A record $354.5 million in private support was provided to the University of Nebraska in fiscal year 2023 (FY23). Donors supported all campuses of the university: the University of Nebraska at Kearney, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, the University of Nebraska Medical Center and its clinical partner, Nebraska Medicine, and the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture in Curtis.
This is the fourth consecutive year that giving eclipsed $300 million annually to the University of Nebraska. Giving was driven in part by the University of Nebraska Foundation’s current comprehensive campaign, Only in Nebraska: A Campaign for Our University’s Future, which began in 2018 and was announced publicly in November 2022. The campaign goal is to raise $3 billion and reach 150,000 unique donors to support the themes of student access and success; faculty, academic and clinical excellence; and transformational research and innovation.
Donors created 213 new expendable funds and 162 new endowed funds in FY23, with the majority of these funds directed to the campaign’s top priority of student support. The total number of funds held by the foundation is now 11,453. Almost all gifts received, 99%, were restricted to a specific university use. Gifts were directed to the university per the donors’ designations, which, aside from student support, included academic and athletic programs; faculty support, including recruitment and retention; research; and capital projects. Examples include support for the UNK-UNMC Rural Health Education Building, creation of the Pancreatic Cancer Center of Excellence, creation of a new innovation and excellence fund at UNO and new scholarships for students at the University of Nebraska College of Law, UNMC College of Pharmacy, UNMC College of Nursing and UNO College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media.
In addition to the record fundraising year, 58,072 donors gave to the foundation during FY23, the second highest total ever. Almost half the donors, or 49%, were alumni of the university, with friends, organizations, corporations and foundations making up the balance.
The foundation reports all fundraising results in accordance with the Council for Advancement and Support of Education’s Global Reporting Standards, which govern reporting for educational philanthropy at schools, colleges and universities.
Read the full news release regarding fiscal year 2023 fundraising results.
Consolidated financial statements are prepared according to generally accepted accounting principles and are audited by the foundation’s independent auditor. For FY23, total assets under the University of Nebraska Foundation’s management were $3.2 billion. Seventy-two percent of its assets, or $2.3 billion, are endowed funds. The largest is the foundation endowment. The one-year return on the foundation endowment for the year ending June 30, 2023, was 9.8%. Given the long-term horizon of a university endowment, the foundation’s primary measure is its five-year annualized return relative to benchmarks. The five-year annualized return of the foundation’s endowment as of June 30, 2023, was 6.2%, matching its benchmark. The University of Nebraska Foundation endowment is ranked among the top 25 public university endowments in the country for public, doctoral-level universities. Read the full fiscal year 2023 endowment report.
The University of Nebraska Foundation continues to operate efficiently and effectively and is ranked 18th in the country for funds received by public, doctoral-level universities. The foundation raises more than $7 for every $1 spent.
