U. employees gave back $1.9 million

Nearly 1,500 out of 13,000 University of Utah employees who were solicited by school officials last fiscal year gave more than $1.9 million right back to their employer.

To compare, the U. raised about as much over the same period by calling on about 135,000 alumni.

It's money that is looked at as a relatively small but vital chunk of change out of the $130 million the school raised between July 2003 and July 2004 in monetary gifts from individuals, corporations, foundations and other sources. The figure was released this week to the U. Board of Trustees.

It all happens with fund-raising drives that start with a big "push" in the fall, followed by mailers or reminders during the school year to give. Last year's drive carried the theme, "Partners in Excellence."

Employee giving is seen as the school setting an example as it heads out into the community to seek donations, according to Jeffery Driggs, U. director of annual giving.

"There isn't any kind of pressure," Driggs said. "Nobody's boss is standing over them and nobody's boss gets a report of how much anyone is giving or if they're giving."

Most of the money raised by employees goes back into the U. hospital, medical research, scholarship funds, athletics, the on-campus KUER/KUED radio stations and U. libraries.

Similar fund-raising efforts take place on other campuses like Utah State University, where a large number of employees contribute toward the school.

"The School of the Arts is a big thing we're pushing," said USU spokesman John DeVilbiss. USU will also begin a new fund drive this fall.

U. mechanical engineering professor Larry DeVries recently gave a "few thousand" toward a U. School of Engineering building. After 40 years at the U., he jokes about not being able to "enjoy" the new building once it is finished. He and others, DeVries said, give because of their "loyalty" to the school.

"I've never in my whole time there felt any pressure at all to do it," he said. "To some extent, we're giving money to ourselves."

The state, DeVries added, treats the school well, but discretionary funds are hard to come by. "Gifts can help bridge that gap."

The 2004 Legislature found $565 million for public higher education in Utah, but big funding gaps — like $40 million for enrollment growth spread among the nine state institutions — still mean schools such as the U. need to juggle budgets to maintain fiscal balance.

Driggs noted that the U., which receives state support, is a nonprofit organization and that it is essentially a charity. U. employees, he said, are showing how people who best know the needs of the school — the people who work there — are the first in line to support the U.'s efforts in research and charitable causes.

Many employees, in addition to former students and other U. supporters, choose to leave large sums of money to the school after their deaths through a will or charitable annuity, according to Jeff Paoletti, U. director of planned giving.

"Somewhere along the line," Paoletti said, "there's been some sort of an affinity, love, gratitude or some emotional pull from the individual to the university."

---

E-mail: sspeckman@desnews.com