A Message from John Marcy, Vice President for Advancement
Read how the College’s endowment fared during the economic uncertainty of the previous fiscal year. Plus, a link to the new “Honor Roll of Donors” Web site.
Dear Alumni and Friends,
I want to thank all of the 5,890 donors who made contributions to The College of New Jersey Foundation last year (7/1/08 to 6/30/09) totaling $3.7 million. It was certainly a challenging year for all of us amid the economic uncertainty all around. Among these contributors were 4,525 alumni who made gifts that totaled $1.1 million. While the number of individual alumni gifts declined from the previous year, the total was still the third highest amount we have ever received from alumni, and the dollar total from this group marked the third consecutive year we have received nearly $1 million or more.
I also want to thank those of you who have contributed to TCNJ at any time over the past number of years, but were unable to do so last year. Your support along the way has helped us build on past success and has provided an example of the kind of loyal inclination that makes our entire alumni body special. In fact, some 40 percent of you report having made a contribution to your alma mater at one time or other. Our aspiration is to harness all of this on an annual basis, which would place TCNJ’s alumni participation rate far out in front of every other public college’s alumni annual giving participation rate in the nation.
For those of you who have created endowment funds in the foundation, our investment performance also did comparatively well. We suffered a down year in overall performance. However, at the end of the year, our endowment only decreased by a total of 6.9 percent, while endowments among comparable colleges decreased by as much as 17 percent or more. Through the diligence of the Investment and Finance Committee of the foundation’s board and our advisers, we were able to minimize a precipitous affect of market performance.
As you have read or heard from me in the past, charitable support from alumni and good friends of the College is essential to providing the financial strength that TCNJ will need moving into the future. This College has become one of the strongest and most competitive colleges in the nation according to any number of third-party rating organizations, and that is not an accident. Strong support and active interest from alumni and good friends is key to sustaining that strength. As I have said many, many times before, your gifts, regardless of their size, are very important to us. Please continue!
For a complete donor list for fiscal year 2009 (July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009), click here.
Stay tuned, stay in touch, and support your alma mater!
Sincerely,
John F. Marcy
Vice President for Advancement
Posted on October 30, 2009
