A RISING TIDE 2009 DONOR REPORT CONTENTS CONTENTS Letter from P. George Benson TABLE OF TABLE 2 President of the College of Charleston Letter from George P. Watt Jr. 3 Executive Vice President, Institutional Advancement Executive Director, giving.cofc.edu College of Charleston Foundation By the Numbers 4 How our donors supported the College Year at a Glance 6 Campus highlights from the 2008-2009 school year 1770 Society 12 Recognizing annual giving leadership Cistern Society 18 Honoring donors who support the College through planned giving 19 2009 College of Charleston Boards List of Donors ON THE COVER: THE College’s J. STEWART WALKER JR. SAILING COMPLEX IN MT. 20 PLEASANT, WHICH WAS MADE POSSIBLE SOLELY THROUGH DONOR FUNDING 60 Contact Us COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 2009 DONOR REPORT 1 TO OUR COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON COMMUNITY: he College of Charleston has reached a crossroads. The time has come for the College to better define itself, move forward toward a more secure financial future, and become one of WELCOME Tthe best liberal arts and sciences institutions in the nation. The direction we have chosen is bold and not without risk. It will require devotion and commitment from every member of the College family. Fortunately, we have a guide to lead us on our journey. On October 16, 2009, the College’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved a new Strategic Plan. It is the result of nearly two years of information gathering, analysis, feedback and more analysis by the university community. The final product is a collective vision that will guide the College for the next decade and beyond. “To achieve greatness, we must The plan calls for the College to maintain a strong liberal arts and sciences core while simultaneously emphasizing and developing program areas that take advantage of and add value to Charleston and the approach the next period of our Lowcountry. We will increasingly focus on and draw inspiration from our region’s unique history, culture, industries and coastal ecosystem. history with an unshakable and While we will hold fast to our liberal arts roots and our student-centered culture, we must move even unwavering focus on our goals and farther away from the outdated ivory tower paradigm that dominated much of higher education in the U.S. throughout the 20th century. We will become more focused on our community, the state and their our envisioned future.” needs – the antithesis of a university where students live and study behind iron gates without meaningful connections to the world around them. The education of our students will extend far beyond our campus and will fuse study with application, and knowledge with experience. The enabling force behind the Strategic Plan is a new financial model for the College. It calls for the College to be more entrepreneurial and to establish a culture of philanthropy and, thereby, become less reliant on state funding. With this model in place, we will align resources with institutional priorities. We will recruit and retain the most distinguished faculty. We will ensure that the best and brightest students are not turned away from a college education due to a lack of financial resources. To achieve greatness, we must approach the next period of our history with an unshakable and unwavering focus on our goals and our envisioned future. But the achievement of our goals will require a significantly higher level of private support. This is where you can make a difference. Your past support has been vital to the College’s success. Going forward, we need your support to not only continue, but to grow! With a solid plan to guide us and your renewed support, the College of Charleston will achieve national and international distinction and a more secure financial future. Sincerely, P. George Benson President 2 2009 DONOR REPORT COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON TO OUR ALUMNI, PARENTS AND MANY FRIENDS: torms happen. It’s a fact in nature. And it’s a fact in the financial world as well. WELCOME S This past year was, without doubt, full of storms. While it was a difficult year due to continued market uncertainty, 2009 was also a year for finding hope. The College realized improvement in important areas such as parent leadership giving, volunteer board giving, College of Charleston Fund unrestricted cash receipts and net new commitments. The College “There is certainly a rising tide at the College – of Charleston Foundation saw better investment portfolio returns and significant growth in its net assets. Thankfully, we ended the year in far better just look at our recruitment numbers, both in condition than where we began, and we believe that we will build on that quantity and quality; our amazing faculty, student momentum going into 2010. The primary reason we have weathered these financial storms so far is and alumni achievements; and our growing national simple: It is because of you, the donor. You, the donor, understand the importance of higher education. You, and international reputation as a leader in higher the donor, recognize that every gift has an impact on this campus. You, education. It’s your ties and collaboration with the the donor, continue to model the way as a philanthropist, believing in the positive net effect the College of Charleston has on its students, its faculty College that help make this rising tide possible.” and staff, its alumni and the greater community. You, the donor, play a critical role in providing the margin of excellence that takes this institution from good to great. And, you, the donor, inspire all of us at the College with your generosity, involvement and unwavering support. President Kennedy once observed that a rising tide lifts all boats, and that lesson surely applies here. There is certainly a rising tide at the College – just look at our recruitment numbers, both in quantity and quality; our amazing faculty, student and alumni achievements; and our growing national and international reputation as a leader in higher education. It’s your ties and collaboration with the College that help make this rising tide possible. Thanks for all you do – and for all you will continue to do – for the College of Charleston. It is a privilege to acknowledge your enthusiastic support. Go Cougars! Henry Blackford, George Watt and Winfield Sapp Jr. George P. Watt Jr. Executive Vice President, Institutional Advancement Executive Director, College of Charleston Foundation COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 2009 DONOR REPORT 3 SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT SARA DAISE Hometown: Beaufort, S.C. Major: Communication Class Year: Junior NUMBERS When Sara isn’t working at the Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture or editing the Crazyhorse literary journal, she’s using her creativity to pen her own poems and original writing. BY THE Donors made the College of Charleston a priority through a number of philanthropic ways. Once again, the College benefited from a year of generous giving from individuals, corporations and foundations who supported the College with annual, endowment, capital, programmatic and estate gifts. Thanks to this generosity, 2009 was a remarkable year of numerous accomplishments at the College. Thanks to the Cato family and a number of other leader donors, the College was Jim and Esther Ferguson donated their villa “La Casita” in Trujillo, Spain, able to open the 70,000-square-foot Marion and Wayland H. Cato Jr. Center for to the College for use by faculty members and staff members leading the the Arts in January. Located at the corner of St. Philip and Calhoun streets, the study-abroad experience. The College offers a spring semester in Trujillo, arts center includes exhibition space, dance and theatre facilities, photography a city in the Extremadura region southwest of Madrid. This is the second studios and incredible views of downtown Charleston. Also, friends to the School property in Trujillo the Fergusons have donated to the College. of the Arts, Nancye Starnes and the Kite Foundation, pledged $200,000 to support the recruitment of students in the areas of piano, jazz, strings and theatre. College of Charleston Foundation board member Gus Gustafson ’75 led the efforts to increase the giving to and visibility of the College of Charlotte ’37 and Bob Dickson chose to make the College a significant Charleston Fund among Foundation board members and to the College. part of their personal legacies by supporting unrestricted scholarships, $1 The College of Charleston Fund continues to provide critical support to the million now, $2 million later. They utilized four different estate-planning needs that are not covered by state appropriations, tuition and fees. techniques to provide scholarship support in a most meaningful way. 4 2009 DONOR REPORT COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON BY THE NUMBERS 2009 GIVING BY CONSTITUENCY FOR 2009 FUNDRAISING SUMMARY TOTAL NEW COMMITMENTS ($8.2 Million) MILLIONS Pledges $2.1 Friends Corporations 13% 9% Gifts of Cash and Stock $2.9 Faculty/Staff Alumni 1% 11% In-Kind Gifts $0.2 Irrevocable Planned Gifts $3.0 Parents Estates 14% Total New Commitments $8.2 36% Total Cash Receipts $7.4 Foundations 16% 2009 GIVING BY CONSTITUENCY TO THE COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON FUND ($985,000) Foundations Corporations Four four-year computer science scholarships were donated by BiblioLabs, a 19% 5% Faculty/Staff Charleston digital-media company that counts at least eight College alumni as Estates 1% employees, including Bob Holt ’81, Mitchell Davis ’93 and Jason Youmans ’02. 1% Thanks to a $305,000 gift from the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Friends 7% Foundation, the College’s Addlestone Library unveiled the Lowcountry Digital Library, an online archive designed to accommodate more than 50,000 documents housed in or around the Lowcountry in public and private collections, including maps, diaries and personal papers.