For seven years, the Bold & Blue campaign has been raising money with a focus on students and faculty, and a goal of $500 million, is now coming to end with a big reveal of the amount raised to be held on April 25.
The historic reveal of the Bold & Blue campaign will be at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center and is open to anyone. Plans to have musical performances and a variety of student groups and athletes to be present, the foundation wants to encourage that this will be an event to remember.
This campaign is the third comprehensive campaign that SDSU has done with the largest campaign of all South Dakota college fundraising history. The campaign has exceeded its primary goal and will reveal the exact amount raised with their “Celebration at the Oscar” event.
“The first one [campaign] was a $50 million goal, the second was a $200 million goal, we raised 255 million and then this one at $500 million,” SDSU foundation President Steve Erpenbach said. “It’s the largest in the state by far, and twice as large as our previous one.”
The campaigns’ goal was originally lower, but the foundation, along with President Barry Dunn, decided to go for $500 million. According to Dunn, discussion was had to set the goal at $425 million, then to $450 million, and ultimately decided to take a chance at $500 million.
Though surpassing their goal was not the only surprise. This campaign’s main focus was the people that make SDSU. Much of the money has been set for faculty endowments and additional scholarships and opportunities for students.
Erpenbach has already seen the growth and opportunity that the Bold & Blue campaign has provided to students across the campus. With the increase in enrollment, Erpenbach shared how scholarships matter and this campaign has doubled the number of scholarships that can be given out. The campaign has allowed for student groups such as the Pride and the concert choir to travel more places with additional financial help. It has also grown more student experiences with clubs, student groups and athletics such as the new renovation of Frost Arena.
“Things that make this university even more attractive to people because it’s not just the major or the classes they are going to take, but just the things they get to experience that not every university has,” Erpenbach said. “Hopefully they [students] are seeing some of that now, but it will impact students for generations and generations.”
One of the achievements from this campaign, one that President Dunn is grateful for, is the more than 30 thousand unique donors that Dunn credits as one of the great successes of the Bold & Blue campaign.
“I have president friends across the country and nobody could believe that we had 30 thousand donors,” Dunn said. “The 500 million is really great, but the big shocker for people is how did you get 30 thousand donors, and one-day for state was a part of that.”
Dunn contributes part of the campaign’s success to one-day for state and the opportunity for students to not only be fundraisers but also act as donors as well.
“Getting students to chip in $25 to their club is a really neat way for students to be involved with their future,” Dunn said.
The Bold & Blue campaign was first introduced in 2017. The SDSU foundation worked to learn what the university needed, communicated with donors, and planned out a specific goal according to Erpenbach. The foundation worked alongside a group of alumni to reach out to the community to spread information and grow connections with faculty, alumni and SDSU fans.
“It’s typical for university foundations when they do a big campaign to have campaign leadership,” Kim Tyler, one of the campaign co-chairs and SDSU alum, said. “People who have been highly engaged with the campus or community. It doesn’t mean they are the biggest dollar donors, sometimes it is, but a lot of times it’s the involvement people have and the time and energy they are willing to have in the campaign.”
Tyler, along with her fellow co-chairs Jerry Lohr and Dana Dykhouse, worked at growing and engaging in relationships with donors and alumni. They participated and worked with the foundation by inspiring support and exposure for the campaign through meetings with friends of the university, believing in the success of the campaign.
“A hugely successful campaign can truly transform a university and then ensure its success for future generations,” Tyler said.
Endowments and scholarships were the primary focus of the campaign. The university saw an increase in investment in faculty leadership and research positions. The campaign has also had more college specific gifts and donations with about $170 million going toward scholarships all across the university.
“I hope the students understand how much people want you to succeed in your life,” Dunn said. “From the alumni perspective, this place helped them succeed and so they are willing to turn around when they get to a point in life and give a helping hand to somebody else.”
Once the celebration is past, the foundation plans to meet and address what is next for the campus and ways that people can continue to help.
“The day after the celebration, our meeting will be on some of the things that are important and our next chapter,” Erpenbach said. “Won’t necessarily be a campaign, but we certainly want to prioritize the needs and communicate how they [donors] can help.”