• Format
  • Publications (documents)
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  • Text
• Source institution
  • Western Carolina University
• Identifier
  • HL_WesternCarolinian_2009-10-30_Vol75_No15_03

Page 3 WESTERN CAROLINIAN October 26-30, 2009 NEWS WCU Fundraising Campaign Exceeds Goal, Tops $51 million By Sarah Kucharski and Bessie Dietrich Goggins Contributing Writers Officials at Western Carolina University announced on Thursday, Oct. 15 that the first comprehensive fundraising campaign in university history has netted a grand total of drumroll, please $51,826,915 in, private giving for endowed scholar- ships, professorships and program- matic support. The tally, revealed as part of an afternoon of events to celebrate the conclusion of The Campaign for Western Carolina, is more than $11 million above the $40 million goal announced when the campaign was publicly launched in February 2007. We have come further and pro- gressed faster than we could have imagined when this campaign be- gan, WCU Chancellor John W. Bardo said. Not only have we reached our goal, but we have far exceeded it. We had hoped to be able to raise $40 million by 2010, and here we are announcing more than $51 million on Oct. 15, 2009, a most historic day in the life of our university. In fact, leaders of the fundrais- ing campaign reminded the crowd of students, faculty, staff and bene- factors on hand for the announce- ment that the initial goal was not quite as lofty. Because it was to be our first campaign, we tested the viability of the vision and the possibility of a modest goal of raising $20 million, said Phillip D. Walker, a senior vice president for BB&T who served as campaign chair. Based on feed- " back from personal, confidential in- terviews by our outside consultant with key external stakeholders, we determined to move forward with the campaign and set $20 million'as an internal preliminary target. In announcing the grand total, Bardo said that 59 percent of the dollars raised during the campaign came from WCU alumni, while 34 percent came from other friends, and 7 percent through sources such as corporations and foundations. A total of 9,564 donors from 48 states have contributed to the campaign, including 608 Western Carolina fac- ulty and staff members, and 5,661 alumni, he said. Thirty-four percent of the amount raised in the campaign will go toward endowed professor- ships, which allow the university to attract accomplished scholars in a variety of academic disciplines. Thirty percent of the dollars raised will fund merit-based scholarships that will help WCU recruit highly qualified students, while 26 percent will be directed to current use initia- tives such as the Loyalty Fund and Catamount Club, and 10 percent to programmatic endowed funds for academics, athletics and other uni- versity needs. Now more than ever before, the university is attracting and com- peting for the very best students. Unfortunately, we have lost some of these students because other uni- versities have offered them larger scholarships, said Betty Farmer, professor of communication and co- chair of the faculty and staff cam- paign council. Fundraising is one of the last Chancellor John W. Bardo in front of the tote board with WCU's fundraising total. legs in Western Carolinas ascent to the top of the college rankings. Everything else is in place. We have the faculty. We have the facilities, _We have what it takes to create ex- traordinary opportunities, said. Farmer Josh: Cotton, WCUs Student _ Government Association president, thanked the many benefactors and campaign volunteers who were on hand for the days activities. Through the countless generous donations and hard work by numer- ous individuals, the campaign has yielded scholarships that have been offered back to the student body, Cotton said. These scholarships as- sist students by enhancing their ex- perience here on our beautiful cam- pus. That is why I am truly proud of the success of this campaign. Scholarship recipients Christina | Banner, a music education major, and Brandon Robinson, a current WCU graduate student who also earned his undergraduate degree in history from Western Carolina in 2005, shared their thoughts about the difference that private contribu- tions make in the life of students When I received my first schol- arship as a freshman to help me at- tend Western Carolina, that signaled for me that point of confidence where I knew that WCU and the history department had faith in me and my abilities, said Robinson, the first member of his family to at- tend college. Thats why, when the campaign began in 2007, | started my own lifelong commitment of giving to the history department, which I plan to do for the rest of my life, because I know what it means. A sophomore majoring in musi- cal theatre, Banner said receiving scholarship assistance has meant she has not had to take a part-time job to help pay expenses, leaving time to focus on studies and on ex- - tracurricular activities ranging from working backstage at theatrical pro- ductions to involvement in. student leadership groups. Receiving a 'scholarship: has really freed me up. to be able to take advantage of the college experience without having to worry about finances, she said. It was concerns over students being able to afford college and the quality of their educational experi- ence that led Wesley Elingburg, a 1978 graduate of WCU and retired chief financial officer with Labora- tory Corp. of America, to make a major gift as part of the campaign. It pains me when I hear sto- ries of students who want to go to school, but struggle financially to be able to do so. I would like every student who wants to go to college to be able to do so without the bur- den of debt, said Elingburg, who earlier this year issued a challenge to encourage increased giving to WCUs Loyalty Fund, which pro- vides scholarships and other sup- port for WCU students, faculty and programs. Ive given back to Western Car- olina. Anytime Western calls upon me, I am there and I will always be there, he said. Western gave me the foundation that led me through my adult life. When I came to West- ern, I did not know what I wanted to do with my life. But there were fac- ulty here and faculty advisers who gave me that guidance. For that, I will be forever grateful. A $250,000 gift from Elingburg in 2006 led to the establishment of the Wesley Elingburg Professorship of Business Innovation, a position now held by Louis Buck, a former executive at one of the nations iarg- est investor-owned energy compa- nies. The campaign means a lot to the university, especially during these economic times when state funding is not what it used to be, Buck said. This support gives us, the opportunity to make a differ- ence in the lives of young students, ' and to help this university be even more distinctive in the future and to make a difference in the lives of even more young people. Robert McMahan, dean of WCUs Kimmel School of Con- struction Management and Tech- nology, told the crowd assembled for the announcement that the cam- paign is touching every aspect of the universitystudents, faculty and staff; academics and athletics; de- partments and programs. At the heart of this story is an extraordinary organization. Ex- traordinary organizations dont just wait for opportunities. They seize them and make them outstanding, McMahan said. When you give to any extraordinary organization, your gift is magnified. What you have given to and supported is an extraordinary organization that is really setting a national model for higher education and the role of the university in our economy and our society. Joan MagNeill, former chair of the WCU board of trustees, spoke from the perspective of a benefac- tor. Tomorrow, were going to have lunch with Ashley, the recipient of our scholarship. For us, shes really what its all about, said MacNeill. Ashley has expressed her gratitude and thanks to us for the financial help she had received. But what she "Photo by Mark Haskett doesnt know is we really thank her. She and students like Brandon and Christina have given us hope. They make us feel really good about the future. Bardo thanked four groups that had 100 percent of their respective memberships give to the campaign the b ard of trustees, the Founda- tion board of directors, university executive council, and the Univer- sity Police Department. After the announcement, which included a performance of scenes from the universitys upcoming pro- duction of A Midsummer Nights Dream, students, donors and cam- paign volunteers enjoyed a perfor- mance by Matt Stillwell, country music star and WCU alumnus. The concert, originally scheduled as part of an outdoors block party on the lawn of A.K. Hinds University Center, was moved indoors due to inclement weather. Despite the success of The Cam- paign for Western Carolina, univer- sity leaders say they will continue efforts to seek outside support. For. more information, visit campaign. weu.edu. - (Editor-in-Chief Justin contributed to this report.) Caudell State Health Insurance Rates to Rise in January for Obese, Smokers | By Adam Crisp Staff Writer The next time you decide to go for an extra large value meal, or go to light up, you could be cost- ing yourself more than what you realize. If you work for the state of North Carolina and are on their health insurance plan, be pre- pared to take a nicotine and body mass index (BMI) test. Starting next July with smoking, and July of 2011 with the BML, the state will penalize those people who smoke and have a BMI of 40% and over. The penalty will be an extra $25 a month. The state pays for over 600,000 peoples health care costs. Last year an additional $250 million was needed to bail out the $2.6 billion health care bill. The state decided to target smokers and obese people due to the fact that they are the top reason for health care costs in North Carolina. As North Carolina is only the second state to adopt this policy, there are no figures as to the real world decline in the states health care payouts. Many feel that this move is an infringement on privacy. The thought of getting tested for a legal substance has caused the State Em- ployees Association to speak out. They claim that if the state would have fixed their health care plan in the first place then these. actions wouldnt be needed. There is also some controversy because while the state sets the price increase for individuals with a BMI of.40%, health experts con- tend that a BMI of 30% is the start of obesity. The other state to impose higher rates for obese insurance members is Alabama. Their limit is a BMI of 35%. They also have additional tests and penalties for those with blood pressure of 160/100 and high- er. Another. problem facing the plan is that the calculations that are done to determine the BMI dont take muscle into account. A person who is muscular can easily tip the scales and be ranked among those who have a high BMI due to fat. While even the military takes this into account and has backup tests in order to offset this problem, the state of North Carolina has yet to: come up with a plan to account for

The Western Carolinian is Western Carolina University's student-run newspaper. The paper was published as the Cullowhee Yodel from 1924 to 1931 before changing its name to The Western Carolinian in 1933.

• Creator
  • Western Carolina University
• Format
  • Publications (documents)
• Type
  • Text
• Date
  • Date original: 2009-10-30
• Extent
  • Dimension: 14" x 11.5"
  • Pages: 12
• Subject - Topic
  • College student newspapers and periodicals
  • Cullowhee (N.C.) -- Newspapers
  • Universities and colleges -- North Carolina -- Cullowhee -- Newspapers
  • Western Carolina University -- Periodicals
• Location
  • Jackson County (N.C.)
  • Cullowhee (N.C.)
• Source institution
  • Western Carolina University
• Source Collection
  • WCU Students Newspapers Collection
• Identifier
  • HL_WesternCarolinian_2009-10-30_Vol75_No15
• Repository
  • Western Carolina University Hunter Library