Penn State Brandywine successfully surpassed its goal of $6 million by raising more than $6.8 million to complete its second major capital fundraising campaign, "For the Future: The Campaign for Penn State Students."
The University-wide campaign began in 2007 and ended on June 30, 2014. Funds were raised on all campuses and contributed toward the total of $2.188 billion raised during the campaign.
All funds raised by Brandywine's Development Office were used to support efforts on Brandywine's campus. Specifically, the campaign raised more than $2 million for endowed scholarships on campus to directly benefit about 120 students each academic year. The campaign also raised more than $1 million for the Brandywine Future Fund, a general fund to help support strategic plans for campus initiatives, such as the recent startup fund to support the new biology major on campus at Penn State Brandywine. The funds were also used to establish the Rosenberg Civic and Community Engagement Laboratory on campus and support faculty and program growth.
"I'm so proud of our campus and donors," said Kristin Woolever, chancellor at Penn State Brandywine. "The fact that we exceeded our goal allows us to do much more for our students. We are making the student experiences much larger and much stronger on campus. We are the most diverse campus of all Penn State campuses, and with our future plans for student housing and a student union, there are so many great things ahead for us."
Brandywine's development team worked to complete this record achievement of $6.8 million. Woolever; Alex Pratt, interim director of development; Connie Stankowski, external affairs assistant; Joe Linker, campaign chair; and Jerry Parsons, Brandywine Advisory Board president and former student, all worked together to accomplish this goal.
"It's a great era for Penn State Brandywine," Parsons said. "There are so many new and exciting things going on here — the planning of the residence halls, the expansion of four-year programs and the development of a student union. It's a great opportunity to have Brandywine in eastern Pennsylvania. It opens its doors to many local students. The better we campaign and plan for future opportunities on campus for the local community, the more successful we will be."
Penn State's alumni and friends are invaluable partners in fulfilling the University's land-grant mission of education, research and service. Private gifts from alumni and friends enrich the experiences of students both in and out of the classroom; expand the research and teaching capacity of our faculty; enhance the University's ability to recruit and retain top students and faculty; and help to ensure that students from every economic background have access to a Penn State education. The University's colleges and campuses, including Penn State Brandywine, are now enlisting the support of alumni and friends to advance a range of unit-specific initiatives.