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RU BIG MONEY donors

BROTHERSKINNY

BROTHERSKINNY

Heisman Winner
Oct 21, 2010
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So Maryland has Kevin Plank and Oklahoma State has T. Boone Pickens as big money donors to their athletic programs. Who for RU has the wherewithal to become a BIG MONEY DONOR? Right now I have Bernie Marcus co-founder of Home Depot with a net worth of over $ 1 Billion. Who else in RU's Illustrious history would be willing to step up and help not only RU athletics but the university as a whole? They do not have to necessarily be a billionaire. Why do you think RU has not been as successful cultivating its most successful alums? Just Curious



Info. on Bernie Marcus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Marcus
 
thad23 said:
We need to stop telling other people how they should donate millions to RU, but instead donate our own money...however much or little that is.
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I agree and I do, but lets face facts, having a BMD helps a great deal. Did you know that RU's endowment is pathetically small for an institution of its size? RU a university of 65,000 students has an endowment of only around $1 billion. here is a list of the top 100 largest endowments https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_colleges_and_universities_in_the_United_States_by_endowment
RU doesn't even make the list
 
BROTHERSKINNY said:
I agree and I do, but lets face facts, having a BMD helps a great deal. Did you know that RU's endowment is pathetically small for an institution of its size? RU a university of 65,000 students has an endowment of only around $1 billion. here is a list of the top 100 largest endowments https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_colleges_and_universities_in_the_United_States_by_endowment
RU doesn't even make the list
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Bro, everyone that reads this board knows this.
 
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vkj91 said:
Jeff Towers is a billionaire but this board and NJ.com say he shouldn't have any influence. My understanding is it's ok for billionaires to have influence as long as we agree with their decisions......is that correct?
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I think it's naive to think that they won't have any influence. I just don't want them giving interviews to the press on behalf of the program and university.
 
Greg Brown, Class of 1982 - President and Co-CEO of Motorola; CEO of the Broadband Mobility Solutions Business Unit
John Joseph "Jack" Byrne, Jr., Chairman and GEO of GEICO which he pulled from the brink of insolvency in the mid-1970s; Chairman and CEO of White Mountains Insurance Group, formerly (Fund American Enterprises, Inc.); Chairman of the Board of Overstock.com 2005–06
Stephen Chazen - CEO of Occidental Petroleum
Morton Jay Chiat, Class of 1953 — founder of TBWA\Chiat\Day advertising
David Cole, Class of 1978 - CEO of Data Management Services
Sergio Alonso Fernández de Córdova – founder of Fuel Outdoor
Alvaro de Molina, Class of 1988, MBA – retired CFO of Bank of America
Marc Ecko — CEO and founder of Marc Ecko Enterprises
Mark Fields, B.A. Economics - President and Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company
William Freeman, Class of 1983 MBA – President of Verizon Public Communications Group
Otto Hermann Kahn - financier, patron of the arts[30]
Duncan MacMillan, B.S. 1966 – co-founder of Bloomberg L.P.
Bernard Marcus, Class of 1951 — founder of Home Depot
Ernest Mario, Class of 1961 — former CEO of GlaxoSmithKline
Sherilyn McCoy, Class of 1988, MBA – CEO of Avon Products
Bill Rasmussen, Class of 1960 MBA – Managing Director at CSFBdirect; founder of ESPN
Barry Schuler, Class of 1976 — former Chairman and CEO of AOL
Bill Schultz, Class of 1971, MBA - former CEO of Fender Musical Instruments
Harvey Schwartz, Class of 1987 – CFO of Goldman Sachs
Steve Temaras – CEO of Bed Bath and Beyond

Most of these people do /have given to RU.
 
I was informed by email last week that I was in a R Fund raffle for free tickets to the audi club since my giving increased more that 10% from last year--did anyone here win that raffle, I didn't, but over 2000 contributors had a chance since they too increased their giving. It would be great if all of us had the ability to increase our giving every year --2088 of us did so between 2014-2015.
 
Scarlet16E said:
Greg Brown, Class of 1982 - President and Co-CEO of Motorola; CEO of the Broadband Mobility Solutions Business Unit
John Joseph "Jack" Byrne, Jr., Chairman and GEO of GEICO which he pulled from the brink of insolvency in the mid-1970s; Chairman and CEO of White Mountains Insurance Group, formerly (Fund American Enterprises, Inc.); Chairman of the Board of Overstock.com 2005–06
Stephen Chazen - CEO of Occidental Petroleum
Morton Jay Chiat, Class of 1953 — founder of TBWA\Chiat\Day advertising
David Cole, Class of 1978 - CEO of Data Management Services
Sergio Alonso Fernández de Córdova – founder of Fuel Outdoor
Alvaro de Molina, Class of 1988, MBA – retired CFO of Bank of America
Marc Ecko — CEO and founder of Marc Ecko Enterprises
Mark Fields, B.A. Economics - President and Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company
William Freeman, Class of 1983 MBA – President of Verizon Public Communications Group
Otto Hermann Kahn - financier, patron of the arts[30]
Duncan MacMillan, B.S. 1966 – co-founder of Bloomberg L.P.
Bernard Marcus, Class of 1951 — founder of Home Depot
Ernest Mario, Class of 1961 — former CEO of GlaxoSmithKline
Sherilyn McCoy, Class of 1988, MBA – CEO of Avon Products
Bill Rasmussen, Class of 1960 MBA – Managing Director at CSFBdirect; founder of ESPN
Barry Schuler, Class of 1976 — former Chairman and CEO of AOL
Bill Schultz, Class of 1971, MBA - former CEO of Fender Musical Instruments
Harvey Schwartz, Class of 1987 – CFO of Goldman Sachs
Steve Temaras – CEO of Bed Bath and Beyond

Most of these people do /have given to RU.
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Not NEARLY at the level OP is describing, and not exclusively to Football.
 
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Scarlet16E said:
Hmmmm.
My giving to R fund went up 67% from 2014 to 2015, but I received no such email.
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Not saying anything about your $ amount, but it may not have qualified, or you were already high enough and the effort was to raise the sights of others. Usually how it works.
 
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ru66 said:
I was informed by email last week that I was in a R Fund raffle for free tickets to the audi club since my giving increased more that 10% from last year--did anyone here win that raffle, I didn't, but over 2000 contributors had a chance since they too increased their giving. It would be great if all of us had the ability to increase our giving every year --2088 of us did so between 2014-2015.
Click to expand...

Did you have to enroll in this raffle or was it done "automatically" ?
I know my contribution increases qualified at that level but I don't recall seeing anything on a Raffle ( other than the TD Club Raffle that I entered).
 
JERSEYROOTS said:
Not NEARLY at the level OP is describing, and not exclusively to Football.
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Well duh, since we don't have a Kevin plank or T. Boone Pickens (or a Phil Knight for that matter).
But how many schools do? Not many. Many more schools do well cultivating people like those on this list.

btw - Rutgers under Barchi has for the first time taken a professional approach to fundraising, and it appears to be working. Reports are that gifts have been increasing at a good rate even since the $5B drive was finished.
 
nope--just got email----

Congratulations!

You went 10% bigger for R Scarlet Knights!
Thank you for being 1 of 2,088 Rutgers Athletics supporters to increase their giving by ten percent or more from the 2014 to 2015 fiscal year! As part of our “GO 10% BIGGER” initiative, you will be entered into a free drawing for two (2) Audi Club access passes for your choice of the Rutgers vs. Michigan State football game on Saturday, October 10th or the Rutgers vs. Nebraska football game on Saturday, November 14th.
Our winner will be contacted by Tuesday, October 6th.
Your increased support continues to provide our student-athletes with the best possible environment in which to pursue their academic, athletic, and personal goals. All of us at Rutgers Athletics thank you!
Go RU!
Your Friends at R FUND

r_fund_logo_copy.jpg
 
JERSEYROOTS said:
Not saying anything about your $ amount, but it may not have qualified, or you were already high enough and the effort was to raise the sights of others. Usually how it works.
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My amount, while substantial to me, is not going to garner a lot of attention from RU.
But the poster above said that over 2000 donors qualified. Surely I am at a level among a group so large.
 
Scarlet16E said:
Well duh, since we don't have a Kevin plank or T. Boone Pickens (or a Phil Knight for that matter).
But how many schools do? Not many. Many more schools do well cultivating people like those on this list.

btw - Rutgers under Barchi has for the first time taken a professional approach to fundraising, and it appears to be working. Reports are that gifts have been increasing at a good rate even since the $5B drive was finished.
Click to expand...

It's been awhile since I left the RUF, but I hope the reports youre citing are correct. Remember, there is a difference between in an increased # of gifts and an increased # of donors.
 
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You attract "Big Money Donors" by cultivating a community of giving among small and mid-level donors.

The damning statistic of Rutgers philanthropy isn't the size of the school's endowment; it's the percentage of living alumni who have made gifts to the university of any size.

Chasing whales is fine, and we have people on the payroll who handle that for us (they were in San Francisco yesterday, leading a wonderful symposium on Climate Science hosted by President Barchi), but rather than put together lists of people who are already on lists at the Rutgers Foundation, challenge yourself to convince one person who's never made a gift to Rutgers since graduation (or who's stopped giving to Rutgers because of some perceived "slight") to make a monthly gift of $12 on their credit card, and leave it there in perpetuity.
 
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SanFranRutgers said:
You attract "Big Money Donors" by cultivating a community of giving among small and mid-level donors.

The damning statistic of Rutgers philanthropy isn't the size of the school's endowment; it's the percentage of living alumni who have made gifts to the university of any size.

Chasing whales is fine, and we have people on the payroll who handle that for us (they were in San Francisco yesterday, leading a wonderful symposium on Climate Science hosted by President Barchi), but rather than put together lists of people who are already on lists at the Rutgers Foundation, challenge yourself to convince one person who's never made a gift to Rutgers since graduation (or who's stopped giving to Rutgers because of some perceived "slight") to make a monthly gift of $12 on their credit card, and leave it there in perpetuity.
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I'm heading to the LA symposium this evening. Glad to read that you enjoyed it. Good idea too. Start small, start with what you can afford. It does make a difference.
 
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vkj91 said:
Jeff Towers is a billionaire but this board and NJ.com say he shouldn't have any influence. My understanding is it's ok for billionaires to have influence as long as we agree with their decisions......is that correct?
Click to expand...

Yeh, but he married into the money and he didn't go to Rutgers, so he doesn't count [winking].
 
Werblin left a very small amount to RU compared to his net worth, notwithstanding the natatorium being named for him. How about the $50M gift Georgetown just announced for the sports programs and other than MBB, sports is very much UNimportant there.
 
Scarlet16E said:
btw - Rutgers under Barchi has for the first time taken a professional approach to fundraising, and it appears to be working. Reports are that gifts have been increasing at a good rate even since the $5B drive was finished.
Click to expand...
I know people don't want to believe it but like the minor league way we ran athletics prior to Muclahy/Schiano our alumni development and fundraising were really quite small time. Starting with McCormick and under Barchi that has started to change.

Can you imagine any place else negotiating with a tiny number of disgruntled alumni that profited from their decentralized school affiliation group about who controls donations for a State University? Crazy.
 
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Not sure for how many years, but NBA Commissioner David Stern was making $25 million a year his last years at the job. He was Commissioner for 30 years.
 
HeavenUniv. said:
Not sure for how many years, but NBA Commissioner David Stern was making $25 million a year his last years at the job. He was Commissioner for 30 years.
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You would think he would be interested in making Rutgers basketball into a big time program but I guess not...
 
ru66 said:
nope--just got email----

Congratulations!

You went 10% bigger for R Scarlet Knights!
Thank you for being 1 of 2,088 Rutgers Athletics supporters to increase their giving by ten percent or more from the 2014 to 2015 fiscal year! As part of our “GO 10% BIGGER” initiative, you will be entered into a free drawing for two (2) Audi Club access passes for your choice of the Rutgers vs. Michigan State football game on Saturday, October 10th or the Rutgers vs. Nebraska football game on Saturday, November 14th.
Our winner will be contacted by Tuesday, October 6th.
Your increased support continues to provide our student-athletes with the best possible environment in which to pursue their academic, athletic, and personal goals. All of us at Rutgers Athletics thank you!
Go RU!
Your Friends at R FUND

r_fund_logo_copy.jpg
Click to expand...

I wonder who won... Anyone here?
 
SanFranRutgers said:
You attract "Big Money Donors" by cultivating a community of giving among small and mid-level donors.

That's only part of the equation.

Chasing whales is fine, and we have people on the payroll who handle that for us (they were in San Francisco yesterday, leading a wonderful symposium on Climate Science hosted by President Barchi), but rather than put together lists of people who are already on lists at the Rutgers Foundation, challenge yourself to convince one person who's never made a gift to Rutgers since graduation (or who's stopped giving to Rutgers because of some perceived "slight") to make a monthly gift of $12 on their credit card, and leave it there in perpetuity.
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Might I suggest that if the Development Office has the expertise to put on a symposium on Climate Science they belong somewhere else than the Development Office.
 
My feeling is that most big donors look for some degree of "on field" success before committing in a big way.
 
vkj91 said:
Jeff Towers is a billionaire but this board and NJ.com say he shouldn't have any influence. My understanding is it's ok for billionaires to have influence as long as we agree with their decisions......is that correct?
Click to expand...
Nope I have no problems with it and it's usually going to be a function of how much donated and also if what's being asked isn't totally out of the question. I gave a hypothetical about Towers and how it's possible to work with him if he wanted Flood to stay. There's always some give/take but how much give and how much take all depends on the circumstances. Btw not sure if he's the billionaire as opposed to his wife. She was the one who co-founded a hedge fund with her previous husband.

Wall Street money is the logical place to tap, how much of that we have out there now I don't know. In the decades to come I'd like to think the new business school will help with increasing numbers in that department.

You know Indra Nooyi's (Pepsi CEO) sister Chandrika Tandon and her husband donated 100 million to NYU's engineering school. It's being renamed after them. I'm not even sure what their connection is to the school. She's a trustee but I don't know that she ever attended or the husband for that matter. Maybe they have family going there I'm not sure but my goodness it would be nice if we could tap some of that kind of wealth that is located right around us.
 
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mdk01 said:
Might I suggest that if the Development Office has the expertise to put on a symposium on Climate Science they belong somewhere else than the Development Office.
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I think I have the correct person, and if I do, then you know that -- no -- you may not make such a ridiculous suggestion.
 
ru66 said:
I was informed by email last week that I was in a R Fund raffle for free tickets to the audi club since my giving increased more that 10% from last year--did anyone here win that raffle, I didn't, but over 2000 contributors had a chance since they too increased their giving. It would be great if all of us had the ability to increase our giving every year --2088 of us did so between 2014-2015.
Click to expand...


I got that email too but I didn't see that someone won it.
 
Whenever talk about big donors comes up, I always see this line about telling people how to spend their money or talk about spending other people's money and then a reprimand telling others here how to spend their money. Seems kind of ironic. I never suggest to anyone how to spend their money and frankly I'd guess a large majority of this board already donates whether big or small. I doubt the problem lies with people here.

I mentioned here a couple times that I have made several "spur of the moment" extra donations usually as a knee jerk but tangible response to the slanted media articles that pop up. If others want to do the same great and if they can't or don't that's okay too but I'm sure most here are donating. I don't have this need to scold others into action, especially others that are already likely contributing. If anything encourage but not scold.

These discussions are more about who and what sources we can tap that might be attracted to donate money to RU. It's not about telling anyone how to do anything, it's about what are the logical sources to go to that may be interested donating. Where in that is a suggestion telling someone to spend their money. It's more lamenting the fact that we have had trouble attracting bigger donors unlike other schools and then what are the sources that can be tapped to possibly attract those donations.

People can talk about the mathematics of how a bunch of smaller donations can lead to big numbers but the reality is the big numbers is what really move the needle for fundraising in practice. I've said before to really do it with a large number of small donations, you have to make donating as painless, mindless and easy as possible and have given some suggestions but it's not easy to do. If you see some of these projects at other schools you'll read about multiple donations in the millions to 10s of millions of dollars a lot of the time and that's what gets things done.

Talking about sources for those kind of donations and hopefully attracting them isn't telling anyone to anything. It's just a discussion which is the purpose of this board. I never see anyone say this guy sucks or that guy sucks because he doesn't donate to RU, it's more a lament of "man why do we have such trouble finding those deep pocketed donors."
 
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