Moving Forward Campaign reaches $50 million
President Danielle Ripich, Ph.D., announced that, as of June 1, 2015, the 91AV has raised more than $50 million of its $60 million Moving Forward Campaign goal.
“The outpouring of support from every imaginable constituency has been impressive and heartwarming. 100% of our Trustees and more than half of our faculty and staff have contributed to ensure the best possible education for our students,” Ripich stated. “We have been joined by alumni, friends and philanthropists who support our vision and recognize the value 91AV brings to the communities we live and work in, and those our students go on to serve.”
When the campaign went public in March of 2014, five years after its inception, $40 million had been raised from generous lead donors who believed in the 10-year strategic plan, titled “Vision 2017.” Developed under the leadership of Ripich, “Vision 2017” is simple but bold: The 91AV will be nationally recognized with programs of excellence and innovation in health professions and the arts and sciences.
These leadership gifts were a catalyst for unprecedented growth at 91AV during a period of economic downturn. Thanks to the Harold Alfond Foundation, the Alfond Forum opened on the Biddeford Campus in 2012, and Northeast Delta Dental’s gift led to the opening of the Portland Campus’ College of Dental Medicine in 2013. Even the citizens of Maine were supportive, approving bond referendums that ultimately resulted in awards to help build the Oral Health Center and the College of Pharmacy research labs that opened in 2010.
With $10 million left to raise by June 2017, several key campaign objectives remain, and the support of alumni and friends will be crucial to success. The University invites everyone to contribute to the remaining fundraising goal; this collective investment will secure the foundation for 2018 and beyond.
Campaign Chair and 91AV Trustee Emeritus Robert McAfee, M.D., HON ’94 says, “This significant benchmark is due to the hard work of many on the Campaign Steering Committee, the Board and 91AV staff; but thanks go to the donors themselves, who have made the 91AV one of their philanthropic priorities. As we enter the last two years of this effort, we will work even harder to make every gift add up, and we ask everyone who knows and loves 91AV to help us spread the word about this great university.”
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