Page 46 - Education World November 2022

Cover Story

Successful fundraising basics development.
• Name the foundation or fundraising institution carefully. A founda-
tion or fund with a neutral name is more likely to attract a large
merica’s top-ranked, especially Ivy League universi- number of donors. A foundation named in memoriam of an
ties have transformed fundraising for campus devel- individual or family is less likely to attract widespread support.
Aopment, establishment of libraries, laboratories and • Governance. Ensure that a substantial number of respected
research facilities, recruiting best faculty and awarding merit alumni, education, industry and society leaders are trustees
scholarships into a science and/or fine art. As a result, they or on the board of governors.
are fully equipped with state-of-the-art academic, co-curricular • Create a Gift tree. It should stipulate initial donation amounts
and sports education facilities set in inspiringly landscaped required to become a founder-trustee, getting naming rights
campuses. By consistently stimulating alumni, philanthropists, for buildings, facilities (libraries, gyms, sports ground etc),
and people committed to education causes, vintage universi- scholarships etc.
ties such as Harvard, Yale, Princeton, among • Draw up a good project report. It should be
others have accumulated endowment cor- well documented, supported by Power Point
puses which exceed the government of India’s presentations etc. Ensure you write detailed
annual budgetary allocation for the education annual reports to sustain funding.
of 260 million in-school children. • Compile a comprehensive alumni database. De-
Fortunately perhaps because of continu- tails of alumni with full addresses, emails and
ous propagation by EducationWorld of the cell phone numbers should be maintained.
mantra that ‘every alum is the ATM of his/ Ensure it is continuously updated.
her alma mater’, the number of schools and • Establish donor committees. Every committee
colleges and universities initiating fundraising should be anchored by a donor alumnus
drives to finance institutional development is in numerous cities, states and countries.
multiplying. However, the great majority of Maintain regular contact with them.
institution promoters and leaders are totally • Establish a fundraising office. Schools should
unaware of ways and means by which they Ashish Dhawan employ at least one full-time professional.
can begin to raise funding and accumulate Colleges and universities should employ
endowment corpuses. more fundraising/marketing professionals following the ex-
In this connection, EducationWorld interviewed Ashish ample of India’s IITs, which have established well-staffed and
Dhawan, an alumnus of Yale and Harvard universities and funded offices to maintain updated alumni databases and
prime driver of the crowd-funded Ashoka University (estb. mine other information.
2016) established at a project cost of Rs.1,500 crore. Within a • Heads of institutions must be actively involved. In India, most
few years of its promotion, this private liberal arts and science school and university heads consider it infra dig to become
university has risen high in the public esteem and is ranked involved with fundraising. In Harvard University, the president
India’s #2 private university in the EW India Higher Education devotes 50 percent of her time to fundraising related activities.
Rankings 2022-23. A pioneer investment banker, currently Resource mobilisation is not a side activity. Trusts, school and
Dhawan is promoter-chairman of the Delhi-based Central university leaders should own it.
Square Foundation (estb. 2017), a not-for-profit engaged in • Institutional leaders must demonstrate project execution skills.
education research and philanthropy. In the interview, Dhawan Adherence to timelines, recruiting competent professionals to
outlined a roadmap for educationists and leaders intent on build reputation for credibility and accountability is essential
raising funding for education foundations and/or institution for successful and sustained fundraising.

dustry in 2012 to establish the Delhi- vised to learn from American universi- year, a sum expended to attract and
based Central Square Foundation with ties which have developed fundraising award scholarships to high calibre
an initial endowment of Rs.50 crore to into a well-developed science and art. scholars (including Dr. C. Raj Kumar
build capacity and capability in Indian For instance, through continuous quoted above) from around the world.
education (see box). year-round professionally managed Because of its financial independence
This is good advice because the fundraising America’s routinely top- and massive endowment, Harvard can
great majority of promoters, princi- ranked Harvard University has ac- afford to follow a means-tested ‘need
pals and managements of India’s pe- cumulated a stupendous endowment blind’ admissions policy under which
rennially cash-strapped schools and corpus aggregating $53 billion (Rs.4.3 all scholars meriting admission are
higher education institutions (HEIs) lakh crore) which is carefully invested awarded means-tested scholarships.
tend to be innocent about the basics in stocks and securities to earn the In addition, Harvard can afford to
of fundraising. They would be well-ad- university an estimated $5 billion per recruit the world’s best academics

46 EDUCATIONWORLD NOVEMBER 2022