ETSU was honored by sister institutions for its public relations program, “Campaign for ETSU Tomorrow” during the 2001 Tennessee Advancement Resources Council awards ceremony.
Headed by the ETSU Foundation, which is the gift-giving arm of the university, the campaign has, over a five-year period, generated approximately $85 million in private gifts.
With an initial goal of $40 million, the success of the campaign encouraged Foundation members to raise the goal to $100 million.
“Oct. 2 is the university’s 90th birthday and we hope to be at the $90 million mark by then,” said Dr. Richard Manahan, vice president for university advancement and executive vice president of the ETSU Foundation. “By Feb. 1, we hope to announce that we’ve reached the goal of $100 million. I think we’ll exceed that.”
Comprised of four main components, the campaign funds will be used to improve quality education, to promote teaching, research and service, to support science, technology and medical advancements and to develop featured facilities.
“One of the neat things about this campaign is that it is not a capital program for buildings, but a program for people,” Manahan said.
Since its 1997 inception, the Campaign for ETSU Tomorrow has provided more than $3.5 million in scholarships.
The program also encourages recruitment of exceptional faculty by funding professorships, chairs of excellence and faculty development.
“The program’s total emphasis is on people,” Manahan said.
The campaign has received unprecedented support particularly this last year when $36 million of the $85 million was raised.
“This was the biggest giving year in the history of the university,” Manahan said. “We’ve more than doubled the amount of giving from the previous year. It’s been a very significant, very exciting year for us.”
During 2000-2001, over $928,000 in scholarships was awarded by the Foundation, ETSU faculty contributed $235,000, and Parametric Technology Corp. contributed $19.8 million in software to equip the Scott M. Niswonger Digital Media Center.
The tremendous response to the ETSU Tomorrow campaign can, according to Manahan, be attributed to the efforts of a dedicated faculty and staff and the commitment of the east Tennessee region and alumni.
“It’s an exciting program,” Manahan said. “A lot of people have stepped forward to show their commitment and pride in the university.”
In addition to the TARC award, the campaign received recognition from the Council of Advancement and Support of Education who presented ETSU with a CASE District III award in the category of Total Education Fund-raising programs.
For the sixth consecutive year, ETSU leads the Tennessee Board of Regents institutions in private giving and, according to a TBR report, is ranked seventh in the nation in the amount of private dollars raised among public regional universities.

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