Audio Interview with Forrest Hoglund, KU First chairman Click on icon More Information KU Endowment Association Related topics  • KU celebrates largest fund-raising campaign in university history  • KU Endowment announces steering committee for KU First campaign  • $500 million goals, projects detailed for KU First: Invest in Excellence campaign Media Advisory: Weekend activities will kickoff largest fund-raising campaign in KU history Search KU News releases Subscribe now to receive KU News by email

Contact: John Scarffe, KU Endowment Association, (785) 832-7336.

Radio News Line text:
KU announces $500M KU First fund-raising campaign

Editors note: THIS STORY IS EMBARGOED UNTIL 2PM TODAY

THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS CELEBRATES THE PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE LARGEST FUND-RAISING CAMPAIGN IN THE SCHOOLÿS HISTORY THIS WEEKEND.

THE PUBLIC PORTION OF THE CAMPAIGN, CALLED "KU FIRST: INVEST IN EXCELLENCE," BEGINS ON FRIDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 7, WITH A DINNER AND RECEPTION FOR 500 KU SUPPORTERS. A CAMPAIGN GOAL OF $500 MILLION WILL BE ANNOUNCED AT THAT TIME.

SATURDAYÿS EVENTS INCLUDE A PANCAKE BREAKFAST FOR KU FACULTY AND STAFF AND AWARDING 25 $1,000 SCHOLARSHIPS AT HALFTIME OF THE KU-UCLA FOOTBALL GAME.

LEAD BY A VOLUNTEER STEERING COMMITTEE AND THE KANSAS UNIVERSITY ENDOWMENT ASSOCIATION, KU FIRST HAS ALREADY RAISED $265 MILLION SINCE JULY 1, 1998.

FORREST HOGLUND, A 1956 GRADUATE OF KU, IS THE KU FIRST CAMPAIGN CHAIRMAN. AMONG THE FUND RAISING PRIORITIES FOR THE CAMPAIGN, HE SAYS, ARE A NEW SIX-STORY UNDERGRADUATE SCIENCE LABORATORY AND ADDITIONS TO THE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY AND THE SPENCER MUSEUM OF ART ON THE LAWRENCE CAMPUS; EXPANSION OF PRIMARY CARE AND PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAMS AT THE KU SCHOOL OF MEDICINE IN WICHITA; AND SUPPORT FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH ON ALL THE KU CAMPUSES. HOGLUND SAYS CAMPAIGN GOALS ALSO INCLUDE $116 MILLION FOR STUDENT SCHOLARSHIPS, AND $91 MILLION FOR FACULTY SUPPORT

Hoglund: "The Chancellor has a vision of getting to be a top 25 public university and if weÿre going to do that then we are going to have to invest significantly both in the students and in the faculty. (14 sec)

HOGLUND SAYS THE CAMPAIGN THEME, "KU FIRST: INVEST IN EXCELLENCE," REFLECTS KU CHANCELLOR ROBERT HEMENWAYÿS VISION OF MAKING KU A TOP 25 PUBLIC UNIVERSITY.

Hoglund: "We want them to think about KU first in their philanthropic giving but even more so we want people to feel like KU can become first in a number of categories. The "Invest in Excellence"-- we want them to invest, and we think this is an excellent place to do it." (15 sec)

AS PART OF KU FIRST , HOGLUND AND HIS WIFE SALLY PLEDGED $4 MILLION FOR CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW BRAIN IMAGING CENTER AT THE KU MEDICAL CENTER IN KANSAS CITY. HOGLUND SAYS SINCE HIS PLEDGE LAST SUMMER, OTHER FUNDS HAVE BEEN COMMITTED.

Hoglund: "So we put the, what I call the seed money in, the 4 million dollars and that certainly wasnÿt enough to cover the whole Brain Imaging Institute. But now the state has put money in, the federal government has put money in, and once the Brain Imaging Center is up and running it should become self-funding from grants from the NIH and other places." (19 sec.) GROUNDBREAKING ON THE NEW BRAIN IMAGING CENTER AT THE KU MEDICAL CENTER TAKES PLACE ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 10.

HOGLUND SAYS THAT KU WILL REACH ITS FUND RAISING GOAL OF $500 MILLION. HE SAYS THE RESULTS OF A POLL OF KU SUPPORTERS IS ONE REASON HEÿS CONFIDENT.

Hoglund: "78 percent of the people talked to said that KU was either first or second on their philanthropic list and to get that high of a percentage of an admittedly hand picked audience, but a fairly large audience was a real strong affirmation of the Jayhawk spirit."-- (15 sec.)

THE KU FIRST: INVEST IN EXCELLENCE CAMPAIGN WILL CONCLUDE IN 2004.

The Kansas University Endowment Association is an independent, non-profit organization serving as the official fund-raising and fund-management organization for the University of Kansas. Founded in 1891, KU Endowment is the first foundation of its kind at a U.S. public university and one of the largest.