From the Nominator

We Soar: the Campaign for the University of Dayton is the university’s first comprehensive fundraising campaign in more than 20 years. Conversations in the feasibility stage of the campaign underscored opportunities and the consequences of not fully leveraging alumni and prospects. Loyal supporters of UD challenged leadership to engage more new donors, and internal analytics showed that many prospects were not being asked to give at their maximum potential. This feedback, coupled with declining net tuition revenue, propelled the university to launch the We Soar campaign—not only to ensure the revenue needed to attract and retain students and support the holistic, Catholic education that defines the student experience but perhaps, more importantly, to build a culture of philanthropy among UD’s students, alumni, faculty/staff, parents, and friends. The campaign has a lofty goal of raising more than $400 million for UD scholarships, expanding experiential, and accelerating academic innovation. We acknowledged the need and set goals for growing the number of consistent, annual donors and for expanding the nationwide network of volunteers who could help communicate the campaign's importance. UD’s efforts on all fronts have been successful. With 17 months left in the campaign, we are at 92.5% of our $400 million goal, over 100% of our participation goal, and nearly 91% toward our engagement goal.

From the Judges

This campaign truly impressed. The website and video were great, and the enhanced giving day strategy was a smart move. The results speak for themselves, with a significant increase in philanthropy and a doubling of previous annual returns. The pre-campaign efforts were well thought out, and the judges appreciated the focus on building a culture of philanthropy among a range of stakeholders, including students, alumni, faculty, staff, parents, and friends.