University Launches Campaign Arkansas and Sets Fundraising Goal at $1 Billion

Photo by Whit Pruitt.

Campaign Arkansas is publicly launching with a goal of raising $1 billion for the University of Arkansas.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas officially launched its multi-year fundraising effort, Campaign Arkansas, with a series of weekend events designed to help celebrate the occasion while creating excitement for the campaign’s future impact on campus and beyond. The goal: to raise a total of $1 billion to support the university’s academic mission and other key priorities.

“One of the top priorities of the campaign is to increase need-based scholarships for Arkansans, but that’s just the beginning,” Chancellor Joe Steinmetz said. “Our commitment to Campaign Arkansas is critical to the future of the University of Arkansas and our efforts to keep tuition affordable while enhancing academic opportunities for our faculty and students. Without increases in state funding, private fundraising is the mechanism that allows us to support student scholarships, research and innovation, study abroad opportunities, the creation of new interdisciplinary programs and the renovation of our existing facilities.”

Campaign Arkansas will raise funds for scholarships and fellowships, endowed chairs, capital projects, interdisciplinary academic programs and other priority areas that will advance the university’s goals and objectives. This funding is needed to provide the level of education, experience and environment that ensures the U of A remains a top-tier research institution for students and the state. The capital campaign is scheduled to conclude on June 30, 2020. Alumni and friends who make up the campaign’s volunteer leadership committee voted to set the initial goal of $1 billion at their fall meeting Friday, Sept. 16.

Campaign Arkansas seeks to continue the university’s transformation, started by the billion-dollar Campaign for the Twenty-First Century, allowing the U of A to recruit and retain top-level faculty and prepare its graduates to make significant economic and research impacts.

“Clearly, the impact of our previous campaign is still being felt on our campus today,” said Mark Power, interim vice chancellor for university advancement. “We hope to build upon that foundation with Campaign Arkansas. We believe our alumni and friends are excited about the opportunity to support the programs and needs that mean the most to them while taking the university to new heights.”

All colleges and schools on campus, as well as units such as Diversity Affairs, Student Affairs, Intercollegiate Athletics, the Arkansas Alumni Association, University Bands, the Pryor Center and University Libraries, will benefit from Campaign Arkansas. Each college, school and unit is represented by volunteers who serve on the Campaign Arkansas Steering Committee, and each unit also has its own committee of volunteers, specifically dedicated to unit-level success.

Reynie Rutledge, chair of the UA System Board of Trustees, will serve as chair of the Campaign Arkansas Steering Committee through June 30, 2017. He is joined by Johnelle Hunt, Marilyn Bogle, Boyce Billingsley, Bob and Sandra Connor, Doug and Shelley McMillon and Bill Dillard II on the campaign’s executive committee.

“I am very excited to be leading Campaign Arkansas through its launch this year,” said Rutledge. “One of the great things about the campaign will be its support of Chancellor Steinmetz’s strategic goals for the university. The Campaign Arkansas Steering Committee will be leading the charge to raise money for these priorities, which will ultimately elevate our campus to the next level and continue to make it accessible for students from Arkansas.”

Now that Campaign Arkansas has officially launched, the public can expect to hear more about the university’s fundraising initiatives, as well as the progress being made toward the campaign’s goal. To learn more and join the effort, visit campaign.uark.edu.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.