Author: Peter Indall
President Prager’s recent resignation not only surprised the Occidental Community, but also worried many about the College’s future, especially in terms of fundraising. Tuition only covers about 60% of an Occidental education, while the remaining 40% must be sought through charitable donations and other means. One major responsibility of any college president must be the maintenance and expansion of fundraising efforts. The recent exit of Director of Institutional Advancement John Keats, as well as staff members such as Marion Finn, Daniel Riley and Susan Lee added to anxiety about the College’s fundraising prospects. December, often the largest month of alumni giving, could either make or break Occidental’s fundraising goals for 2007-2008.
Occidental’s Director of Communications Jim Tranquada offered information to allay and put in perspective the valid concerns of the College community. Last year, Occidental raised a record $25.7 million, the third record breaking year in a row. However, the one-time Young Estate gift of $8.7 million slightly skewed this figure higher than normal.
Overall for fiscal year 2007-08, the school is down 10% from last year at this time. “There is no clear correlation between the fundraising decline and President Prager’s resignation,” Tranquada said. Other factors, such as the state of the economy and the lack of a large estate gift contribute to the downturn from the previous year. In response to questions on the high turnover rate within Institutional Advancement, Tranquada said that “the average tenure in IA is 2.3 years” and that the high demand in the fundraising field contributes to their short term in the department. Keats, by comparison, served as Director of IA for eight years, and had long planned his departure from the school after President Mitchell left.
Several new appointments within Oxy’s fundraising apparatus have worked to aggressively revamp efforts to meet the school’s fiscal goals. Newly hired Director of Annual Giving Margot McAdams, worked on capital campaigns at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and has worked at her own alma mater, University of San Francisco. John G. “Tom” Tomlinson will begin as Vice President of Institutional Advancement on March 15, after more than 25 years as a top development officer at University of Southern California. Tomlinson said, “I look forward to this capstone of my career, helping to deepen and expand the 120-year-old culture of philanthropy at Occidental.” The school’s telefundraising program, which employs many students with work study awards, has been contracted out to Ruffalo Cody, a company that specializes in fundraising for non-profit organizations.
The recent appointment of Interim President Dr. Robert Skotheim, renowned for his turn around of the troubled Huntington Library, appears as a clear move to overcome any lack of confidence in Occidental College and to help reenergize fundraising efforts. Dr. Skotheim’s regional contacts, past presidency of Whitman College and local reputation emphasize his assets as the fourth president of the school in the same number of years. Tranquada said that Dr. Skotheim has affirmed that one main goals during his tenure as President here is “to make Occidental as attractive as possible to recruit strong candidates for president to serve a long tenure.”
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