Nearly two years after the former Medical University of Ohio Foundation and The University of Toledo Foundation merged, the new UT Foundation continues to realize cost savings from streamlined operations and a reduced staff.
At their June 25 quarterly meeting, UT Foundation trustees approved an operating budget of $1.88 million for the 2010 fiscal year, a slight decrease from the 2009 budget of $1.9 million.
The operating budget funds all Foundation services, including gift processing, fund management, and alumni/donor data base administration.
The budget is funded through an administrative fee, which is currently 1.25 percent of the Foundation endowment’s three-year average market value.
“With the economic challenges faced by individuals and organizations across the country, our role as fiscal steward is obviously more important than ever,” said Brenda Lee, UT Foundation president.
“Besides working to contain our necessary costs, our ongoing long-term goal is to continue to reduce the administrative fee rate,” said Ms. Lee.
That rate has gradually been decreased from a one-time level of 2 percent, she said, with the realized savings resulting in additional funding available for the University’s needs and opportunities.
Trustees also approved a $575,000 grant to assist the Office of Institutional Advancement’s fund-raising efforts.
In other action, the board OK’d expenditure uses from an unrestricted estate gift from Betty Rapp Tarr (A/S ‘36). The bequest, expected to total approximately $500,000, will be distributed at the request of the Office of the President as follows: $100,000 for academic initiatives; $90,000 for priority administrative needs; $105,000 for priority needs of the Office of the President; $30,000 for community and student organization support; $75,000 for Rocket Ventures, a Venture Capital fund that supports the growth of area technology-based businesses; and $100,000 for construction of the Veterans’ Plaza.
In addition, the following officers were reappointed for the next fiscal year: chair: Chuck Sullivan (Bus ‘59), retired chair & CEO of Interstate Bakeries; vice chair: Greg Kopan, president of BeaconFinancial, LLC; treasurer: Anne Marie Riley, director of pension management for Dana Corporation; and secretary: Hussien Shousher (Eng ‘81), president & CEO of Gem International Inc.
The board also recognized outgoing Foundation trustees Wallen (Buzz) Crane and Mark Schaffer for their years of service.