits transferred to the university.
The foundation announced Oct. 20 at its annual meeting of trustees that it received a record $127.2 million in gifts, bequests and life-insurance proceeds during the 2006 fiscal year. The previous record of $127.1 million was set in 1997. In 2005, $78.7 million was raised.
The foundation broke another record by transferring $87.3 million to the University of Nebraska in 2006, an increase of $9.8 million over last year’s record of $77.5 million.
The market value of the foundation’s assets for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2006, totaled $1.374 billion and represents a 12.2 percent increase from the previous year. The total return on the foundation’s main endowment fund, which is a portion of the total assets, was 10.8 percent for the year.
“This has been an exciting year to celebrate the 70-year history of the foundation,” said Terry Fairfield, chief executive officer. “We recognize the many individuals and organizations who have contributed to our success and the success of the University of Nebraska. We are extremely grateful for their support and for their belief in creating excellence at the university.”
The benefits transferred included nearly $32.2 million directed for campus and building improvements and $25.9 million directed to academic programs. More than $18.8 million was directed to benefit students through scholarships, graduate assistantships and fellowships and nearly $4.2 million was directed to faculty assistance. University research programs received $3.9 million, and museums and libraries received $1.6 million.
A vast majority of donors direct how their gifts are to aid the university, Fairfield said. The gifts include endowed funds, which provide annual income to benefit the university, as well as expendable funds available immediately to the university.
The foundation shared highlights of various privately-funded projects and academic programs across the university. They include:
- Dorothy and Stanley Truhlsen, M.D., of Omaha established a fund to support research labs in the Durham Center for Research Excellence at UNMC. Nationally recognized in his field, Stanley Truhlsen is the former chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology.
- The Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education is a $52 million privately funded building under construction at UNMC to serve as the new home for faculty and students in the College of Medicine.
- Herb and Eleanor Sklenar of Birmingham, Ala., established a scholarship fund to provide full-tuition scholarships for students in the UNO College of Business Administration. To date, 11 students have received the scholarship.
- With lead support from the Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Memorial Foundation and Dr. Guinter Kahn, a 1954 graduate of UNO, the UNO library was recently expanded and renovated to add more than 31,000 square-feet for student areas and technology improvement.
- The first phase of an initiative at UNK to update athletic facilities was completed with renovation and naming of Cope Stadium, recognizing the generosity of Carol Cope of Kearney and her late husband Ron Cope, along with the earlier renovation of Foster Field. The UNK campus also increased its endowed student scholarships.
- John Woollam of Lincoln, a UNL professor, created an endowed fund to support engineering faculty. The professorship will be awarded to an electrical engineer working in ellipsometry, a highly sensitive measurement technique with applications ranging form semiconductors to medicine.
- Ken Morrison of Hastings provided the lead gift toward construction of an $18.6 million, 70,000-square-foot building at UNL for the Nebraska Center for Virology. The center’s focus on virus research will provide scientific discovery that may one day lead to new treatments and therapies for infectious diseases.
The foundation also announced at its annual meeting the results of leadership elections. Nancy Keegan of Los Angeles and Hod Kosman of Scottsbluff were elected to the board of directors for three-year terms. Carl Mammel of Omaha was re-elected for a second term.
In addition, the following committee chairs were appointed: Kelly Holthus of York to administrative; John Goldner of Omaha to audit; Mike Dunlap of Lincoln to development; Larry Arth of Lincoln to finance; Veronica Haggart of McLean, Va., to grants; and Peter Whitted of Omaha to nominating. John Boyer of Omaha was reappointed an at-large member of the executive committee.
The foundation elected the following new trustees for six-year terms: Janice and Don Blank of McCook; Karen and Jack Campbell Jr. of Wilton, Conn.; Kathleen and Gary Gates of Omaha; Neal Hansen of Denver; Libby Swanson Jacobs and Steve Jacobs of West Des Moines, Iowa; Teresa and Kirk Kellner of Omaha; Carol and Rick McNeel of Chapel Hill, N.C.; Erin and Lance Morgan of South Sioux City, Neb.; Allan Noddle of Omaha; Rhonda and Tom Peed of Lincoln; Suzanne and Jim Pillen of Columbus; Marshall Prichard of Lincoln; Suzanne and L. Dennis Smith of Lincoln; Lisa Smith of Lincoln; Charlotte and Jamie Williams of San Mateo, Calif.; Cillie and Ron Williams of Denver; Nancy and Earl Wright of Castle Rock, Colo.
The foundation’s 2006 annual report and audited financial statements are located on its Web site at www.nufoundation.org.