From the Nominator

"When COVID-19 turned the world upside down and plunged higher education into virtual operations in March 2020, 15 months remained in Chico State’s first-ever comprehensive campaign, Transform Tomorrow. As of March 31, 2020, $88,118,420 had been raised toward the $100 million goal. 

With the shutdown came new ways of working and significant uncertainty about the way forward for advancement professionals. We were, of course, most concerned about our donors’ health and well-being, even if we could no longer meet with them in person. Our culture of care and compassion for our community has always been our most cherished value, and they had led us through numerous other fundraising challenges. That includes the now-infamous Camp Fire, the deadliest, most destructive wildfire in California history that took place 12 miles from our campus five months before our campaign’s public launch. 

Our ever-growing culture of philanthropy propelled us forward, as our generous benefactors believed in our ability to change lives and uplift communities. Rather than cease fundraising due to the pandemic, we chose to thrive amidst the uncertainty. We pivoted to video conferencing and engaged the development team in multiple ways to keep morale high. We respectfully and thoughtfully kept conversations about supporting the university front of mind. 

In continuing the strategic fundraising, thoughtful donor relations, and innovative programming that carried Transform Tomorrow through its early years, we not only reached our target six months early, but raised an additional $6.6 million and generated a momentum that continues to propel our fundraising forward."

From the Judges

Model for pivoting and staying focused on continuing the last months of a campaign during the pandemic. Modest budget, but surpassed goal and created in-house marketing materials for campaign by using staff resources effectively. Impressive for first campaign ever.