The Campaign for Syracuse University goes on the road to Washington, D.C.
March 21, 2011
With nearly $840 million raised and less than two years left to achieve a $1 billion campaign goal, the five-year Campaign for Syracuse University has launched its third regional campaign, reaching out to SU alumni, parents, and friends in Washington, D.C., and the surrounding area.
“Since the opening of the Paul Greenberg House in 1990, SU in D.C. is thriving,” says Brian Sischo, SU’s vice president for development. “Admissions continue to grow and dozens of students have participated in SU in D.C. academic programs, including the Maxwell-Washington International Relations program and the Public Diplomacy Program. Alumni events are plentiful and a career networking program is flourishing. There are 370 miles between SU and D.C., but when you consider that 500-plus current SU undergraduate students call the D.C. area home, and 13,700 alumni have found success there, it’s clear that the two locations have a close relationship,”
The primary purpose of the four- to six-month focused initiatives is to motivate alumni to become more actively involved with their alma mater. “Our success will be measured not only by the total dollar amount raised, but by the increase in the number of new donors and young alumni who participate in giving, and by the number of alumni and friends who step forward to volunteer as mentors, campus speakers, or representatives for the admissions office,” says Karen Spear, executive director for regional advancement. “By volunteering their time and talents, including SU in their philanthropic priorities, and providing opportunities for internships and immersion programs, alumni can have an immediate impact on students who are just getting their start in life.”
The region is supported by a very active group of alumni, parents, friends, and business leaders—the D.C. Regional Council—who are volunteering their time to elevate Syracuse University’s presence and the vision of Scholarship in Action in the Washington, D.C., community.
D.C. Regional Council member Paul Greenberg ’65 is proud of SU’s commitment to the region. “Syracuse University is near and dear to my heart. Since I graduated from SU with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1965, I have remained involved as an alumnus, parent, and volunteer. My love for SU has spanned generations—my daughter, Alexis, graduated in 2007 with a fine arts degree—and I could not be more committed to extending SU’s reach and creating an even stronger, more vital SU community in the Washington, D.C., area.”
Named in honor of Greenberg and supported by gifts from alumni and friends, Syracuse University’s Paul Greenberg House opened on March 27, 1990, and established a significant presence in the Washington, D.C., area for SU alumni, students, parents, friends, and prospective students. Located in the Woodley Park neighborhood, the four-story Greenberg House opens its doors to students, faculty, and alumni, providing a number of vital recruitment, academic, and networking services. Greenberg House hosts classes, seminars, conferences, alumni events, and meetings, supporting the activities of every SU school and college.
SU alumni, parents, and friends who wish to join the D.C. Regional Campaign can support their passions by directing their gifts to whatever part of the University is meaningful to them, from individual schools and colleges to academic programs, SU in D.C., the general scholarship fund, athletics, and student services like the Syracuse University Library and Hendricks Chapel. Undesignated gifts are used to support the University’s highest priorities.
Gifts to the D.C. regional campaign will be counted in The Campaign for Syracuse University’s total and support five key areas of the University:
A web site to support the D.C. effort is available at suindcgiving.syr.edu and features several alums who got their start at SU and have gone on to achieve both personal and professional success in the D.C. area, including circuit court judge the Hon. Joanne F. Alper ’72, sports agent David B. Falk ’72, National Public Radio correspondent Pamela Fessler G’80, Syracuse University Trustee and Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan J. McNabb ’98, School of Education Advisory Board member and Donovan McNabb Foundation officer Roxi McNabb ’98, Rhodes Scholar and global chief executive of SNR Denton Elliott I. Portnoy ’86, and chairman-elect of the Syracuse University Board of Trustees Richard L. Thompson G’67.
The first of the six regional efforts, which targeted the Boston area, raised $1,027,535 in four months for The Campaign for Syracuse University. This brings the total gifts and pledges to the campaign from Boston-area alumni, parents, and friends to more than $17.4 million as of December 31, 2010. The number of Boston-area donors also increased by 1,132, for a total of 3,233.
The D.C. effort will be followed by campaigns in three other key cities. “Focusing our energies on these geographic areas will ensure that everyone is invited to be part of SU’s overall campaign,” says Spear. “When we get to the end of the campaign, we want to be able to say we engaged our friends and alumni to help move Syracuse University forward, and we’ll know that the generosity of SU’s D.C. community was a big part of our success.”
Learn more about the D.C. Regional Campaign at suindcgiving.syr.edu
Read about the D.C. Regional Council
Read how your gift can make a difference
